The Jets are already walking into one of the strangest seasons a fan base can have. Brian Costello wrote at the New York Post that there is going to be a push and pull among Jets fans about how much they actually want this team to win in 2026. He is right. That tension is already here.
On one side, there is the obvious argument. If the Jets are not sold on their long-term quarterback answer, then the 2027 draft becomes the thing everyone starts staring at. Fans know how this works. Lose enough games, draft high enough, and maybe the next real quarterback solution becomes possible.
On the other side, the Jets just hired Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey to build an adult football operation. If year one immediately turns into a soft tank conversation, that is not harmless. It changes the temperature around the building. It changes how players process the season. It changes what progress even means.
The franchise needs proof of life first
This is the part that gets lost when everyone starts dreaming about a future quarterback class. The Jets do not just need a quarterback. They need evidence that the rest of the operation is worth plugging a quarterback into.
That means the offensive line has to look more stable. The young core has to keep developing. The defense has to show it can survive the transition into Glenn’s program. The coaching staff has to look prepared on Sundays. Mougey has to show that the roster has direction beyond just waiting for the next draft cycle.
If the Jets go 3-14 and everything looks broken, yes, the draft slot improves. But the job also becomes harder. The next quarterback would be walking into another mess. We have watched that movie too many times already.
Winning seven games might not be pointless
There is a version of this season where the Jets are not a playoff team and still make real progress. That is not the most exciting sentence in the world, but it is probably the most realistic one.
If Glenn establishes standards, if Mougey identifies keepers, if the team stops playing like a franchise waiting for the next excuse, then a middle-of-the-pack finish has value. It might cost draft position, sure. But it also gives the Jets a better sales pitch to the next quarterback, whether that player comes through the draft, a trade, or another path entirely.
The quarterback question still matters
None of this means the Jets should ignore the 2027 draft. They cannot. The quarterback question is too important, and the front office has to be honest about it. If the right player is sitting there next spring, or if the right trade-up path opens, the Jets have to be ready.
That is why this season is less about pretending everything is solved and more about separating the problems. If the quarterback spot is the issue, say that. If the roster is still thin, say that too. If the coaching is cleaner but the talent is not there yet, that matters. The worst outcome is not just losing games. It is losing games and learning nothing.
That is also why the Brendan Sorsby conversation and the broader draft debate are not separate from this. They are all part of the same question. How aggressive should the Jets be at quarterback before they know what the rest of the team actually is?
The JetCast read
The Jets should not enter 2026 trying to game the standings in June. That is loser math, and this franchise has done enough loser math. They should enter the season trying to build something measurable, even if the win total ends up modest.
If that costs them a few draft slots, so be it. A cleaner organization with a slightly worse pick is still better than a broken organization with a better one. The goal is not to trick yourself into believing 2026 is all-in. It is to make sure 2027, whatever it brings, is not just another rescue mission.
Reporting and topic trigger via Brian Costello at the New York Post.