Jets midseason report card: Can Gang Green finally end playoff drought?

If the season ended today, the Jets would be the fifth seed in the AFC.

Too bad it doesn’t because Gang Green has been one of the more surprising teams in the NFL. Robert Saleh’s Jets are 6-3 heading into their Week 10 bye week and a half-game back of the Bills for the top spot in the AFC East.

After six consecutive losing seasons, Jets fans are used to talking about the upcoming NFL Draft and free agency during this time of the year. Saleh has fans believing the team could end the longest active postseason drought (11 seasons) in the NFL, but also the players as well.

“Obviously, before the season, nobody knew what the team would look like,” Jets linebacker C.J. Mosley said. “Just seeing how everyone comes to work every day and how we’ve been preparing this season so far.

[ The Jets have closed the gap in the AFC East after victory over Bills ]

“This bye week is going to be really big for us to get healthy, to get mentally right, to get physically right. Have a little time to step away, see family. But when we come back, we got eight very good games to play and it can make or break our season.

“We are really going to see where we really stand and where we are mentally as a team collectively when we come back from the bye.”

With eight games remaining in the season, it’s time to look at the Jets’ three units and predict what’s ahead for the second half of the season.

The offense has been a bit of a roller coaster this year. Gang Green began the season with Joe Flacco under center as Zach Wilson injured his knee during the team’s preseason opener against the Eagles. The Green and White started the year 1-2 before Wilson returned in Week 4 against the Steelers.

Since then, the Jets are 5-1 with Wilson at quarterback, but they haven’t won in the most conventional way. The Jets have relied on their rushing attack to help move the ball. Rookie Breece Hall appeared headed to the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award before tearing his ACL in the Oct. 23 victory against the Broncos.

The Jets did trade for Jaguars running back James Robinson ahead of the trade deadline and he played a huge factor in the team’s 20-17 victory against the Bills last Sunday. Robinson rushed for 48 yards on 13 carries and also caught a touchdown pass. He created a nice one-two punch with Michael Carter, who ran for 76 yards and a TD on 12 carries.

If the Jets are going to get into the playoffs, they will need to have performances from Wilson like they got from the second-year pro against the Bills. A week after passing for 355 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions, Wilson completed 18 of 25 passes for 154 yards, one TD and no interceptions. He also completed a career-high 72% of his passes.

[ Zach Wilson on recent criticism: ‘I don’t look at any of that stuff’ ]

In six games, Wilson has thrown for 1,202 yards, four touchdowns and five INTs.

The Jets coaches and players continue to believe Wilson is the quarterback of the future. He finally showed potential and maturity against the best defense in the NFL. If he continues to get better and more consistent as a passer, the Jets will have an excellent chance of making the playoffs.

Grade: C

What can you say about Jeff Ulbrich’s unit that hasn’t already been said? A year after finishing 32nd in the league in yards and points per game, the Jets are statistically one of the best defenses in the league.

Gang Green ranks seventh in yards allowed (312.0) and points allowed per game (19.6). The significant difference is the play of Quinnen Williams and the additions of Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner and D.J. Reed to the secondary.

[ Defensive standout Quinnen Williams on Jets’ defense: We have a ‘bunch of ballers’ ]

Williams has been the Jets’ first half MVP as he has 33 tackles, seven sacks and six tackles for loss. In a league with the likes of Aaron Donald and Chris Jones, Williams has been the best defensive tackle this season and a strong candidate for NFL Defensive Player of the Year. It’s hard to imagine where the Jets would be without Williams.

Adding Gardner and Reed has done a ton for the defense. According to Pro Football Focus, the duo has top-five grades among cornerbacks who have taken 80% of snaps this season. Gardner ranks No. 1 with an 87.8 grade and Reed has an 80 grade, good enough for No. 4.

As a rookie, Gardner has been the best cornerback in football, as he has 14 pass defenses and two interceptions in five games. Reed also has seven pass defenses and an interception.

Linebacker C.J. Mosley is also having a Pro Bowl season, as he is second in the NFL in tackles with 88 and a sack. Gang Green’s defense is good enough to keep them in every game and it has up until this point.

Grade: A

Gang Green’s special teams unit has been hit or miss at times this year. Kicker Greg Zuerlein has made 16 of 19 field goals this season (84.2, which is 16th in the NFL).

There have been times Zuerlein has left points on the board, like in losses against the Ravens and Patriots. Overall, Zuerlein has been solid.

Braden Mann ranks 17th in the league in punting average (47.7) and 12th in net punting (42.5). When it comes to the return game, the Jets are averaging 21.9 (14th) yards per kick return and 12.9 yards per punt return (fifth).

Overall, the special teams have been good this year, as they’ve also recovered an onside kick, blocked a field goal and converted multiple fake punts.

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Grade: B

Naysayers said the Jets couldn’t beat a top quarterback, but they made Bills star Josh Allen look like a below-average player during their 20-17 victory last Sunday. Folks have also said the Jets have caught a lot of breaks along the way, but what team doesn’t at some point?

The fact of the matter is the Jets are an improved team and one that not only has a legit shot at making the playoffs but at challenging for the AFC East division crown. Plenty of talking heads thought the Jets would be one of the league’s worst teams, but they continue to prove people wrong every week.

Of course, Wilson’s play will need to be more consistent for that to happen. The Jets should get healthier on the offensive line as tackles Max Mitchell and George Fant have yet to be activated from injured reserve.

Saleh said he wanted the Jets to play meaningful games in December and January and it looks like that will happen. How far this young Jets can go remains to be seen, but they’re building something in Florham Park.

No one saw 6-3 coming as Saleh and the Jets look to continue taking receipts on all of the doubts during the second half of the season.

Overall Grade: A-