ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — It was an ending that felt, well, just right.
For the Jets.
For the Bills.
This game likely marked the final chapter for Highmark Stadium, home to the Bills for 53 seasons, just before the team relocates to a new state-of-the-art facility.
The score (Bills 35, Jets 8) didn’t really matter in the grand scheme.
But here’s the thing.
The Jets’ defeat, along with the Giants’ earlier win over the Cowboys, means that the Jets secured the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming draft.
This loss brought their season record to 3 wins and 14 losses, ranking as the third worst in the franchise’s history. It matches the second-highest number of losses in a season for the team, following a 2-14 season in 2020 and a 1-15 record in 1996.
Over the past 66 seasons, the Jets have experienced double-digit losses in 26 of them—39 percent of the time. This pattern has continued in nine of the last ten seasons.
The franchise’s struggles are hard to ignore.
The Jets snapped a ten-game losing streak long ago but have not made the playoffs in 15 years, since the 2010 season.
This season has been a clear contest for the top draft pick—a topic Jets fans have been following closely. Now they have clarity.
The No. 2 pick means the Jets will likely get the second-best quarterback available. If the College Football Playoff unfolds as expected, Oregon’s Dante Moore could be their choice.
Meanwhile, the Raiders have been in blatant tank mode lately, likely setting their sights on Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the first overall pick.
Let’s not ignore the Jets, though. Their recent performances have been less than impressive as they started undrafted rookie quarterback Brady Cook in their last four games.
Cook completed 11 of 22 passes for 60 yards and a touchdown on Sunday. It was clear he isn’t quite ready for the NFL spotlight.
The most disheartening aspect of Sunday’s loss was seeing the Jets’ starters struggle against the Bills’ backups, many of whom played on both sides of the ball.
Josh Allen, the Bills’ star quarterback, took the first snap before watching the rest from the sidelines.
Starting running back James Cook III had just two carries for 15 yards before taking the rest of the game off, as Buffalo relied heavily on backups.
To make matters worse, former Jets player Ty Johnson scored on a six-yard run, pushing the Bills ahead 14-0 in the second quarter.
It was especially painful to see Allen’s backup, Mitch Trubisky, dominate the Jets’ defense. He went 22 of 29 for 259 yards and four touchdowns.
Trubisky hadn’t started since 2023, and his last win as a starter was back in 2022, yet he managed a stellar first half, completing 15 of 19 passes for 169 yards and two touchdowns, including a 17-yard pass to tight end Dawson Knox for a 7-0 lead.
The Bills increased their lead to 21-0 in the second quarter with another TD pass from Trubisky.
In the second half, with their kicker out due to injury, Trubisky connected with Gabe Davis for a 2-yard touchdown and then added a two-point conversion to push the score to 29-0.
With the Bills leading 35-0 on yet another touchdown pass from Trubisky, the Jets neared breaking two undesirable franchise records.
The most points the Jets had allowed in a single season was 504 in 2021. Their worst season point differential was 214 points, spanning from 1976 to 2020.
Johnson’s score brought Buffalo’s total to 503 points allowed, just one shy of the record, while the point differential sat at 211, only three points short.
The Jets managed to avoid a shutout with Cook’s 3-yard TD run, preventing the humiliation of further record-breaking.
What’s most frustrating about this loss is that the Jets were uncompetitive for the fifth consecutive week. Head coach Aaron Glenn had urged his team to compete.
It’s tough to watch. This team has become a source of pity, reflecting a broader organizational failure.
Entering this game, the Jets had lost their previous four matches by a staggering total of 153 to 46—marking the most significant December point differential in NFL history.
Things took a turn for the worse on Sunday, as they became the first team to lose five straight games by at least 23 points.
Uncertainty looms over the future, and while a second pick in the 2026 draft may offer hope, it likely won’t be enough to turn this franchise’s fortunes around.
