Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets are officially out of the playoff hunt.
The Jets were eliminated from postseason contention on Sunday afternoon after their 32-26 overtime loss to the Miami Dolphins. That defeat, their fourth straight, dropped the Jets to 3-10 on the season. They’re now tied for last in the AFC East standings.
The Jets have missed the playoffs for a 14th straight season. Their last postseason appearance came in the 2010 season. Their postseason drought is the longest active streak across the NFL, NBA, WNBA, NHL and MLB.
The Jets were a long shot to make the playoffs entering Sunday’s game. They’ve won just once since a 24-3 victory over the Patriots in mid-September. Since then, they’ve fired both head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas. It’s unclear if the Jets will shut down Rodgers for the rest of the season, which is something that has been rumored in recent weeks amid his string of injuries, now that the playoffs are out of reach.
Rodgers and the Jets nearly pulled off the win on Sunday in South Florida. They took a 23-15 lead into the fourth quarter, and held a three-point lead after Anders Carlson drilled a 42-yarder with 52 seconds left on the clock. The Dolphins, however, quickly marched down the field and set up a 52-yarder from Jason Sanders to force overtime. Tua Tagovailoa then hit Jonnu Smith for a 10-yard touchdown in the extra period to grab the win.
The Dolphins are 6-7 on the season. They’ve won four of their past five. They need a push if they are going to steal one of the last wild-card spots in the AFC. The Buffalo Bills have already clinched the AFC East title and are in a battle with the Kansas City Chiefs for the top seed and the bye in the conference. If the Dolphins can pull it off, it’ll mark their third straight postseason appearance under head coach Mike McDaniel. They’ve not won a playoff game since the 2000 season.
Elsewhere in the league on Sunday, both the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns were eliminated from the playoffs. The Jacksonville Jaguars put up 10 unanswered points to stun the Titans with a 10-6 win in Nashville. Both teams are just 3-10 on the season and are out of postseason contention.
The Pittsburgh Steelers cruised to a 27-14 win over the Cleveland Browns. The Browns are also sitting at 3-10 on the season, and will miss the playoffs for the third time in five seasons under head coach Kevin Stefanski.
The Las Vegas Raiders are also already eliminated from the playoffs in the AFC. The New York Giants, who haven’t won a game in more than two months, are the only team in the NFC that is officially out of the playoff race.
