Top 3 reasons the New York Jets are 2-4 instead of 4-2

The New York Jets are off to an all-too-familiar 2-4 start. It marks the fourth straight season in which they failed to post a winning record through six games, and the 10th instance in their last 11 seasons.

However, the Jets have played well enough to position themselves to win all but one of their games. With better execution in close games, they could have four wins right now, potentially even five with absolute perfect luck and execution in tight moments.

In fact, the Jets have a better point differential (-10) than two teams with 4-2 records: the Denver Broncos (-11) and the Cleveland Browns (-16), the latter of whom New York defeated in Week 5.

Here are the top three reasons why the Jets are 2-4 instead of 4-2.

1. Coaching

This eye-popping stat is making the rounds: New York has been outscored 100-6 in the final two minutes of either half since Aaron Glenn was hired in 2025. That, of course, reflects directly on coaching.

In the last two minutes of either half, things like clock management, play-calling, and overall cohesion become paramount. All of those things trickle down from the head coach. New York has consistently come up small in the last two minutes of halves this season, and that falls on Glenn.

In their 26-19 loss to the Patriots this past Sunday, the Jets went three-and-out with under two minutes left in the first half and proceeded to give up a touchdown before halftime. Then, as time waned in the fourth quarter, they gave up a clock-milking drive that essentially ended the game.

In their 31-24 loss to the Lions in Week 3, the Jets gave up a go-ahead touchdown with 2:30 remaining, and on their last chance to tie or win the game, they allowed a strip-sack.

These issues go all the way back to their Week 2 overtime loss to the Packers, when the Jets botched a fourth-and-1 attempt at midfield with 1:20 remaining and the score tied, blowing a chance to attempt a game-winning field goal.

New York’s coaching staff is not setting the team up to execute in the most critical moments.

2. Red zone offense

This is an extension of the coaching staff’s inability to set the team up for success in big moments, but the players can own more of this one.

New York ranks last in the NFL with a 37.5% touchdown rate in the red zone, scoring touchdowns on just 6 of 16 trips. That’s a big reason why they consistently fail to score as many points as you’d expect based on how well they move the ball at times.

Quite a few Jets red zone trips have failed due to execution blunders. For instance, this past Sunday against the Patriots, Omar Cooper Jr. scored a 14-yard touchdown on the opening drive, but an unnecessary offensive pass interference penalty by Tim Patrick wiped it out, leading to a field goal.

If the Jets’ players cannot muster up the poise to turn 3s into 7s, they won’t win close games, no matter how many impressive drives they generate between the 20s.

3. Sack disparity

The Jets’ pass rush has shown a high ceiling, racking up 11 sacks across its two wins. When the Jets lose, though, it’s typically because the pass rush goes dead silent.

New York got two sacks on Jordan Love in the Week 2 loss, but over their last three losses, the Jets picked up just three sacks, a measly one per game. They had two on Jared Goff, one on Tyson Bagent, and none on Drake Maye.

This is particularly problematic because the Jets are giving up plenty of sacks on the other side. Geno Smith is tied for third in the NFL with 19 sacks taken, and those sacks are often on the worse end, as his 159 yards lost on sacks are tied with Aaron Rodgers for the most. That’s a whopping 8.4 yards per sack, so most of them have been drive-killers.

Overall, the Jets have a -8 sack differential (6 to 14) across their four losses. That is an easy culprit to point to as an explanation for why the Jets came up short on the scoreboard in those games despite often looking competitive.

New York may be doing a decent job of moving the ball, but they often commit the one crushing mistake that renders a promising drive meaningless, while they rarely force their opponents to commit the same errors.

It’s all about stepping up in the biggest moments

New York has spent much of this season building solid drives and preventing the opponent from doing the same; outside of a historically bad outlier of a game against the Bears in Week 4, the Jets actually outgained their opponents by 231 yards across the other five games, along with winning the turnover battle 4-6. Yet, they only won two of those five games.

Why? They’re losing the battle of tide-tilting plays that directly affect the scoreboard.

Two-minute situations, red zone offense, and sacks are the high-leverage categories responsible for explaining why the Jets keep falling short on the scoreboard even though the eye test and their underlying metrics show a competitive football team.