Jets are losing even in the offseason: Ranking NFL's longest playoff droughts by whether they can end in 2026

Now that the Buffalo Sabres snapped their 14-season playoff drought, the Jets stand alone at 15 seasons and counting in North American pro sports

John Breech

Apr 7, 2026

12:50 pm ET

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8 min read

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The New York Jets haven't had much to brag about over the past 15 years, but they do finally have something to brag about now: The Jets officially hold the title of having the longest active playoff drought in North American professional sports.

The Jets have gone 15 seasons without sniffing the playoffs. Going into the 2025 NFL season, they were tied with the Buffalo Sabres for the longest playoff drought in North American pro sports, but the Sabres clinched a playoff spot over the weekend, ending their drought at just 14 seasons, so the Jets now stand alone.

When you think about it, it's a drought that shouldn't even be possible. The NFL thrives on parity: The league is literally designed to help the worst teams get better by giving them a higher pick in the draft, but the Jets have defied all the odds by NOT getting better. It's almost impressive how long they've been able to stay bad.

With the Jets now holding the title of the longest active postseason drought, now felt like a good time to take a look at the longest active playoff droughts in the NFL and then after we do that, we're going to rank each team based on their chance of ending their drought this year.

Over the past five seasons, 28 of the league's 32 teams have made the playoffs at least once. So who are the four teams that have failed to make the postseason in that span? Let's take a look:

Longest active playoff droughts in NFL

- Jets (15 seasons): Last playoff appearance came in 2010

- Falcons (Eight seasons): Last playoff appearance came in 2017

- Colts (Five seasons): Last playoff appearance came in 2020

- Saints (Five seasons): Last playoff appearance came in 2020

So will any of these droughts end this year? Let's rank each team by their chances of getting it done.

4. Jets

The Jets went 4-13 last year and the good news for them is that going from 4-13 to the playoffs isn't unheard of. As a matter of fact, it's happened at least one time in each season since the NFL expanded the schedule to 17 games in 2021.

- Giants went from 4-13 in 2021 to playoffs in 2022

- Texans went from 3-13-1 in 2022 to playoffs in 2023

- Commanders went from 4-13 in 2023 to playoffs in 2024

- Patriots went from 4-13 in 2024 to playoffs in 2025

Those four teams all have one big thing in common: They fired their coach and then their new coach led them to the playoffs during his first season on the job. The Jets did not do that. Instead, they're riding it back with Aaron Glenn, which could end up being a move that they regret.

That being said, the Jets do deserve some credit for what they've done this offseason to help their head coach: Glenn is a defensive-minded coach and the team added plenty of players on the defensive side of the ball this offseason that should make his defense better. Not only did they trade for Minkah Fitzpatrick and T'Vondre Sweat, but they also added solid players like Nahshon Wright, Joseph Ossai and Demario Davis.

Of course, even if the defense is better, the Jets' real problem is on the offensive side of the ball. Yes, they did trade for Geno Smith and although he's better than Justin Fields, that still doesn't feel like a huge upgrade.

Although they should be improved in 2026, it's hard to see them earning a playoff spot in the AFC.

3. Colts

The Colts were the most surprising team in football through the first half of the 2025 season, going 8-2 to start the year, but then Daniel Jones got injured and things fell apart quickly after that. The Colts ended up losing seven straight games to end the season, including three that were started by Jones.

The Colts playoff chances this year really come down to how you feel about Jones, who will be entering the year with at least two giant question marks hanging over his head. For one, how's he going to look coming off a torn Achilles that he suffered in December? Although he seems confident that he'll be on the field in Week 1, a torn Achilles is a tough injury to come back from. It's one of the most brutal injuries in sports and there's no guarantee he's going to be on the field for Indy's opener.

Even he is on the field in Week 1, the next question becomes: Will he be able to replicate his success from 2025? The Colts are taking a $50 million gamble that the answer to that question is yes. They gave Jones a two-year, $88 million contract that will pay him $50 million in 2026.

Jones was good last year, but six of his eight wins came against teams that finished below .500. Also, he went just 2-5 against teams that finished above .500. The Colts are also stuck in a division with a resurgent Jaguars team and a powerful Texans team. The