Did you ever think it was possible for an NFL team to enter its 12th game of a season with zero interceptions?

Well, until the great year of 2025, it had never been proven possible. The league record for consecutive games without an interception to open a season was 10.

That all changed last Sunday in Baltimore, where the New York Jets broke new ground by recording their 11th interception-less game in as many contests.

New York’s streak leaves Jets fans asking one question: How?

It’s a conundrum that stumps even the Jets themselves. Players and coaches have been asked about the streak for weeks, and each time they’re pressed, they express the same befuddled tone, explaining that the team emphasizes forcing turnovers in practice.

Let’s try to unpack how the Jets managed to get this far without catching any passes thrown by an opposing quarterback.

1. Inability to create opportunities

It’s not as if the Jets are botching a plethora of chances to pick passes off. Their main problem is a total inability to generate interception chances in the first place.

Pro Football Focus tracks dropped interceptions for defensive players. According to their tracking, the Jets have dropped only two interceptions this season. Combine that with their zero interceptions, and they’ve generated a measly two interception opportunities all year, the fewest in the NFL.

Fewest “Interception Opportunities” (Interceptions + Dropped Interceptions) through Nov. 29, 2025:

  • 32. New York Jets: 2 (0 INT, 2 drops)
  • 30. Miami Dolphins: 4 (3 INT, 1 drop)
  • 30. Minnesota Vikings: 4 (3 INT, 1 drop)
  • 29. Dallas Cowboys: 5 (5 INT, 0 drops)
  • 28. San Francisco 49ers: 6 (5 INT, 1 drop)

The league average is 11.2. The Jets have not even reached one-fifth of that mark.

Every other NFL team has at least four interception opportunities, while the Jets have two. The fact that they dropped both of them is obviously a key component of why they have zero interceptions, but it isn’t shocking to see defensive players drop two passes (as the saying goes: if they could catch, they’d play wide receiver). It’s far more glaring that the Jets’ secondary has managed to get a pair of mitts on a grand total of two passes in an 11-game span.

Understanding the Jets’ interception drought starts right here. That brings us to our next question: Why haven’t the Jets been able to force opponents into throwing more interceptable passes?

2. Lack of pass-rush juice

The best way to raise your odds of racking up interceptions is to apply pressure on the quarterback. The more duress he’s under, the more likely he is to throw an inaccurate ball or make a reckless decision. This is Football 101.

Frankly, the Jets stink at this aspect of defense. They are picking up just 3.5 quarterback hits per game, good enough for 30th in the league. According to FTN Fantasy, they are pressuring the opposing quarterback on just 26.3% of his dropbacks, ranking 28th in the NFL.

Simply put, the Jets don’t have much pass-rush juice right now. Their most talented pass rusher, Will McDonald, is having an underwhelming season. Opposite him is Jermaine Johnson, who is about league-average as a pass rusher. Behind McDonald and Johnson, the Jets have nothing to speak of when it comes to pass rushing off the edge.

On the interior, the Jets were already thin with pass-rush juice when they had Quinnen Williams. Since trading the only established star pass rusher on the roster, the picture is downright terrifying. Jowon Briggs has stepped up since Williams’ exit, but he’s completely on his own. Outside of Briggs, the Jets do not have a defensive tackle ranked top-100 at the position in total pressures.

Quarterbacks are unlikely to make mistakes when they can stand around in the pocket and sling the rock like it’s a 7-on-7 drill. That’s happened quite often to a team that opened the second half of last week’s game with a four-man rush of Micheal Clemons, Khalen Saunders, Harrison Phillips, and Braiden McGregor.

3. Ineffective blitzes (due to predictability)

If blitzes are used effectively by the play caller, they can be a fantastic weapon for scheming up interception opportunities. A well-timed blitz can catch the quarterback by surprise and force him into a panicked decision with poor footwork—the prime opportunity for the secondary to strike.

The Jets generally like to blitz, as they rank 13th in the league with a 30.4% blitz rate. New York’s blitzes, though, have been incredibly ineffective at generating reckless throws.

According to FTN Fantasy, the Jets have forced one turnover-worthy throw on 101 pass attempts when blitzing. Their 1.0% turnover-worthy throw rate on blitzes ranks last in the NFL.

Part of the Jets’ ineffectiveness on blitzes can be attributed to defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, who has adhered to stubborn tendencies with his blitz packages. Wilks has made the Jets predictable on third down, leading to a lack of risky passes being thrown against them in obvious passing situations.

Wilks is not aggressive on the early downs, but he loves to dial up the heat on third down. The Jets rank 18th in blitz rate on first and second down (25.3%), but on third down, they jump to seventh (41%). Their 15.7% increase in blitz rate from first/second down to third down ranks sixth-highest.

The most predictable defenses on third down tend to force fewer dangerous throws with their third-down blitzes. Of the seven teams that blitz at least 15% more often on third down compared to first/second down, six of them (including the Jets) rank in the bottom half of the NFL when it comes to turnover-worthy throw rate when blitzing on third down.

Highest difference in third-down blitz rate vs. first/second down:

  • 1. Chargers, 25.7% (Third-down blitz TWT%: 2.9%, 18th)
  • 2. 49ers, 22.1% (Third-down blitz TWT%: 2.4%, 24th)
  • 3. Falcons, 20.7% (Third-down blitz TWT%: 0.0%, 32nd)
  • 4. Colts, 18.6% (Third-down blitz TWT%: 12.5%, 1st)
  • 5. Packers, 17.8% (Third-down blitz TWT%: 2.8%, 21st)
  • 6. Jets, 15.7% (Third-down blitz TWT%: 2.4%, 25th)
  • 7. Panthers, 15.5% (Third-down blitz TWT%: 2.6%, 22nd)

With the Colts standing out as a major exception, there is a strong correlation between third-down blitz predictability and failing to force dangerous throws when blitzing on third down. It’s not a surprising trend; if the quarterback can predict when the blitz is coming, he won’t be rattled when it does. He’ll quickly find his safety valve and keep the drive moving.

Blitzes that catch the quarterback by surprise are the likeliest to generate turnover-worthy throws. Wilks isn’t cooking many of those up for the Jets.

What makes these numbers even more damning for Wilks is that the Jets have faced many of the league’s most reckless quarterbacks against the blitz. They have already played against five of the league’s top 12 quarterbacks in interceptions against the blitz: Josh Allen, Tua Tagovailoa, Joe Flacco, Bryce Young, and Lamar Jackson. Allen and Tagovailoa are tied for first with five picks apiece, yet, against the Jets’ blitzes, Allen and Tagovailoa didn’t even toss a turnover-worthy throw.

Wilks will probably get a pass for the 2025 season due to the lack of talent at his disposal, but that doesn’t excuse his own predictable tendencies as a play caller. The Jets should strongly consider finding a more creative defensive coordinator this offseason.

Most likely, though, Wilks will return, and Jets fans will have to hope that the 56-year-old coach puts himself through an honest self-evaluation process and returns in 2026 with a refreshed approach. To his credit, he’s overseen some nice talent development with players like Brandon Stephens, Jowon Briggs, Azareye’h Thomas, and Jarvis Brownlee. Still, his play calling tendencies are detrimental to the team.

4. Defenders not pursuing interceptions

When playing coverage in the NFL, you are battling a constant dilemma. You know that takeaways win games (and make you money), but pursuing them could cause you to get beaten over the top for game-losing plays. If you sit back and play soft, you will keep everything in front of you, but those takeaways might never come, and you will lose games because of it.

The best players (and defenses as a whole) know how to strike the balance. They don’t necessarily strive for either end of the spectrum; they execute their responsibilities on each play, react to events as they happen, and make the best play for the situation. In the end, things tend to work out if you consistently do your job, both as an individual and for the defense as a collective unit.

Making a conscious effort to lean toward either end of the spectrum is ill-advised. “Ball hawks” usually give up a plethora of bombs to wash out their highlight-reel plays. But it can hurt just as much to avoid pursuing takeaways due to the fear that something bad will happen.

This year’s Jets have leaned too far to the latter side.

When it comes to getting their hands on passes to break them up, the Jets are actually quite good. According to PFF’s tracking, the Jets’ defenders have recorded a pass breakup on 8.1% of targets (22 of 272), the eighth-best rate in the NFL.

However, the Jets have forced a disproportionately low rate of interception opportunities compared to how often they break up passes.

As we mentioned earlier, the Jets have forced a league-low total of two “interception opportunities,” when defining those as interceptions-plus-dropped interceptions. That number is startling enough on its own, but when stacked against the Jets’ eighth-ranked pass breakup rate, it shows that the Jets’ defenders are doing an extremely poor job of converting tight-window throws into interception chances.

The Jets have recorded 22 pass breakups, zero interceptions, and two dropped interceptions, which means that, out of 24 combined plays on the ball, just two of them were interception opportunities. That’s a rate of 8.3%, which is not only the league’s worst mark, but it is so far behind the rest of the NFL that the 31st-ranked team (Broncos, 20%) is closer to the 16th-ranked team (Cardinals, 30.7%) than they are to the Jets.

  • 32. Jets, 8.3% (22 PBU, 0 INT, 2 drops)
  • 31. Broncos, 20% (28 PBU, 6 INT, 1 drop)
  • 30. Dolphins, 21.1% (15 PBU, 3 INT, 1 drop)
  • 29. 49ers, 21.4% (22 PBU, 5 INT, 1 drop)
  • 28. Giants, 23.7% (29 PBU, 4 INT, 5 drops)

The league average is 31.6%, which means that out of the Jets’ 24 on-ball plays, they should be expected to generate about 7.6 interceptions or dropped interceptions. Instead, they only have two, which is approximately a quarter as many as expected.

This reflects poorly on the Jets’ approach in coverage. They aren’t being aggressive enough in pursuit of interceptions.

There’s playing it safe, and then there’s being afraid. New York is the latter. This defense doesn’t even bother to go for picks. They can say whatever they want to the media about prioritizing takeaways in practice, but the numbers speak for themselves: Almost every time the defense has a chance to make a play, they end up with a deflection instead of a legitimate chance at an interception.

Nobody expects the Jets to gamble for an interception on every play, but they are so far behind the rest of the league in this area that it’s inexcusable. While it’s okay to err on the side of caution in coverage, there’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed. You need takeaways to win games, so there always has to be some semblance of an effort to pursue interceptions, even if some of those pursuits will come up short and result in a big catch.

Whether it’s due to the defenders coming up small in the heat of the moment or the coaches not pushing them hard enough, the Jets just aren’t doing an acceptable job of attacking the football. The fact that they are one of the top teams in pass breakups shows that their inability to generate interception opportunities is not due to poor coverage. They’re staying tight enough in coverage to break up plenty of passes. It’s that next step, from PBU-to-INT opportunity, that they can’t seem to take.

The Jets need to take more gambles. That’s not to say that every player on the field should start channeling Antonio Cromartie, but this defense has displayed no risk-taking to speak of. They could double their aggressiveness at converting on-ball plays to interception opportunities, and they’d still be the league’s bottom-ranked team in the category; that’s how safe they’ve played it.

Not taking a risk is, in fact, taking a risk; the Jets have learned that firsthand through 11 interception-less games, many of which were one-score losses that could have been flipped by even just one interception. Now is the time for Wilks, Aaron Glenn, and the Jets’ defensive backs to realize that it’s okay to roll the dice every once in a while.

5. Bad luck

While there are many areas where the Jets have done a poor job of tilting the odds in their favor, none of this can happen without plain-old bad luck. Many teams have endured similar struggles to the Jets in these areas, and not only do they all have at least three interceptions, but some of them are among the league leaders in picks.

For instance, let’s go back to the section about New York’s lack of a pass rush. One of the only two teams behind the Jets in quarterback hits per game is the Panthers, who rank 31st with 3.3 hits per game. Yet, Carolina has 10 interceptions, tied for the sixth-most in football. Even the last-ranked 49ers have five picks.

While it’s easy to blame Wilks’ predictable tendencies for causing the Jets to struggle at generating turnover-worthy throws on blitzes, some of the coaches who have been even more predictable have watched their teams generate plenty of picks. The Chargers lead the league in ramping up their third-down blitz rate, and they have 10 interceptions, tied for the sixth-most. The Falcons are third in that category, and they’re tied for 10th with nine interceptions.

Every once in a while, something dumb is supposed to happen in your favor. A ball hits off an offensive lineman’s helmet and drops into the arms of some 330-pound defensive tackle. The quarterback heaves an arm punt on third-and-30, or he gets hit mid-throw and throws up a hot-air balloon. Maybe one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history drops a pass off his numbers, and it flies into the waiting arms of a DB.

That would never happen, would it?

Nothing like this has happened to the Jets this year.

Couple it with their inexplicably bad luck on fumbles, and you get the grotesque final result: One takeaway through 11 games, which is not only a record low, but four behind the previous record of five.

The Jets have numerous controllable issues to address, but there is also a cosmic issue at hand that may not be solvable by mere mortals.