Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - Even by New York Jets standards (which aren't good), this has been a miserable season for fans of "Gang Green".
New general manager, new head coach, new starting quarterback. Same ol' Jets.
The Jets went 5-12 last season and then cleaned house.
Darren Mougey was hired as the new general manager. Former Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn was brought in to be the new head coach. The Jets moved on from Aaron Rodgers and signed former Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields to be their starter.
But New York City's AFC team will finish with an even worse record than last season.
The Jets will drag a 3-13 record to Highmark Stadium on Sunday. This is the 10th-straight season the Jets will end with a losing record, and the sixth-consecutive season of 10-or-more defeats.
New York extended its playoff drought (we know a little something about playoff droughts, right?) to 15-straight seasons weeks ago. It is the longest active postseason drought in the four major North American sports.
The Jets' season was pretty much killed by an 0-7 start. But the body was officially declared dead in early November when the Jets traded away, arguably, their two best players on defense - Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner.
New York has also since benched Fields, and lost star receiver Garret Wilson to a season-ending knee injury.
Undrafted free agent Brady Cook has started at quarterback the last three games. Over that span, the Jets have scored just 36 points. Cook has averaged 172 passing yards, while throwing one touchdown, five interceptions and getting sacked 12 times.
The best part of a woeful Jets offense has been running back Breece Hall, who has 1,065 yards on the ground and four touchdowns. The next closest back has almost 800 fewer yards.
Would you like to know about the Jets' passing game weapons?
Wilson played in just eight games due to the knee injury, but he still leads the Jets in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. He is tied for second in catches.
Tight end Mason Taylor leads the Jets in receptions with 44, and is second in yards with 369.
Hall is tied for second in catches, and is third in yards.
As for the wide receivers, the best of the Wilson-less group are Adonai Mitchell (24 receptions for 301 yards) and John Metchie III (26 catches for 236 yards).
The Jets are 28th in the NFL in points per-game, 28th in total yards, last in pass yards, 31st in sacks per-pass play and 26th on third down.
They're averaging just 18 points a game, and over their current four-game losing streak, have managed to get into the end zone only three times.
Thanks to Hall, though, New York is seventh in rushing yards per-game and sixth in yards per-carry.
The numbers are a little better on the defensive of the ball, but they've gotten worse since the trades of Williams and Gardner.
New York is 30th in the league in points given up (29 a game). They're ranked 23rd in total yards, 27th in rush yards, 16th in pass yards, 29th in sacks per-pass play, but a solid 10th on third down.
The truly amazing statistic this season is the Jets' interception total: Zero.
That's right. Jets defenders do not have a single interception all season. This is the first time in NFL history a team has gone this far into the schedule without picking off an opposing quarterback.
They have just four takeaways in 16 games, obviously all fumble recoveries.
Linebacker Jamien Sherwood tops the team in tackles.
Defensive end Will McDonald sets the pace in sacks with eight and tackles for loss with 10.
Cornerback Brandon Stephens has a team-high nine passes defended.
The brightest spots this season have been on special teams. The Jets lead the league in kick returns with an average just over 30 yards. They're ranked seventh in punt returns, and they have returned one kickoff and a pair of punts for touchdowns.
Nick Folk has had a strong season with the place kicking responsibilities. He's made all 22 of his extra point attempts, and is 28-for-29 in field goal attempts. His only miss was from 50-plus yards.
Bills notes:
- The Jets might be the last Bills opponent at Highmark Stadium. The Jets were also the opponent in the first regular season game played at Rich Stadium on Sept. 30, 1973.
- If the Bills win, they will have 12-or-more wins for the fourth time in Sean McDermott's nine seasons as head coach. That would tie Marv Levy for the most 12-plus-win seasons for any Bills head coach.
- James Cook is in the lead for the NFL rushing title. Cook has 1,606 yards, which is 47 more than Jonathan Taylor. Derrick Henry has 1,469, while Bijan Robinson is at 1,445.
- The Bills' record at Rich/Ralph Wilson/Highmark Stadium is 246-163 (.602) in the regular season and 16-3 (.842) in the playoffs.
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