Biggest Takeaways from New York Jets' Week 12 Win

It took five games and four losses, but the New York Jets finally turned their season around and reinserted themselves into the playoff discussion.

With a resounding 38-20 win over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, the Jets once again find themselves in the thick of the playoff hunt with the same record as four teams in the conference.

The Jets still have no margin for error; with five games to go, they need as many wins as possible to keep pace with the other teams that are vying for a wild-card spot.

There are still five tough opponents ahead of the Jets, with the New York Giants, Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills left on the schedule, but Sunday was a step in the right direction toward proving that the Jets are capable of making that postseason push.

Here are some of the other takeaways from Sunday's win over the Dolphins.

Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker Are Still an Explosive 1-2 Punch at WR

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The Jets' top two wide receivers can't be stopped—they can only be contained. On Sunday, the Dolphins neither stopped nor contained them.

Brandon Marshall is a beast. The 6'4" wide receiver had yet another monster game, hauling in nine catches for 131 yards and two touchdowns. He owned Dolphins cornerback Brent Grimes in their one-on-one matchup, where he did all of his damage in the receiving game, according to Pro Football Focus.

But like any good Batman, Marshall needs a Robin, and Eric Decker was the sidekick on Sunday—as he has been all season long. He finished the game with five receptions for 62 yards and a touchdown, catching passes against four different defenders.

Ryan Fitzpatrick hasn't had to do more than manage the game this season, but on Sunday he finished with four touchdowns and a 118.9 passer rating. With Decker and Marshall on the field, the Jets offense will always be capable of doing big damage through the air, regardless of who's throwing the ball.

Ryan Fitzpatrick Validates Coach's Confidence in Him

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Ryan Fitzpatrick threw more touchdown passes in one game against the Dolphins than he threw in the previous two games combined.

One week after coaches fielded questions about their confidence level in Fitzpatrick as the starting quarterback, the Amish Rifle came to play and put up big numbers against the Dolphins defense. He went 22-of-37 (59.6 percent) for 277 yards, four touchdowns and a 118.9 passer rating. He did that after he completed just 34 of 73 passes (46.6 percent) for 409 yards, three touchdowns, four picks and a 55.1 rating in the prior two game.

Indeed, Fitzpatrick was Fitzmagic this week after two weeks of Fitztragic. The Jets made the right choice in sticking with him, though it was never really a question. The coaches showed confidence in him all season long up to that point, the players extended a vote of confidence for the veteran, and Fitzpatrick had already shown he could deliver at a winning level.

He proved it again Sunday.

The Jets Are the Clear No. 2 Team in the AFC East

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This might not seem important to other folks, but the New England Patriots have dominated the AFC Easy for a decade-and-a-half. Everyone else has been fighting for second place, and this season, the Jets have asserted themselves as the AFC East beta to the alpha dog of the Patriots.

Given the Patriots' presumed dominance, in order to get to the playoffs, the No. 2 spot in the division is the only acceptable spot to be in. 

There have been a lot of ups and downs in Todd Bowles' first year as head coach, but two of the biggest ups have come at the expense of the Dolphins. The Jets have won their two games against them by a combined score of 65-34, and the Dolphins have made major changes to their coaching staff following each of the losses. 

The Jets may not have the franchise quarterback of the future, but the Dolphins may not, either. At least the Jets have a defense, talented skill position players on offense and a coaching staff set in place. And after Sunday's win, they are clearly the better team on the field.

Jets Secondary Can Overcome Being Without Darrelle Revis

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Darrin Walls (above) played a much bigger role this week with Darrelle Revis out.

No Darrelle Revis proved to be no problem at all for the Jets defense, which held the Dolphins offense to just 333 total yards, 4.8 yards per play and 20 points.

The Dolphins offense failed to find rhythm despite targeting the likes of Buster Skrine and Marcus Williams in the secondary. Dolphins wide receiver Jarvis Landry went off, but with 13 receptions for 165 yards and a touchdown, he still didn't even make more than a dent in the final score. Landry victimized Skrine, but other than that, the Jets secondary largely held its own.

At times this year, the Jets coverage unit has looked about as deep as a kiddie pool. On Sunday, it looked like a first-class unit from top to bottom. We will have to see if the Jets can keep it up against opponents not from Miami or named the Dolphins.

The Jets Playoff Hopes Are Still Alive

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At this rate, the Jets can definitely make the playoffs if they can find a way to go head-to-head with the Dolphins every week.

Of course, that's not going to happen, but at 6-5, the Jets are still alive and well in the hunt for a postseason berth, which would be their first since 2010. 

After a 4-1 start, the Jets went on a 1-4 skid, and it looked like they were on the ropes and about to be knocked out of the playoff Royal Rumble. They started to fight their way back Sunday, showing they can dominate an opponent just like they did earlier this season.

The Jets are tied with the Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans, Pittsburgh Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs in the chase for those two wild-card spots. The Jets cannot afford any more slip-ups like the ones they endured for five weeks prior to picking up this much-needed win.

The Jets have shown they are capable of playing the kind of football that they need to play in order to make the playoffs. Now, it's time to put it all together and make that push.