It rarely happens in the NFL but it almost looks like the New York Jets are looking to throw the 2017 NFL season. Those are harsh allegations, as few professional sports teams have actually admitted to doing something like that, with the Philadelphia 76ers as the biggest name to admit to throwing games to get better draft picks. However, the Jets have made some big moves this offseason that makes it look like they will be unable to compete in the NFL this year, which might prove to be the last for Todd Bowles in New York.
New York Jets’ deconstructing team
The New York Jets are eliminating many pieces that could have helped them actually compete in 2017. They signed journeyman quarterback Josh McCown to come in and be their starting quarterback in 2017. McCown has not actually won a game that he has started in for many years and is playing behind a suspect offensive line with almost no weapons to utilize. He is also really just there to help mentor young quarterbacks Christian Hackenberg and Bruce Petty, neither of which have any NFL experience.
The New York Jets then eliminated their top two receivers in Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker. Marshall moved on to the New York Giants, where he will play for a team that can possibly make the playoffs.
The reason McCown is the quarterback is that the Jets voided Ryan Fitzpatrick’s contract. In a seven-day period of time, he released Nick Mangold, Darrelle Revis, Brandon Marshall, and kicker Nick Folk. This left Todd Bowles with almost no weapons to win in 2017.
Todd Bowles actually won 10 games in his first season with the New York Jets and things looked great.
However, last season there were too many injuries to overcome and bad quarterback play from Ryan Fitzpatrick doomed the team. Instead of seeing if Bowles could recapture his 2015 success, the Jets blew his team up.
2018 NFL Draft
If the New York Jets play as poorly as many expect them to this season, they will be one of the top teams in the 2018 Nfl Draft.
Looking at how well the Cleveland Browns improved their team this year in the draft, there are expectations that the Jets could do the same next year. It will probably be without Todd Bowles, who will lose his job when the team struggles this season.
The biggest target for the New York Jets has to be a franchise quarterback. At the moment, the biggest name is Sam Darnold of USC and that could instantly turn things around for the Jets in 2018. However, the only way to get someone like Darnold in the 2018 NFL Draft is to lose a lot of games in 2017 at the expense of head coach Todd Bowles.
