Brandon Marshall, Surging Jets Deservedly in Control of Own Destiny for Once

Starting in late October, the New York Jets went through a stretch when they won just once over five games. After a Week 11 loss to the Houston Texans, their record fell to an even 5-5 with six games remaining. The season was approaching life-support status, or so it seemed.

But look a little closer and you’ll spot the seeds for their current surge. Of the Jets’ four losses during that dark stretch, three came by seven points or fewer. They were close, which for a time felt like what we would write as the epitaph for a failed season.

Five games later, that’s all a memory. Thanks to the continued spider-hands presence of wide receiver Brandon Marshall, New York now controls its own playoff destiny.

The Jets have won five straight games, with the latest victory coming Sunday over the division-rival New England Patriots. In overtime, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick seemed to outsmart, well, Bill Belichick by winning the coin toss and choosing to defer.

The Patriots gifted New York the first possession of overtime, and under the now not-so-new rules that require a manifesto-style explanation, the Jets could win the game with a touchdown.

That's exactly what happened, as an 80-yard drive ended with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick’s six-yard touchdown pass to receiver Eric Decker. It was a game-winning connection, and as ESPN Stats & Information observed, a historic one, too:

Belichick’s decision was baffling, though the Jets gladly accepted their belated Christmas gift.

“I’m speechless,” Marshall told Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports. “I don’t understand why they did it but I’ll take it.”

The game-sealing pass was Fitzpatrick's 13th touchdown toss since Week 12, when the Jets’ win streak started. During that period, he’s chucked just one interception, and his 29 touchdown passes in 2015 match Vinny Testaverde’s single-season franchise record, per Dennis Waszak Jr. of the Associated Press.

But we’re not done listing the franchise and/or NFL history the Jets offense has rewritten this season. In fact, we're only scratching the surface with Marshall.

The 10-year veteran scoring at least one touchdown is becoming normal. So normal that any other outcome after a Jets game feels just wrong. He’s caught a career-high 13 touchdowns in 2015—two of which came against the Patriots, along with 115 receiving yards—and has left the field only four times this year with a zero in the “TD” section beside his name in the box score.

At 6’4”, Marshall is a bouncing tower of Velcro, with his wingspan creating a wide catch radius. He has the silky smooth hands to finish the job while fighting for tough balls in traffic. During the Jets’ win streak, the 31-year-old has scored six times while averaging 115.2 yards and 7.8 catches per week.

None of that is a new discovery about Marshall this season. He’s been the same ball-snatching behemoth for a long time now, regardless of the quarterback or offense.

But Marshall is peaking at the right time, and as ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted Sunday, he's posted consistently large individual numbers. Yes, historically consistent:

Marshall has logged nine 100-plus-yard receiving games this year, which is more than his total over the last two seasons combined (eight).

His connection with Fitzpatrick has propelled the Jets to a playoff-chase status that seemed unthinkable at one point. The Jets have earned the right to control their own postseason fate.

With one more win, they can keep playing deeper into January for the first time since 2010. Their opponent for that final game? The Buffalo Bills. The Rex Ryan-coached Buffalo Bills.

Some true football poetry could be written in Week 17.