The Poll Wrap: How did you do?
As you know, we ran a series of polls in July to try to assess what might happen during the 2018 season. It's now time to see how well you did.
Let's see how closely your votes reflected what actually happened:
Will the Jets make the playoffs?:
Most popular choice - Maybe
Outcome - They did not make the playoffs
Verdict - It wasn't close, so you don't get any credit for sitting on the fence for this one.
Who will lead the Jets in receiving yards?:
Most popular choice - Robby Anderson
Outcome - Robby Anderson
Verdict - Correct! Although it took a late-season run and a key injury for Anderson to overtake Quincy Enunwa down the stretch.
Who will be the primary return man?:
Most popular choice - Trenton Cannon
Outcome - Andre Roberts
Verdict - Wrong! Cannon's inability to field punts meant that the Jets took the smart decision to lean on the veteran Roberts, who ended up as a pro bowler.
Which rookie will play the most snaps?:
Most popular choice - Nathan Shepherd
Outcome - Sam Darnold
Verdict - Wrong! Darnold ended up with 810 snaps despite missing three games. Chris Herndon was next with 625 - or, if we're taking into account special teams - 789. Surprisingly, Shepherd didn't even have the biggest snap count for defensive rookies. That honor went to Frankie Luvu.
Which former Mike Maccagnan draft pick on the bubble will make the team?:
Most popular choice - Jordan Leggett
Outcome - Leggett did make the team
Verdict - Correct! ... although the next three most popular choices (Lorenzo Mauldin, ArDarius Stewart and Dylan Donahue) didn't make the team. Also, only four percent of you thought Derrick Jones would make the team and only one percent of you thought Charone Peake would.
Which tight end will lead the team in catches?:
Most popular choice - Jordan Leggett
Outcome - Chris Herndon
Verdict - Wrong! Herndon's excellent rookie year saw him lead the Jets' tight ends - and all rookie tight ends - with 39 receptions. He responded well to an increased role after Neal Sterling went down for the year. Leggett had 14 catches in a reserve role.
Who will lead the team in sacks?:
Most popular choice - Leonard Williams
Outcome - Henry Anderson/Jordan Jenkins
Verdict - Wrong! Williams ended up with five sacks, but Jenkins and Anderson led the team with seven each. Williams did lead the team in quarterback hits with 20 and tackles for loss with 11, though.
Which Jets will be pro bowlers this year?:
Most popular choice - Jamal Adams
Outcome - Adams did make it, along with Roberts and Jason Myers
Verdict - Correct! The most popular choice that wasn't a pro bowler was Williams, who 24 percent of you expected to make it.
Which quarterback will start the most games for the Jets in 2018?:
Most popular choice - Sam Darnold
Outcome - Sam Darnold
Verdict - Correct! Given how well he responded to his three game stint on the sidelines perhaps Darnold shouldn't have been the opening day starter, but definitely proved he was worthy of starting the most games.
What will be the result on opening day?:
Most popular choice - A down-to-the-wire Jets win
Outcome - The Jets won 48-17
Verdict - Wrong! Despite a rocky start, this was the Jets' most impressive win of the season. After this game, it looked like the team might be playoff bound. Or that the Lions were the worst team in the league. Neither proved to be the case.
Who will the Jets trade before the season?:
Most popular choice - Teddy Bridgewater
Outcome - Bridgewater was traded for a third-round pick on the eve of the season
Verdict - Correct! You nailed this one, as he was the only player traded.
Who will have a thousand-yard season in 2018?:
Most popular choice - Robby Anderson
Outcome - Nobody had a thousand-yard season
Verdict - Wrong! Although Anderson was closest, only 9 percent of you predicted that nobody would have a thousand-yard season, so you whiffed on this prediction.
Who will be the most improved player on defense?:
Most popular choice - Darron Lee
Outcome - Candidates would include Lee and Adams
Verdict - Correct! It's obviously subjective as to who was the most improved and whether Lee's improvement from inconsistent to pretty good exceeds Adams' ascension from good to great, but Adams was the second most popular choice anyway, so we'll let you have it. The other obvious candidate is Darryl Roberts but he had a poor finish to the year.
Which 2017 Jet will have the best year with his new team?:
Most popular choice - Muhammad Wilkerson
Outcome - Demario Davis
Verdict - Wrong! Wilkerson might have been headed for a big year, but we'll never know as he got injured early. While this is also subjective, Davis - your second most popular choice - was the obvious pick here as nobody else did much of anything.
Which free agent addition will be the biggest disappointment:
Most popular choice - Terrelle Pryor
Outcome - Candidates include Pryor, Trumaine Johnson and Spencer Long
Verdict - Correct! While Johnson was probably the biggest disappointment based solely on the expectations due to his big contract, he actually played well for much of the season. Pryor seemed to be doing well but then was abruptly released due to what seemed like a minor injury and the team struggled at wide receiver for the next few months. Long was a disappointment too, although moving to guard seemed to redeem him somewhat among the fanbase.
Which injured player from last year will make the biggest impact?:
Most popular choice - Quincy Enunwa
Outcome - Candidates include Enunwa and Henry Anderson
Verdict - Wrong! Enunwa definitely had a big impact, with his 38 catches for 449 yards and a touchdown earning him a new contract extension. However, Anderson's impact was arguably bigger because he played in five more games and was tied for the team lead in sacks, while also leading them in batted passes and blocked kicks.
Who will be the most improved player on offense?:
Most popular choice - Brian Winters
Outcome - No obvious candidates
Verdict - Wrong! The most accurate answer here was "nobody will improve" which only four percent of you picked. While you could maybe suggest someone like Brandon Shell as having improved, none of the poll options saw any improvement in their PFF grades. If forced to pick someone to give this award to, it would probably have to be Leggett.
Who will lead the Jets in penalties?:
Most popular choice - Buster Skrine
Outcome - Morris Claiborne/Kelvin Beachum
Verdict - Wrong! Your most popular choice from the offense was Winters but he and Skrine had just six each - although Skrine had a seventh on special teams. Claiborne and Beachum had nine each.
Who should be the next in line for the Ring of Honor?:
Most popular choice - Nick Mangold
Outcome - TBD
Verdict - Mangold seems like a good choice but the team hasn't announced any new inductions since last August
Who will lead the team in interceptions in 2018?:
Most popular choice - Marcus Maye
Outcome - Trumaine Johnson
Verdict - Wrong! Maye's only interception of the year was the one against the Broncos where he died on the goal line as time expired. Johnson led the Jets with four picks, one ahead of Lee.
What should the Jets do about their uniforms?:
Most popular choice - Get new ones
Outcome - They are getting new ones
Verdict - Correct! We should see the new uniforms in a few months time. We reserve the right to take the credit for the right answer away from you when everyone hates the new uniforms and bullies the Jets into reverting back to the old ones.
Who will be the biggest scapegoat in 2018?:
Most popular choice - Todd Bowles
Outcome - Bowles was fired on January 30th
Verdict - Correct! Maybe Jeremy Bates and Mike Maccagnan were scapegoated just as much by some sections of the fanbase but, for now, Bowles is the only one to pay with his job.
Which ex-Jets player should be the next to have his number retired?:
Most popular choice - Nick Mangold
Outcome - TBD
Verdict - Once again, Mangold is a solid choice, but the Jets haven't retired anyone's number since 2012 (Dennis Byrd in October and Curtis Martin in September) so we're still waiting on this category.
Which veteran player will be the first to report to camp?:
Most popular choice - Josh McCown
Outcome - Unclear
Verdict - Wrong! There was a "nobody reports who was first" option but none of you selected it.
Are you ready for some football?:
Most popular choice - Yes
Outcome - You weren't actually ready, were you?
Verdict - Correct! Okay, maybe you were ready after all.
The Final Verdict
Correct - 10
Wrong - 12
Not bad, maybe you'll do better next year...