4 underrated Jets sleepers who could break out in 2026 NFL season

The New York Jets are coming from the bottom of the AFC East. They were a lost team from the start of the year and perhaps the only surprise about the 2025 season was that head coach Aaron Glenn retained his job after his team’s 3-14 performance that included losses in the first seven games of the season.

Of course, it’s not just one bad year by the Jets. They have had double-digit losses in nine of their last 10 seasons. They have not been to the playoffs since they reached the AFC title game in the 2010 season when they suffered a close loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers after an 11-5 regular season and playoff victories over the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots.

The Jets were competitive in the early part of the season, as five of their opening seven losses were by 7 points or less. The second half of the season was a disaster, and the Jets have brought in veteran quarterback Geno Smith to run the offense and that should be a major upgrade over Justin Fields and Tyrod Taylor.

Many fans will likely turn up their noses at the thought of Smith as their quarterback, but he is just two years removed from a successful run in Seattle that saw him put more than respectable numbers on the board.

Smith struggled the last two seasons, but Jets have belief

Smith was a Pro Bowler for the Seahawks in 2022 and ’23. He had eye-opening statistics in ’22 as he took control of the Seahawks and completed 399 of 572 passes for a league-leading 69.8 completion percentage. Smith threw for 4,282 yards with 30 TDs and 11 interceptions. He was solid in ’23 when he completed 323-of-499 passes for 3,624 yards with 20-9 TD-interception ratio.

The 2024 season saw something of a downturn for Smith because of his 21-15 TD-interception ratio, but he did complete 70.4 percent of his passes while throwing for 4,320 yards. That year marked the end of his run with the Seahawks and the Jets are banking that he can turn things back in his favor after a brutal year with the Las Vegas Raiders — a team that was just as bad as the Jets last season.

The Jets are counting on Smith building a rapport with wide receivers Adonai Mitchell and rookie Omar Cooper Jr. Mitchell was traded to the Jets by the Colts in the middle of last season’s disaster, and he has a chance to develop into a game-changing receiver. He caught 24 passes with the Jets for 301 yards and 2 TDs in eight games last year, and that more than doubled the production he had with the Colts.

Mitchell and Cooper could be solid targets

Mitchell is a brilliant athlete with an excellent size-speed ratio at 6-2 and 205 pounds. He has done significant work with Smith in the offseason, and he loves the way Smith throws the ball.

“He’s a natural leader,” Mitchell said, per The Athletic. “He’s the alpha of the room, that’s the best way I could put it. He takes initiative, he communicates very well.”

Cooper was one of the heroes of Indiana’s national championship team last year, and the Jets plan on using him as their slot receiver this year.

Cooper is coming off a brilliant season in which he caught 69 passes from Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza for 937 yards. He was brilliant in the red zone and as a finisher with 13 TD receptions. He is big enough at 6-0 and 199 pounds and he is also elusive when it comes to getting away from tacklers.

The Jets moved up from the No. 33 spot in the draft to No. 30 to draft Cooper. They are hoping that his winning background will have a positive impact on the Jets offense.

Tight end Mason Taylor has a chance to step up

Glenn will leave much of the offense in the hands of Frank Reich, the team’s first-year offensive coordinator. One of the notes he has for Reich concerns the 6-5, 251-pound Taylor, who is in his second year and could develop into a game-changing tight end.

He caught 44 passes for 369 yards with a TD reception in the Jets’ moribund offense last season, and Glenn would like to see him develop into one of the team’s key performers.

The Jets are likely to have Taylor on the field at the same time as rookie Kenyon Sadiq, the former Oregon star who was selected in the first round. The 6-3, 241-pound Sadiq has game-breaking speed to go along with his size and will be one of the Jets’ best deep threats because of his ability to beat one-on-one coverage. He caught 51-560-8 last year for the Ducks.

The Jets are afterthoughts on nearly every opponent’s schedule. They have a chance to sneak up on a number of teams at the start of the season, including their run through the NFC North (vs. Green Bay, at Detroit, at Green Bay) in Week 2 through 4. If they can survive that early gauntlet, the Jets may approach respectability this season.

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