NY Jets 2025 schedule puts team in prime position to make late season push

The New York Jets' 2025 schedule was officially released on Wednesday. Aaron Glenn and the Jets will open the season with back-to-back home games against the Steelers and Bills.

New York is also back to playing almost exclusively in the 1:00 p.m. window, with 13 games this season starting in that time slot. This is a massive change from what Gang Green has gone through the last two seasons, which featured a heavy dose of primetime matchups.

For Glenn and this Jets roster, the 2025 schedule on paper shouldn't be seen as a gauntlet. The Jets will enter the season with the seventh-easiest schedule in the NFL, with a combined opponent winning percentage in 2024 of .460.

However, the Jets will face their toughest part of the schedule right away, within the first eight weeks of the season. For Glenn and the Jets, it is imperative to weather the early storm and set themselves up for a run late in the season.

NY Jets could make a late season push in 2025

After facing the Steelers and Bills at MetLife Stadium to open the season, New York will travel to Florida for two straight games in the Sunshine State against the Buccaneers and Dolphins.

The green & white will then face off against the Cowboys, Broncos in London, Panthers, and Bengals before their week nine bye. In total, four of the Jets' first eight opponents made the playoffs last season, while teams like the Bengals and Cowboys should be right back in the mix this year.

It isn't a gauntlet, but for a first-time head coach and an unproven quarterback, the first eight games will present the biggest challenge for the Jets. If they reach the bye week at 4-4 or even 3-5, they could be set up for a late-season push.

From Week 10-18, the Jets will face just two teams that made the playoffs last season when they travel to Baltimore to face the Ravens and see the Bills for a second time. The most favorable stretch for the Jets comes from Week 13-17.

New York will face the Falcons, Dolphins, Jaguars, Saints, and Patriots. If the Jets are in the hunt at this point in the season, as it stands right now on paper, this would be the stretch for the Jets to make a serious run at the playoffs.

At the very least, what this end-of-season schedule provides for the Jets is a chance to finish the 2025 season strong and provide optimism for 2026. New York could find itself in a similar situation to the Detroit Lions in 2022, a team Glenn is very familiar with.

From week nine onward, the Lions went 8-2 to finish the season at 9-8, and despite just missing out on the postseason, it created a spark for the future.

The chances of the Jets making the playoffs in 2025 are unlikely, especially in a loaded AFC. However, getting through the tough early-season slate and finishing the season strong would be a good first step for Aaron Glenn and the new-look Jets.