It’s been quite a roller coaster for Robert Saleh’s team in the NFL power rankings. After falling down to #15 (lowest since Week 5), following their ugly loss against the Patriots in Week 11, the Jets are now back to #12. The impressive 31-10 win against the Chicago Bears put the Jets back on the playoff path, but the jury is still out on QB Mike White. The next two games against the Vikings (9-2) and the Bills (8-3) will be real tests that should give us a better idea whether this team is capable of making the playoffs. The current betting line has the Vikings as 3-point favorites, which is to be expected for a home team.
Here’s what different power rankings websites had to say about the Jets:
ESPN: It won’t be easy, especially with four of the remaining six on the road, but the Jets are 4-1 on the road this season, and defense travels. They’re ranked fourth in scoring defense, and if the Mike White-led offense can be middle-of-the-road, the Jets should be fine because they’re 6-0 when scoring at least 18 points.
The Sporting News: The Jets woke up their entire passing game with Mike White starting at quarterback, unlocking more wild-card potential for the stretch run. The defense didn’t lose a beat to give them their most complete victory of the season. The degree of difficulty from the Bears gets raised quickly, however, with at Vikings and at Bills next.
CBS Sports: Mike White played well in his first start this season to lead the Jets past the Bears. Zach who? Is it sustainable with Mike White?
ProFootballTalk: Mike White is playing the way Zach Wilson should have been.
Yahoo Sports: Before we get too crazy about Mike White’s 315-yard game, let’s acknowledge that the Bears defense is really bad, especially since trading Roquan Smith and Robert Quinn. Still, the Jets offense looked much different. The ball was coming out fast. Playmakers who were being entirely underused before emerged with White at quarterback. We’ll see what it means for White the rest of the season, but the Jets offense clicking like it did Sunday is certainly not a good look for benched Zach Wilson.
NFL.com: For the second time in as many years, chants of “Mike White!” echoed from the rafters of the Meadowlands after a joyous Jets victory. The 27-year-old quarterback — thrust into the starting lineup after last week’s stunning benching of Zach Wilson — completed 22 of 28 passes for 315 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in a 31-10 win over the Bears at soggy MetLife Stadium. White completed passes to 10 different receivers and fed the ball to talented New York playmakers who have been starved for attention. Garrett Wilson put up 95 yards and scored twice one week after an emotional postgame outburst; even Elijah Moore busted out of witness protection with two big catches, including his first score of the year. The 2022 Jets are a roller coaster.
USA Today: Among the reasons benched QB Zach Wilson is now riding the pine? He hasn’t developed a connection with first-round rookie WR Garrett Wilson, whose four TD grabs have been supplied by backups Joe Flacco and Mike White. In fact, while Wilson-to-Wilson languished, White-to-Wilson provided the NYJ their first opening-drive TD of the season in Sunday’s win.
| Preseason | W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 | W5 | W6 | W7 | W8 | W9 | W10 | W11 | W12 | W13 | W14 | W15 | W16 | W17 | W18 | |
| ESPN | 30 | 32 | 29 | 31 | 23 | 16 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 8 | 10 | 15 | 11 | ||||||
| Sporting News | 24 | 32 | 28 | 28 | 22 | 16 | 14 | 8 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 13 | ||||||
| CBS Sports | 29 | 31 | 23 | 27 | 26 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 11 | ||||||
| PFT | 31 | 32 | 19 | 24 | 16 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 14 | ||||||
| Yahoo Sports | 27 | 31 | 28 | 32 | 27 | 24 | 12 | 10 | 14 | 10 | 9 | 14 | 12 | ||||||
| NFL.com | 26 | 32 | 25 | 31 | 26 | 17 | 13 | 10 | 14 | 9 | 10 | 14 | 10 | ||||||
| USA Today | 27 | 32 | 23 | 28 | 22 | 17 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 12 | ||||||
| 27.7 | 31.7 | 25 | 28.7 | 23.1 | 16.6 | 10.6 | 9 | 13.6 | 10.9 | 11 | 14.7 | 11.9 |
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