Following the Buffalo Sabres’ 2026 playoff appearance, the New York Jets currently stand alone with the longest active playoff drought in North America’s four major sports at 15 seasons.

While essentially nobody expects Gang Green to snap that skid this year, it’s the NFL; anything can happen.

Michael Nania named the three swing factors the Jets need to go in their direction to make a push for the postseason. Here, we look at the Jets’ schedule and break down the most realistic path for New York to sneak into the playoffs and break their embarrassing playoff drought.

1. Sit at 2-2 entering Week 5

The Jets open the season on the road against the Tennessee Titans, before hosting the Green Bay Packers in Week 2 and visiting the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears in Weeks 3 and 4.

Week 1 is a must-win for a multitude of reasons. Sticking it to Robert Saleh and several former Jets on that roster, and getting off to a 1-0 start, is more important than ever for where the Jets currently sit. After starting 0-7 last season, it’s an opportunity to immediately prove that things will be different this time around.

It also buys them some breathing room for the daunting stretch to follow.

The three-game slate against the NFC North will be challenging. All three squads had winning records last season and could be playoff-bound this season. Two of the games are on the road.

It highlights the importance of the opener in Tennessee. If they can grab that game, they will only need to steal one of the three NFC North games to come out of the first quarter of the season at .500. However, grabbing more than one of the three games might be more attainable than many fans think.

At the very least, the Jets need to enter Week 5 at 2-2. Anything better than that would be a bonus.

2. Enter Week 9 at 5-3

Weeks 5-8 appear to be the most favorable stretch of the Jets’ schedule. Aside from the New England Patriots in Week 6, they face the Cleveland Browns (Week 5), the Miami Dolphins (Week 7), and the Las Vegas Raiders (Week 8). Three of those games are at home, with the exception being the Patriots.

This is where the Jets need to capitalize.

If New York expects to be a playoff team, there is no excuse not to sweep three home games against the likes of Cleveland, Las Vegas, and Miami—three games where the Jets should have a quarterback advantage.

If that comes to fruition, the Jets would be 5-3 heading into Week 9, assuming they are unable to upset the Patriots in Foxborough.

3. Enter the bye at 7-5

Leading up to their bye week in Week 13, the Jets will play the Kansas City Chiefs, the Buffalo Bills, the Los Angeles Chargers, and the Miami Dolphins.

Kansas City, Buffalo, and Los Angeles are a tough stretch. They will play Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, and Justin Herbert in consecutive games, each of whom ranked within the top four QBs the Jets will face this season in our analysis.

To stay in playoff contention, though, the Jets need to steal at least one of those three matchups while finishing the season sweep against Miami in Week 12. That would bring them to 7-5 entering the Week 13 bye.

4. How to finish the season 10-7

Coming out of the bye week, the Jets will play the Denver Broncos, the Arizona Cardinals, the New England Patriots, the Minnesota Vikings, and the Buffalo Bills.

Even if the Jets are swept by both the Bills and Patriots this season, they can make their way into the playoff picture by taking care of business in the rest of their games. Given that, the Jets’ most likely path to finishing the season at 10-7 and getting into the playoffs includes beating the Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings, and Denver Broncos.

The Cardinals simply don’t have a good enough roster to consistently compete this season. Meanwhile, the Jets need to upset both the Vikings and the Broncos. Denver could be a sneaky team for the Jets to get a win against, given how most of their games in 2025 were down to the wire, especially on the road.

Against the Vikings, the Jets should certainly stay in the game; it’s just about pulling away. If their offensive line can neutralize Minnesota’s pass rush with home-field advantage, Geno Smith could out-gun Kyler Murray or J.J. McCarthy.

While this article makes it seem overly simplistic, there is certainly a realistic path for the Jets to end their 15-year playoff drought. They have the talent, unlike last year. Now, it is about coaching and execution.