Assessing Game-by-Game Odds New York Jets Could Sneak in to NFL Playoffs

The Jets’ victory at MetLife Stadium over the lowly Kansas City Chiefs in Week 13 of this NFL season was vital to their goal of qualifying for the 2011 AFC playoffs. Simultaneous losses by Tennessee, Cincinnati and Oakland were even more fortunate for Gang Green, as their collective playoff fates now lie much heavier in their own hands.

There is no denying that the Jets must improve as a team, and must do so immediately. With three upcoming games that are far from sure bets, the need for the Jets to play to their potential has never been greater. Their season rests in the next 15 days.

Here is a breakdown of those next three contests and the odds that Rex Ryan and his New York Jets live to fight another playoff day.

Vs. Philadelphia

At last check the Jets remained three-point underdogs to the wounded, but still playoff eligible Philadelphia Eagles.

It is unusual for Jets fans to see a scenario where the ball is in their team’s court. It seems so far, that this is the case as we enter week 14. With the Raiders facing a difficult task in a very irritated Detroit Lions squad, the Jets are in prime position to maintain their top six playoff ranking.

As for the Jets immediate task, the Eagles game provides a bit of a trap situation. Should the Jets win their game tomorrow against Philadelphia, they will gear up for a game in week 15 that will undoubtedly be one of the most touted in New York football history against the also precariously playoff-bound Giants.

The Jets need to seize this opportunity. They are facing an Eagles team without an identity, and a team that will field an ailing Michael Vick against a Jets defensive backfield now without its primary signal caller, safety Jim Leonhard.

The Jets are in the midst of an offensive renaissance of sorts including an invigorated Shonn Greene who is running the ball very effectively in the last few weeks and a suddenly confident Mark Sanchez, who has thrived at this point in the season in his first three seasons.

Odds are this game against Philadelphia is a close one. Both teams find themselves playing under expectations but capable at any time of a complete breakout performance. Of the remaining schedule, this is the one crapshoot.

Vs. New York Giants

The early spread for the Battle of the Big Apple has the Jets reversing their previous week’s spread, holing a three-point favorite advantage over their MetLife Stadium roommate Giants. Should the Jets prevail against the Eagles tomorrow in Philadelphia, the Jets entire 2011 season will be on the line in this inter-conference collision.

For the entire 2011 season, the question that is most repeated has been “when will Mark Sanchez grow up.” The question that everyone wants to know the answer to may come to fruition in week 15 against Eli Manning and the Giants.

The Giants are built, as are the Jets, for late season December football. They are a slow, plodding, methodical offense occasionally capable of long stretch plays to breakout receivers like Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz. They also have an offense that almost completely relies on the performance of their star quarterback, sinking or swimming on the shoulders of their offensive captains.

The Jets defense matches up extremely well on paper against the Giants offense. The duo of Cromartie and Revis can match the Nicks-Cruz pairing quite well should Cromartie shed his recent pattern of poor play.

The Jets linebacker core and solid defensive line will not have too much difficulty handling the unreliable Giants running attack, and edge rusher Aaron Maybin may be able to put solid pressure on Eli Manning. This in turn may cause Manning to throw more quickly than he is comfortable with, making him vulnerable to interceptions.

As of this moment, objective analysis would suggest that the Giants have a slight edge in this department. Eli Manning has played outstandingly well over the past few weeks and has led the Giants to some of the biggest come-from-behind victories in team history.

The edge remains slight, though, that in spite of Manning’s late game heroics the Giants have only mustered two wins in their last six games. As the Indianapolis Colts have learned the hard way this year, sometimes a Manning on your roster is not enough.

Vs. Miami

Early betting lines are tough to come by this far out from the Jets season finale against the lingering Dolphins, but the underlying story line is very clear cut. If the Jets win out their next two games and one or two competing AFC playoff-eligible teams misstep before week 16, this game could be a complete non-factor.

For the sake of the Jets and the Jets faithful, we can only help this is the case. 

Should the Jets enter the last game of the season against the Dolphins in Miami with anything to lose other than a glorified bye week, the Dolphins are guaranteed to be a thorn in Rex Ryan’s side.

The Jets will undoubtedly be a strong favorite to win this game regardless of the significance of its outcome, but the possibility of it being a season-ending apparition is something that is right up the Jets historical alley.

The Jets and Dolphins have been heated rivals for decades, and that is surely to play into the preparation of a Miami squad that has had its pride challenged this season. Miami will also be heading to the field for the next three weeks with an interim head coach looking to secure a permanent appointment after season’s end and will have a fantastic opportunity to make his argument for the job against the Jets.