New York Jets Predicted To Be in Battle for Wild Card Spot in AFC

The New York Jets rest of season win-loss predictions are not as good as they were a few weeks ago.

East Rutherford, NJ -- September 29 -- Aaron Rodgers of the Jets walks off the field at the end of the game after the Denver Broncos edged the New York Jets 10-9 at MetLife Stadium. / Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The New York Jets had a ton of positive momentum heading into their Week 4 matchup against the Denver Broncos.

They defeated the Tennessee Titans and New England Patriots in Weeks 2 and 3, overcoming a brutal loss to the San Francisco 49ers in their season opener. However, things were even uglier against the Broncos.

In a wet, sloppy MetLife Stadium, the Jets suffered a truly horrible 10-9 loss. Any positives that had been built the previous two weeks had gone out the window as there were a lot of issues for Gang Green to work through.

How has this impacted their rest-of-season outlook? As shared by Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report, their predicted record is now 9-8.

That will put them right in the mix for a wild card spot, as the Buffalo Bills are predicted to run away with the AFC East. They are projected to go 14-3, which will put them in the driver’s seat for the No. 1 seed in the postseason.

For New York, their 9-8 record would be enough to sneak into the postseason. The Pittsburgh Steelers, with an identical prediction, and Cincinnati Bengals, at 10-7 are the other wild card teams in the conference.

If they can make the playoffs, anything can happen. As long as Aaron Rodgers is healthy and leading the offense, they should feel as if they can compete with anyone.

Alas, that was not the case against Denver and time will tell if the Super Bowl aspirations coming into the season were farfetched. We will find out for sure over the next few weeks.

The Jets head to London to take on the undefeated Minnesota Vikings in Week 5, who are led by their former draft pick, Sam Darnold. After that, their first matchup of the season against the Bills is on deck with no bye week in between.

In Week 7, a matchup against the Steelers will have major playoff implications.

What once looked like a decently easy schedule to navigate has gotten infinitely tougher. Especially, if New York is going to put forth more performances as they did this past weekend against the Broncos.

There is talent on the roster, but the coaching staff has proven incapable of making the most of what they have to work with. If they are under .500 heading into their bye in Week 12, the coaching seat for head coach Robert Saleh will be on fire.