The New York Jets won't play another meaningful game until 2026 according to the standings. But the trade deadline changed the equation.
Aaron Glenn stood in the middle of the Jets locker room at MetLife Stadium late Sunday afternoon and screamed the words. “Who wants to fly with the f------ Jets?” Glenn couldn’t even get the first syllable out before his players and staff threw their heads back and joined him in unison.
A week ago, it would have been easy to imagine the sports world pointing and laughing at such a scene in the aftermath of Sunday’s 27-20 win over the Browns. Another over-the-top celebration by a Jets team that had just improved to 2-7 with a win over another 2-7 team. So what? But this was no normal week: five days earlier the Jets had, in one of the most shocking NFL trades in recent memory, traded the face of their franchise, Sauce Gardner, to the Colts for two first-round draft picks. And less than an hour later, they dealt defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, another All-Pro, to the Cowboys for a second- and first-round pick. And then came the noise. There was considerable praise, because the Jets had gotten back so much value for their now-departed stars. But even that paled in comparison to the five straight days of relentless talk about misery that lay ahead for the players and fans left behind in the present that had been sacrificed for the hope of a better future. The grim predictions about how much, and how badly the Jets downgraded roster would lose after they already lost plenty to start the season. And the foreboding warnings about how hard it would be for Glenn, who was off to the worst start in franchise history for a first-year coach, a first-year coach already, would face an even greater struggle to keep his locker room puling in the same direction. It was a lot of noise, even for a Jets franchise that is used to dealing with the constant roar of its past high-profile failures ringing in its ears. So as Glenn stood in the middle of that locker room Sunday evening, his players and staff nodding as he shouted his parting message, even the most cynical of sports fans would have had a hard time denying them this moment. “We’re building something,” Glenn said. “We’re f------ building something. … We’ve got buy-in! We’ve got buy-in! We need to stay in.” And suddenly, the idea of the Jets gaining something from these final eight games of the season doesn’t seem so far-fetched. But why? Conventional wisdom tells us the Jets season is now more meaningless than ever since they’ve turned their attention to the future. And since they’re not going to become the first 0-7 team in NFL history to make the playoffs, they’re technically not going to play another meaningful game. So how can the Jets move past the identity that has defined and doomed them since 2022, as a team that is good enough to win big games, but will always find a way to lose if it matters?Obviously, there are a lot of downs that come with the trades the Jets made last week. They were more talented with Gardner and Williams and cornerback Michael Carter II than they are now. And anyone who argues otherwise shouldn’t be taken seriously. But they’re also a completely different team than they were even a week ago. Suddenly, the entire roster knows that everything is different and no one is safe: if Gardner can go, just months after the Jets painted him as the cornerstone of their future by making him the highest paid corner in the NFL, anyone can go at any time. And the narrative has shifted as well. When the Jets left for the bye at 1-7, they were a disappointing team that hadn’t lived up to its potential and was lucky to get a win against that terrible Bengals defense. They wakeup Monday morning not as the fraudulent underachievers they were for most of the last four years, but as a scrappy underdog that is trying to prove a world full of doubters wrong. Now, they can go out there and actively try to prove the rest of the world wrong, instead of playing like a team that is terrified to make the mistake that will expose them as the Same Old Jets.“We believe in our team,” edge rusher Will McDonald said after becoming the first Jet in 24 years to notch four sacks in a game. “Those people outside of here get mad at us one week and then the other week are happy. The organization and us are the only ones who are behind the scenes. We trust in each other and we’re doing our thing. We just need to make it come together. We have a lot of things to work on. ... As long as we keep doing that and keep being repetitive and relentless, we’ll be just fine.” The best and most fitting words came from running back Breece Hall, the guy who was most rumored to be on the move but stuck around to score the go-ahead touchdown in Sunday’s win.“I think it’s more about being sick of losing,” Hall said with a laugh. There’s no doubt, this is progress. Not only did they not throw in the towel after a week in which the world seemed to be closing in around them. They found a way to win a game that few expected them to. But even Hall’s answer right there is a sign of progress. The Jets aren’t claiming to have figured it out after an impressive win. And Glenn is already setting a far better tone than he did after the first win when his defiance seemed to extend toward the team’s fans. We’ve been critical of Glenn’s communication and messaging at times this season – including in the immediate aftermath of last week’s trades when he sent the wrong message to Jets fans and the locker room when he said he never promised the Jets would be a team fans could be proud of “right now.” But Glenn seems to have found his footing in the few days since. And it’s clear that trading his stars wasn’t just about gaining future assets, it was about setting a new tone for those still here. “That’s the power of believing in your players,” Glenn said. “And don’t let the noise that everybody wants to talk about these guys let that bother you and just trust those guys and built those guys up and keep developing those guys and that’s what we’re trying to do.” But Glenn was less interested in taking a victory lap than turning the page toward the next challenge. “Tough game,” Glenn said. “Good win going into a short week. Looking forward to going against a team that’s leading our division right now, so we’ve got to be ready for this one. We know it’s going to be a tough one.” The Jets have shown progress, but Glenn clearly knows that it won’t mean a thing if they no-show at the Patriots on Thursday night. This is the perfect opportunity for them to back up their progress in a huge spot – even just hanging with the Patriots – who are the far better team right now – would be a step in the right direction. But there’s also the potential for this to go a different way, at New England, against the AFC leaders, with a national audience watching. It might not matter in terms of the standings. But for a locker room that knows the world will go right back to pointing and laughing if they lose big, there’s plenty to play for. The trade deadline cost them so much, but it also gave the chance to start building that new identity they’ve been searching for, right here and right now.Jets star had big day vs. Browns, channeling Muhammad Ali after coaches doubted him: ‘Say my name’Andy Vasquez is a sports reporter covering the New York Jets and NFL for NJ Advance Media . He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, NBA, and professional golf for The Record ...If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation.and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our
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