This marks the longest active playoff absence among all major men’s sports leagues in North America.
The Jets lost 34-10 to the Miami Dolphins after starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor left the game with an injury.
The New York Jets’ new regime now officially finds itself in the same spot where so many of the franchise’s other recent leadership groups have ended up.
With a 34-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, the Jets were officially eliminated from playoff contention, extending their NFL-worst active postseason drought to 15 seasons.
New York broke its tie with the Buffalo Sabres (14 seasons) for the longest ongoing playoff absence among the major men’s sports leagues in North America. The Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons are the next closest NFL teams with seven consecutive years without a postseason appearance.
On Sunday, there was little doubt as to whether the Jets would meet the same fate as they did in previous years. The Dolphins raced out to a 21-0 advantage in the first quarter, when New York also lost starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor to a groin injury. Undrafted rookie Brady Cook took over leading the offense, which would post just 207 total yards on the day.
“I didn’t have them ready to play,’ Jets coach Aaron Glenn said after the game. ‘That was obvious.”
When the Jets hired Glenn in January, the former franchise standout told fans to ‘expect a winning team that you will be proud of.’ Tensions grew after an error-filled 0-7 start, which left New York as the last team in the league to register a victory.
After scoring their first win, the Jets opted to trade two-time All-Pro cornerback Sauce Gardner (to the Indianapolis Colts) and three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Quinnen Williams (to the Dallas Cowboys). The moves significantly altered the organization’s outlook for both the near and long term, as they returned three first-round picks over the next two years while stripping the roster of two of its top performers.
‘I want this to be a team that the fans are proud of, but again, I never said they were going to be proud of them right now,’ Glenn said in November after the trades.
The Jets would go on to win two additional games after their Week 9 bye that preceded the trade deadline deals, helping them remain alive longer than five other teams that had already been eliminated entering Sunday. But with the defeat against the Dolphins sealing their fate, New York crept closer to the New Orleans Saints’ mark of 20 seasons for the longest NFL playoff drought in the Super Bowl era.
NFL’s longest active playoff droughts
1. New York Jets – 15 seasons
2t. Atlanta Falcons – 7 seasons
2t. Carolina Panthers – 7 seasons
4t. Chicago Bears – 4 seasons
4t. Indianapolis Colts – 4 seasons
4t. New Orleans Saints – 4 seasons