Optimism among New York Jets fans is rising heading into the 2026 season, and there are good reasons for it.
Despite widespread skepticism about the Jets’ outlook from the national media, the Jets’ roster is arguably better on paper than given credit for, and now, there are numbers to back it up.
ESPN NFL analytics writer Mike Clay recently released his annual roster rankings for the 2026 season, which are compiled by rating every positional unit in the league on a 0-10 scale based on past production and future projections.
According to Clay’s projections, the Jets have the NFL’s 20th-ranked roster heading into the 2026 season. They were rated as the league’s 23rd-ranked offense and 10th-ranked defense, and are projected to score 342 points (20.1 per game) while allowing 382 points (22.5 per game).
Not too shabby for a team that had the league’s worst point differential (-203) in the previous season.
Interestingly enough, the Jets rated very similarly in this system to the 2025 Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, who placed 21st in Clay’s projections, including the 25th-ranked offense and the eighth-ranked defense.
Here is a look at where New York ranked at every position:
- QB: 28th
- RB: 3th
- WR: 8th
- TE: 21st
- OL: 15th
- IDL: 7th
- EDGE: 30th
- LB: 1st
- CB: 17th
- S: 10th
Clay’s model also delivers individual player ratings on a 0-10 scale. Five Jets players earned an 8/10 rating or better: wide receiver Garrett Wilson (8), running back Breece Hall (8), right tackle Armand Membou (8), safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (8), and linebacker Demario Davis (9).
The lowest-rated projected starters on the team are center Josh Myers (4), quarterback Geno Smith (4), edge rusher Will McDonald (4), and slot corner D’Angelo Ponds (4).
Take the numbers for what you will; there are a million ways to rank NFL players and teams ahead of a season, and none of them will please everybody. Someone will always be rated too high to one person and too low to another. This is not an exact science, and never will be.
With that said, a No. 20 ranking for the Jets is quite generous compared to most of the projections you will see out there, so Jets fans hoping for a competitive year will be happy to take it and run with it.
Throw in a schedule that is projected to be the AFC’s second-easiest, along with the confirmed absences of three opposing defensive stars in the Jets’ first three games, and the stars may be sneakily aligning for New York to have a surprisingly competitive year.
