Jets hope to build a contender the way Patriots have done, by hitting it big with top QB in the draft
FOXBORO, Mass. – The Jets are back to looking up at the Patriots in the AFC East and also looking to emulate them.
The Patriots have gone from worst-to-first under first-year coach Mike Vrabel. They already have doubled their win total from last year when New England was 4-13 and last in the division. The Patriots took an 8-2 record into Thursday night’s game against the Jets at Gillette Stadium.
Chasing the Patriots is nothing new. The Jets (2-7) have finished below New England 21 times since 2001. They’ve returned to the AFC East basement. The Jets’ rebuild is moving slower than expected under first-time coach Aaron Glenn.
“We have our own blueprint of what we’re trying to build here,” Glenn said. “Everybody’s different. But obviously they’re doing a good job of what they’re doing.”
The Jets’ blueprint underwent major changes last week. They traded All-Pro defensive players Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner and got back three first-round picks and a second-rounder in the next two drafts.
That capital should help close the gap between the Jets and New England — provided that Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey don’t make some of the same mistakes as their predecessors.
The Jets have to hit on their next quarterback for their stay in the cellar to be temporary. The Patriots advanced their rebuild by drafting Drake Maye third overall in 2024 and are building around him now. Everything the Patriots do revolves around him.
“They went and got a lot of guys that can help them be successful,” Glenn said. “The quarterback is playing at a very, very high level and I think they’re creating more explosive plays than any team in the league this year.
“You have a combination of that and I think Vrabel has done a really good job of getting that team to buy in to what he’s trying to do. So absolutely you can make a huge change within a year. I think he’s done a good job of that along with the players that he’s gotten.”
It starts with the quarterback. Justin Fields hasn’t panned out the way Glenn or this coaching staff hoped.
Fields’ 1,143 passing yards and six touchdowns heading into Thursday were the fewest among quarterbacks with at least eight starts. He has thrown for less than 55 yards in three of his last four starts, including just 54 last week against Cleveland.
Not surprisingly, Fields’ hold on his job is tenuous at best. Tyrod Taylor is always one ineffective drive away from replacing Fields.
The Jets have the assets to address their quarterback position down the road. They will have their own first-round pick in 2026 — which could be in the top 5 — plus Indianapolis’ No. 1 from the Gardner trade. The Jets have three firsts in 2027.
Mougey has to hit a home run like the Patriots with Maye, who is having an MVP-caliber season. He’s third with 19 touchdown throws, third in passing yards (2,555) and second in completion percentage (71.7).
Vrabel hired offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels – Tom Brady’s old OC – to work with Maye. The Patriots signed receivers Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins in the offseason and drafted running back TreVeyon Henderson.
They also upgraded the defense, adding tackle Milton Williams, linebackers Robert Spillane, K’Lavon Chaisson and Harold Landry III and cornerback Carlton Davis III.
Vrabel and Andy Reid are the only two coaches in the Super Bowl era to start 8-2 or better after taking over a team that won fewer than five games the previous season.
“He did a hell of a job from the offseason going to get these big-time players that fits what he’s trying to do,” Glenn said.
Speaking so positively about the Patriots probably isn’t easy for Glenn. The former Jets’ cornerback is well-versed in the rivalry, having played for both Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick, who left the Jets in 2000 to become the Patriots coach.
Kicker Nick Folk, in his second tour of duty with the Jets, has been a part of it from both sides. Folk played for the Jets in their last postseason victory – a win in New England in the 2010 divisional playoffs. Folk was a Patriot from 2019-2022.
Folk said the rivalry stems from the hate between New York and Boston. It goes deeper and could intensify if the Jets follow New England’s blueprint for success.
“They were good for a long, long time and it looks like they are kind of getting back to a little bit of those winning ways,” Folk said. “They brought back a couple of guys they knew with Josh and Mike… We are trying to build something from the ground up here, which is going to take a little bit of time.
“It’s a good rivalry. Tough, hard-nosed football usually. And it’s just two cities that have a lot of respect for each other but at the same time despise each other.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
