The New York Jets and 11 Other Teams Who Aren't Who We Thought They Were
The New York Jets headed into Monday night's matchup against the New England Patriots with dreams of beating their division rival on the road.
Instead, they were thoroughly beaten, 45-3.
Simply put, they were absolutely demolished and embarrassed by the end of the game.
The once-fearsome Jets defense is no longer all that scary, and while they'll still make the playoffs, they're no longer favorites to make it the AFC Championship Game.
As the saying goes, parity is king, and this rings particularly true this season.
Atlanta Falcons
1 of 11
What we thought: Atlanta was expected to have a solid season with their roster healthier and ready for the new year.
At best, they were considered to be in contention for a Wild Card berth in the playoffs at year's end.
What they are: The Falcons are not only on top of the New Orleans Saints in the NFC South, they're No. 1 in the entire NFC. They already have more wins than they did for all of last year and there are still several weeks of regular-season football left.
Atlanta is not only a legitimate playoff team, but they have a very good chance of making it to the Super Bowl.
Matt Ryan is also in the discussion to win MVP this season.
Chicago Bears
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What we thought: The Chicago Bears were flat last season in Jay Cutler's first year with the Bears.
The team finished with a 7-9 record and the playoffs were considered to be just a dream for them.
Under new offensive coordinator Mike Martz, the offense was supposed to be prolific, but Jay Cutler was an interception machine with the weak protection schemes.
What they are: Jay Cutler is having arguably his finest season as a pro and he has a solid touchdown-to-interception ratio.
The Bears are tied with the second best record in the NFC at 9-3.
Chicago is not only headed for the playoffs—as long as they don't collapse down the stretch—but they're at the top of their division, leading both the Vikings and Packers.
Cincinnati Bengals
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What we thought: The Cincinnati Bengals not only won their division, but this was considered to be their deepest team in years.
Terrell Owens signing with the Bengals made their receiving corps that much more dangerous. They also upgraded with new receivers during the draft.
What they are: The Bengals are just plain awful.
After having one of the best defenses last year, they couldn't stop a pee-wee football team with the way they're playing right now.
They have a 2-10 record and they're tied for the second-worst record in the NFL.
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Dallas Cowboys
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What we thought: There were many pundits and observers predicting the Cowboys to easily win the NFC East and march to the Super Bowl.
People looked at their roster and considered them to be arguably the most stacked team in the league.
What they are: Overrated, as usual.
The Cowboys have a 4-8 record, their head coach was recently fired, Tony Romo is still nursing an injury and they're out of playoff contention.
Indianapolis Colts
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What we thought: The Colts dominated last season, winning the first 14 games. They extended their regular-season winning streak from the previous season to 22.
While they ended up losing in the Super Bowl to the New Orleans Saints, the Colts were expected to dominate the AFC again and make it back to the promised land.
What they are: The Colts are second in the AFC South—behind the Jacksonville Jaguars—with a 6-6 record.
They may not even get into the playoffs this season.
Peyton Manning is in the midst of the biggest slump of his career and he's had a bad year by his standards.
Kansas City Chiefs
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What we thought: In 2009, the Chiefs had the 30th-ranked defense and finished the season at 4-12.
They were considered to be the weakest team in the AFC West, just behind the Oakland Raiders.
What they are: Kansas City is at 8-4 and virtually a lock to make the playoffs.
They have the biggest division lead of any team in the NFL and they're playing great football.
Their defense is also much improved this season.
Philadelphia Eagles
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What we thought: After trading away their franchise cornerstone and quarterback, Donovan McNabb, the Eagles were expected to be third-best in the NFC East.
Philly had a tough schedule and no one knew what to expect out of new quarterback Kevin Kolb.
What they are: The Eagles are the most dangerous team in NFL for one reason: Michael Vick.
Vick was expected to back up Kolb and see some snaps in the Wildcat formation.
Instead, he has grabbed control of the team's offense and he's playing the best football of his career.
Philadelphia is leading the NFC East, fighting the Giants for the top spot in the division, and is essentially a lock to make the playoffs.
San Diego Chargers
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What we thought: San Diego may have lost LaDainian Tomlinson to the Jets and Vincent Jackson as a holdout, but they were still a deep and talented team.
They were expected to essentially lock up the AFC West and get into the playoffs.
What they are: San Diego is 6-6 and is not only behind Kansas City in the AFC West, but tied with the Oakland Raiders.
The Chargers were beaten twice by the Raiders by a combined margin of 23 points. In the event that the two teams are tied at season's end with a potential Wild Card berth, the Raiders would win out.
Philip Rivers may be playing out of his mind with the team playing strongly on both sides of the ball, but the chances of them making the playoffs at this point look slim.
St. Louis Rams
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What we thought: The consensus seemed to be that the St. Louis Rams were going to be one of the worst, if not the worst, teams in the NFL. The team just went 1-15 and they ended up with the No. 1 overall pick, where they selected Sam Bradford.
What they are: The Rams are at .500 with a 6-6 record, they're at the top of their division and Sam Bradford is playing lights-out football in his rookie season. St. Louis is tied with the Seattle Seahawks in terms of record, but they own the tiebreaker with a victory over the Seahawks in Week 4.
With three winnable games left on the schedule and with another date with the Seattle Seahawks, it's looking very likely that the Rams will win their division and earn a playoff berth this year.
San Francisco 49ers
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What we thought: The 49ers were expected to run away with the lead in the NFC West.
The team's defense was stout and their offense looked like it was improving.
What they are: San Francisco lost their first five games and they currently sport a 4-8 record.
The team is third in their division and the playoffs are a lost cause.
The once-respected Mike Singletary is on the hot seat and may very well find himself on the chopping block at season's end.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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What we thought: Raheem Morris was expected to get the axe at some point this season. He was handling a young quarterback entering his first full season as a starter and not much was expected out of this group, to say the least.
Most seemed to agree that they would be one of the worst teams in the NFL, placing somewhere in the bottom three.
What they are: The Buccaneers are at 7-5 with a soft schedule the rest of the way. They may be in third place in the NFC South, but they have a shot at grabbing a Wild Card spot for the playoffs.
Josh Freeman has been a revelation this season in the midst of a full-on breakout year.
Raheem Morris' job is safe and the Buccaneers can really make some noise the rest of the way and next year with the foundation they have laid out.
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