New York Jets, Mike Maccagnan
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According to a new analytical report, the New York Jets should get comfy because they might be back in the top-10 of the 2019 NFL Draft. 

The offseason is supposed to be the ultimate time for NFL fans. Everyone is tied for first place and anything can happen, well that’s how New York Jets fans often feel in the offseason.

Usually, there are even some undercover meetings between the rest of the AFC East (Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, and the Jets) in some dank basement drawing up plans on how one of these teams can knock off the New England Patriots.

This is supposed to be a happy time for fans in the NFL, but I guess not everyone is an optimist.

That would include ESPN Senior Writer Aaron Schatz who gave his top-10 prediction for 2019 based on DVOA ratings (defense-adjusted value over average). There were some familiar names in this projection including the Jets, of course, here’s what he had to say:

New York Jets (projection of seven wins and holding the eighth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft):

Let’s accept that the Jets’ 10-6 season in 2015 was a bit of a fluke. Otherwise, the Jets have finished between 24th and 32nd in DVOA in the other five seasons since 2012. They averaged 5.6 wins in those seasons. They can make another change at quarterback, and the young defense could improve a bit, but there isn’t much of a reason to expect substantial change for the Jets.

If that isn’t a death sentence I’m not sure what is, “there isn’t much of a reason to expect substantial change for the Jets.” Well, I guess we might as well pack it in and go home, kids.

I thought that perhaps the 2017 season for the Jets would create some believers out there, I guess I was wrong. A ton of publications indicated that perhaps the Jets wouldn’t even win a game last season:

  • Can the Jets really go 0-16? (Joe Giglio of NJ.com).
  • The Jets are going 0-16. (Charles Curtis of the USA Today).
  • ESPN analyst predicts Jets don’t win a game (James Parks of 247 Sports).

Not only did the Jets win games in 2017, but they were competitive in more games than not. Six of their 11 losses were by one score or less and the Jets were only truly blown out three times (at the Raiders, at the Broncos, and at the Patriots), hardly embarrassing by any means.

When you only win five games and pick in the top-six of the NFL Draft, obviously everything didn’t go according to plan. I’m not saying the Jets are headed to the Super Bowl, but they seem to be trending in the right direction.

The defense for the Jets last year played better than expected. The team discovered weapons on offense they didn’t know they had: Robby Anderson’s emergence and Austin Seferian-Jenkins proved that the tight end position really does exist, despite what former Jets offensive coordinator Chan Gailey had in his playbook.

This team is on the rise and big things are coming, so articles like this are just more fuel for the fire. Although I’ll have to hold back on the bold proclamations because let’s be honest, we have no idea who the heck is going to be playing quarterback for this team.

It likely will be the 14th different starting quarterback for the Jets over the last 18 years. Although there’s no excuse for the Jets this offseason. The free agency class is one of the best at the quarterback position in history and the draft is loaded with guys. It seems like the Jets will finally find their franchise signal caller after a 50-year hiatus.

People call me Boy Green for my unwavering dedication to all things New York Jets. I work at The Score 1260 in Syracuse and I'm extremely passionate about sports. I aspire to continue my rise through the business and hopefully I'll end up working for the New York Jets in some capacity.