Jets coach Aaron Glenn believes that his team is “right on the cusp” of winning some games.
The beleaguered coach is 5-21 in his two years with the team and with the team at 2-7 this season, it feels like another lost year for the Jets. Still, the Jets stood pat at the trade deadline Tuesday, declining to trade away any of their starters for draft picks.
Glenn said the Jets still have something to play for this season.
“We’re not going to hide from the fact that we’re 2-7. We own that,” Glenn said. “But, man, we’re still working our asses off to make sure we fix that. We feel like we like the players that we have in the building to be able to help us do that. When you look at the seven losses, and these are just the facts, five of the teams were playoff-caliber teams. I think five of them were one-score games. I think two were three points, one five points and two seven points.”
You’d have to assume that Glenn considers the Packers, Lions, Bears, Patriots and Chiefs as “playoff-caliber” teams that the Jets lost to. The Dolphins and Raiders have also beaten the Jets. The Jets suffered their most lopsided loss of the season Sunday in Kansas City, where the Chiefs thumped them 35-12.
Glenn said he thinks these Jets are close.
“There’s a number of things that we’ve got to fix and get better at, but we feel like we’re right on the cusp of trying to break through,” Glenn said. “We’re going to do everything we can to do that. That’s my responsibility. … I just have to continue to really look hard at what we’re doing to get us over that hump to start winning these games.”
Jets general manager Darren Mougey indicated that he agreed with Glenn by his inactivity at the trade deadline. Last year, the Jets traded stars Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner for a boatload of picks with an eye on the future. This year, they only traded backup safety Andre Cisco to the Lions.
“It’s speculation on a lot of these trades,” Glenn said. “I think as an organization we’re always going to pick up the phone. It doesn’t mean we’re going to respond to everything that’s given, but you always listen. You’re always trying to do what you can to help your team. That’s our approach. That philosophy hasn’t changed from last year. There were just opportunities that we had that we felt were in the best interest of the team. We’ll continue to operate that way. We won’t force any issues. We’ll make sure we do what’s best for the organization.”
Jets quarterback Geno Smith was the subject of trade rumors, but the team was not going to let him go. Smith said despite the 2-7 record, the goal remains improving every day.
“That’s really the goal of every single team in the NFL is to figure out ways to get better every single day,” Smith said. “If you’re a professional athlete, every single day matters, every single practice rep, every single time you take the field with your teammates it matters, and so, nothing changes. You go about your work the same way, you don’t let the record dictate your actions.”
