One thing I would change about the Jets: More young players contributing to wins

Each week team sites at SB Nation are asked a question. This week we have been asked to name one thing we would change about our team’s season.

In the early part of the season, it felt like the Jets were beating expectations handily. Despite many people believing they would be one of the worst teams in the NFL in 2017, the team got off to a 3-2 start. Things have changed since those fall days. The Jets are not the worst team in the NFL, but they have slowly moved closer to the bottom with a 5-9 record.

Heading into the season, there was a lot of debate whether the team would be better off tanking for Draft position or trying to win games. I didn’t really view this as the right context. If the team finished in the 5-11, 6-10 range it surely would not land one of the top picks in the Draft.

I didn’t think a finish like that would be the worst thing in the world under the right circumstances, namely the young players on the roster developing into high quality players.

There have been some success stories. Robby Anderson now looks like a legitimate starter going forward. Rookie safeties Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye have been up and down, but they have shown signs they could become high end players going forward.

A lot of the Jets’ relative success has been based on veterans having career years that are perhaps unsustainable going forward though. Guys like Josh McCown, Demario Davis, and Jermaine Kearse have helped the team win games by playing at a higher level than they have in the past.

Of course these guys are going to do their best, and the team is going to try and win games. To some extent, Mike Maccagnan deserves credit for finding these players. None of them figures to be part of a foundation of future success, though.

I don’t mind winning 5 to 6 games, but if I could change one thing about this Jets season it would be the wins resulting more from young players developing into foundational pieces than veterans having career years.