New Year, New Coach, Same Old Jets: New York Still Not Good Enough in Packed AFC

The New York Jets lost their season-defining game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday long before Ryan Fitzpatrick threw his third interception of the day.

Sure, Fitzpatrick's wounded-duck wobbler extinguished the Jets' last hope of eking out a playoff berth in head coach Todd Bowles' first season in charge. Yes, an ugly Fitzpatrick pick ended the previous drive. But no, Ryan Fitzpatrick having an interception-fest in his return to Ralph Wilson Stadium is not the reason the Jets will be home for the fifth straight season after losing 22-17.    

There were mistakes, missed assignments and plenty of lost opportunities throughout this game—and just as with the whole season, Fitzpatrick's downfield passing almost covered up for the rest of the team's flaws.

But Rex Ryan Bowl II exposed all the little problems that have held the Jets back: a dependable but not dominant running game, an aging offensive line, an injury-depleted defensive line, a secondary that fell far short of expectations and a pass rush that was never going to be scary.

Gary Wiepert/Associated Press

When Ryan was fired from the Jets and latched on to the Bills, the similarities were impossible to ignore—an uncertain present (let alone future at quarterback), a surplus of talent on the defensive line and questions about where they'd all fit. Ryan's all-in plan to build up the running game and pass defense looked like he took the same blueprint he used to build the Jets with him when he packed his bags for Western New York.

Bowles took over Ryan's Jets and deftly guided them through a tumultuous offseason. But for all the changes—the arrival of Fitzpatrick and the return of cornerback Darrelle Revis—the Jets simply weren't good enough to go into Buffalo and beat the wounded, hungry facsimile of themselves Ryan had constructed.

By extension, the Jets weren't good enough to beat out the Pittsburgh Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs for the AFC wild-card spots. Despite the New England Patriots going 2-4 over the last six weeks of the season, including a head-to-head defeat at the hands of the Jets in Week 16, the Jets didn't seem anywhere close to challenging the reigning NFL champions' dominance over the AFC East on Sunday.

It was Kenbrell Thompkins' drop of what would have been the game-winning score. It was D'Brickashaw Ferguson getting smoked on a stunt, allowing Marcell Dareus to hit Fitzpatrick and guide his second pick into no man's land. It was Fitzpatrick's end-zone brain fart at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the signal-caller throwing a terrible pick.

It was Chan Gailey abandoning Chris Ivory, despite Ivory gaining a whopping 81 yards on just six carries, including a 58-yarder that was the Jets' biggest splash play of the day. It was All-Pro Revis turning in one of the worst performances of his career, getting roasted by second-year wideout Sammy Watkins for 11 catches and 136 yards.

After all the money and draft picks sunk into that defense, inside linebacker David Harris—weeks shy of his 32nd birthday, a New York stalwart predating even Ryan—was the Jets' best playmaker. He registered a team-high 10 solo tackles, four assists and the Jets' only two sacks. Even so, he and the front seven couldn't keep Karlos Williams out of the end zone on a critical fourth down inside the 5-yard line:

Even the special teams fell short. Kicker Randy Bullock missed one of his two field-goal attempts, and punter Ryan Quigley capped an embarrassing backward drive with a shanked 21-yard punt.

Many mistakes could have been corrected, and many opportunities could have been capitalized on that could have made a difference in the final result—but they weren't, and in the end, that's what matters. Fitzpatrick, as quoted by the New York Daily News' Manish Mehta, took all of the painful loss to heart:

Fitzpatrick, Bowles and the Jets have failed in their mission this year; there's no getting around that. They had a golden win-and-in opportunity to go from 4-12 and a top-six draft slot to 11-5 and the playoffs, and they blew it. The Jets veterans—whose "shock" and "disbelief" going into the locker room were captured by Connor J. Hughes of the Journal Inquirer—have to cope with the season they've squandered.

And yet, as far as the Jets seem from challenging the elite of the AFC, they truly aren't. As hot as the Steelers and Chiefs have been, the Jets have been right there with them. The three teams were neck-and-neck throughout December.  

Bowles overcame a tremendous amount of adversity in his first year as a head coach—and since Ryan's stamp is still clearly visible on this squad, the 2015 season is a giant leap forward from where New York was in 2014. But ever since Ryan's back-to-back AFC championship seasons in 2009 and 2010, Jets fans have come into the season expecting far more than what the team ultimately delivered. 

Fitzpatrick, Bowles and a lot of other people drawing Jets paychecks will have to find another level in 2016 if the situation in New York is going to change.