Jets Have 10th Best Point Differential in NFL

Point differential is a really good way to judge the quality of a team. This is because it treats the entire season as one giant game. A team with a good record and a bad point differential is likely to come back to earth. A team with a bad record and a good point differential is a good candidate to improve.

A lot of NFL games come down to one score. Those games are decided by a handful of plays. It is natural for luck to contribute to the outcome of those games. Sometimes a lucky or unlucky bounce or an unforced error makes a big difference. The teams that win a lot of games big keep this out of the equation. So do the teams that lose a lot of games big.

By this test, the Jets rate pretty well. They have scored 47 points more than they have allowed this season. At least when it comes to point differential, it appears their 7-5 record is no fluke. At +47, the Jets have the tenth best differential in the NFL.

The teams ahead of them right now are Arizona, Cincinnati, Carolina, New England, Kansas City, Seattle, Pittsburgh, Denver, and Green Bay. I guess if there is a negative, you could say it is two Wild Card competitors, the Chiefs and the Steelers, are among the nine teams in front of the Jets.