Having had to endure yet another NFL season of largely atrocious football compliments of Woody Johnson, Justin Fields a coaching staff that often leaves you scratching your head, Jets fans appear to be under the impression that a top 3 pick with a chance at a franchise quarterback is a given. But if you take a closer look at the number of teams struggling to find wins, and their remaining games, you may want to pump the brakes just a bit.
As NFL cellar dwellers once again at 2-8, the Jets are among the worst teams in the league, but if you take a look at tankathon.com, you’ll see that they’ve got plenty of company. Prior to kicking off today’s action, there are eleven other teams other than the Jets who have 3 wins or less. As the season winds down the second half, plenty of those teams have schedules that could mean they win just 1 or 2 more contests. Should the Jets steal even one more win this year, it could drop them several spots come April.
So who is in the running for a top three pick and what does their schedule look like the rest of the way? Let’s take a look. With the Titans sitting at 1-8 with no change in sight, we’re assuming they’re a certainty to pick in the top three.
New York Jets (2-8):
Their game against the Saints on December 21st is their best chance at a third win which could put them out of range to grab QB1 with so many teams carrying similar records.
Several impact games for the Saints remain. They have games against the Jets, Titans, Panthers and two against the Falcons. If Tyler Shough continues to impress, there could be some wins out there that would surely put them out of range.
The only game that jumps out as being legitimately winnable is the Raiders on December 28th. Washington could be another one depending on the status of Jayden Daniels.
Two games that jump out are the Raiders and Titans. And you can never rule out a win when you’re facing the Bengals defense, which will be the case to close out the season.
Vegas is currently 2-7 with games remaining against the Giants and Browns and with the way Geno Smith is playing, it’s difficult to imagine they win more than a game or two the rest of the way.
Miami Dolphins (3-7)
Outside of the Giants on Dec 14th, there aren’t many games you look at and think Washington has a chance to win. Of course the key here will be whether or not Jayden Daniels is back and 100%.
If Joe Burrow comes back in the not too distant future, you can expect some wins with Miami, Arizona and Cleveland to close out the season. If they get to five wins, they should be out of the picture and honestly, aren’t a huge threat to take a quarterback.
This pick belongs to the Rams, but of course it’s the Falcon’s record that will matter. With the Saints twice and Jets once as the season winds down, two or three wins isn’t out of the question. Also interesting that the Rams can improve their own first-round draft position with a loss at a point when they may have already clinched a playoff spot when they play the Falcons on Dec 29th.
The Cards close out the season against the Falcons, Bengals and Rams. Should they land in the top three, you have to imagine they would at least consider moving on from Kyler Murray if they feel they can add a younger, cheaper player and deal Murray away to a QB needy team that is not in position to grab a new signal caller.
Dallas Cowboys (3-5-1):
Having had a tie earlier in the season, the Cowboys are at a disadvantage to climb into the top three. Dallas has a largely brutal schedule with some of the NFL’s best teams coming up in the near future, but they also have the Raiders today and close out against the Commanders and Giants.
