The Jets are improving. Whether they show it depends on which week you’re watching.
Their season has been an up-and-down proposition, with victories in the odd weeks and defeats in the even. The inconsistency has been no more clear than in the past eight days, with a 40-point loss to the Bengals followed by a 26-20 win over the previously one-loss Saints.
“We’ve been win one, lose one, win one, lose one the whole season,” coach Rex Ryan told reporters after the game. “We’re going to lose to the bye week. There’s no question in my mind. I’ll tell you that right now. Hopefully, we’ll get back around, but we’re going to lose that game.”
After the bye, the Jets face the Bills, Ravens, Dolphins, Raiders, Panthers, Browns, and Dolphins. A team capable of beating the Patriots and Saints should be able to win most of those games; a team capable of losing to the hapless Steelers could lose most of those games.
Perhaps the Jets will simply keep winning one and losing one in the hopes they’ll eventually win one they should lose and finish above .500 and in position for the sixth seed in the AFC.
At 5-4, the Jets currently find themselves in the No. 6 spot in the conference. If they can ultimately pull off what seemed inconceivable before the season, the Jets can look back to the day when Rex ran his record against his brother, Rob, to 5-0 and running back Chris Ivory gained 139 yards against the team that didn’t want him as the pivotal win during a season in which the Jets have established themselves as an unlikely contender.