Jets Likely to Lose Race to the Bottom

The good news: the Jets have finally stunk their way to the worst record in football. The bad news: they share that distinction with four other teams -- the Tampa Bay Bucs, Oakland Raiders, Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars -- and if Washington can just sustain their streak of utter incompetence, they’ll likely join this loser crew soon.

The worse news: of this feeble five, Gang Green probably has the best chance of winning this Sunday, taking a step forward in the standings -- and a step away from the first overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft.

The Jets play at Tennessee’s LP Field this week, and, put simply, the Titans are awful. They haven’t won since mid-October, and even then it was a two-point victory over the Jaguars, so it shouldn’t really count. The Titans have been especially bad over the past three weeks, dropping those games by an average of 24 points. The fact that one of those blowouts came courtesy of the Giants tells you all you need to know and more.

Meanwhile, the other three 2-11 squads face uphill climbs Sunday, as each plays on the road against an opponent that desperately needs every W it can get in order to make the playoffs.

Things do look up for Gang Green in the weeks ahead, though. Taking on the Pats and Fins in last two games of the season, the Jets may well finish the year no better than 3-13. Then again, it’s not as if their competition for the top draft spot will rack up a whole lot of wins either.

And if the Jets somehow do exceed expectations (is that the right phrase?) and perform poorly enough over this late stretch to somehow secure the first overall pick, who will they choose?

Well, the consensus top guy is Oregon QB Marcus Mariota, and what’s not to like about him? Mariota is a three-year starter at a strong program who’s very mobile and has put up eye-popping stats in his last season of college football (3,773 passing yards, 68.2 percent completion rate, 38 touchdowns and only two interceptions).

Mariota, actually, brings to mind a prospect from a few years ago who put up big numbers at a successful big 12 program (4,205 passing yards, 71.2 percent completion rate, 42 TDs and only six INTs).

You may have heard of him. His name is Geno Smith. 

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