On the eve of the new year, many people around the world are beginning to sketch out their goals for 2026. Sports teams should not be immune to this, especially when the current year didn’t go as planned. The New York Jets are the perfect example. Nearing the end of a very disappointing season, the team sits at 3-13. They currently have an undrafted free agent rookie quarterback starting, they traded their two best defensive players back in October, and many of the bigger names on the roster have consistently underperformed. For the Jets, 2025 was about evaluation under the new regime of Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey. They made many moves to change the roster, attempting to shape it in their image. Some were successful, some were not. Now, they are primed to solidify the foundation in 2026. That will be the main focus of the Jets’ New Year’s resolutions.
Jets Resolution #1: Make a Play for a Quarterback, No Matter What
The Jets have had many problems this year, none bigger than quarterback play. Perhaps the most unsuccessful roster move that Darren Mougey made this season was signing Justin Fields. Fields was one of the worst quarterbacks in football this year. In his 9 games played, he averaged a mere 139.9 passing yards per game. He only had 1 interception, but from watching the games, it is clear that it is because he was afraid to push the ball downfield. The QB play was not much better with the others in the room. Tyrod Taylor was able to run the offense, but he couldn’t elevate it either. He averaged (not counting the Buffalo and Miami games) 179.3 passing yards per game, with a TD: INT ratio of 5:5. Finally, Brady Cook hasn’t impressed at all in his starts over the last few weeks. He has an incredibly poor TD: INT ratio of 1:7.
So, for these reasons, it is of the utmost importance that the Jets make a move at quarterback. They have the capital to do so as they have five first-round picks in the next two drafts. They will also have over $100 million in cap space in 2026. The options in the draft are mostly unknown at this point, but it could include some big names. Indiana’s Heisman Winner Fernando Mendoza is expected to come out, and he could be joined by Oregon’s Dante Moore and Alabama’s Ty Simpson. The veteran options in free agency are less than ideal. The flashiest option is Malik Willis, who has impressed in his appearances for the Packers. Marcus Mariota, Tyrod Taylor, and Daniel Jones round out the potential free agents. Finally, there could be a big fish available via trade – Cardinals longtime starter Kyler Murray. The Jets should be able to secure at least one of these options in 2026, and they must.
Jets Resolution #2: Hire a New QB Coach
This goes hand-in-hand with the first goal listed. The quarterback play has been so bad in New York this year that it doesn’t make sense to continue with Charles London. London has been coaching since 2004, holding positions such as runningbacks coach and quarterbacks coach for multiple organizations. He has never had particularly long stays, though, his longest tenure coming as the RB’s coach for the Houston Texans from 2014-2017. His most recent endeavors as a QB coach have been with Seattle in 2024 and Tennessee in 2023. In 2024, Geno Smith threw his most interceptions in a season as the starter for the Seahawks (15). In 2023, then-rookie Will Levis played in 9 games and mustered up a mere 4 passing touchdowns. Both Justin Fields and Brady Cook have shown no signs of development through their work in 2025. Therefore, this should be yet another short coaching stint for London. When the Jets secure a new starting quarterback in 2026, that player should be developing under a new coach.
Jets Resolution #3: Procure a New Pass Rusher, Pressure the Opposing QB
As often as having a franchise quarterback can win football games, pressuring the opposing franchise quarterback can be just as rewarding. In 2025, the Jets have the second-lowest sack total in the league at 26. The only team lower is the 49ers (18). There were a lot of factors that contributed to this – a new defensive line coach, injuries, and just plain rostering bad players. The Jets’ best rusher is clearly Will McDonald. He led the team in pressure with 42 and had 8 sacks. However, this is down from the previous season (61 pressures, 11 sacks), and half of his 2025 sacks came in one game (vs Cleveland). His partner off the edge, Jermaine Johnson, unfortunately, looks like a different player post-Achilles injury. He’s only registered 35 pressures and 3 sacks, which is way down from his 2023 season, in which he had 56 pressures and 9 sacks. Jowon Briggs has been a bright spot, registering 37 pressures and 4 sacks at defensive tackle. He’s filled in for Quinnen Williams nicely.
This is the first, but most important step to fixing the defense completely. One of the biggest reasons the Jets have been historically bad at producing interceptions is because of the lack of pressure. One of the reasons why guys like Jamien Sherwood and Quincy Williams have regressed in coverage is because of the lack of pressure. Stressing the quarterback is the best way to fix this defense.
Main Photo: [Robert Deutsch] – Imagn Images