Todd Bowles can make history in 2016
By Michael Pallas
With the New York Jets, head coach Todd Bowles could make history this upcoming season if everything falls into place.
Todd Bowles is the 18th head coach in New York Jets history. He enters his second season with the chance to make team history. Bowles can make history in 2016 by becoming the third head coach in franchise history to achieve back-to-back 10+ win seasons.
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Weeb Ewbank and Joe Walton were the only coaches to achieve the feat. With that said, Walt Williams finished 6-3 in the strike-shortened 1982 season and they were capable of winning 10+ games. Herman Edwards is the only other coach to have more than one 10+ win season in 2001 and 2004.
His career in New York could’ve only started better had they made the NFL Playoffs in 2015, but it still started with a bang. The Jets completed their 46th season last year. With their 10-6 record, they now have 11 10+ win seasons and 18 seasons above .500.
In 2016, the Jets are also closing in on some NFL history. The Jets all-time regular season record is 387-457-8. That means they are one great season away from 400 all-time wins. They would become the eighth or ninth of the ten American Football League team to reach that mark since the merger. The only other two teams are the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals, and the Bills are more likely to achieve the feat first, because they sit at 393 wins.
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In 2015, there were plenty of individual records set.
Wide receiver Brandon Marshall set single season records for catches and yards and tied the single season record for touchdowns.
Marshall and Eric Decker became the first teammates to each have at least ten touchdowns in a season for the Jets, and Ryan Fitzpatrick broke the team record for touchdowns and is second in yards.
According to SB Nation’s Blogging the Boys, the Jets have the seventh toughest schedule based on 2015 winning percentage.
The 2015 winning percentage of their opponents was .531.
However, they made some key acquisitions in the offseason. They added Matt Forte and Ryan Clady via trade and free agency, and they drafted speed threat Charone Peake. Tight end Jace Amaro is coming off an injury from the 2015 preseason, Devin Smith is coming off a season-ending injury in December and Quincy Enunwa seemed to be coming into his own toward the end of the season.
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With all of that on the table, it seems to be the perfect storm for Bowles this season, especially now that Fitzpatrick is back as starting quarterback. He has an offensive coordinator in Chan Gailey who knows how to succeed and a top-five defense. Fans should expect another playoff run and possibly even a run at the AFC East title.