If you've ever spent a Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium or at a bar in Queens, you know that being a fan of this team is basically a test of human endurance. It’s a rollercoaster that somehow spends most of its time at the bottom of the loop. To really get why the fanbase is the way it is, you have to look at the ny jets records by season because they tell a story of incredible highs and some truly baffling lows. Honestly, the numbers are kind of staggering when you lay them all out.
Through the end of the 2025 season, this franchise has put up a regular-season record of 436 wins, 573 losses, and 8 ties. That’s 66 years of football, starting from the days when they weren't even called the Jets. They began as the Titans of New York in 1960, playing at the old Polo Grounds. Back then, they were a scrappy AFL team just trying to survive.
The Namath Era and the Guarantee
The late 1960s were the golden era. There's no other way to put it. In 1968, the Jets went 11-3. That’s still one of the best winning percentages in team history. Weeb Ewbank was the coach, and Joe Namath was the face of the sport. Most people know about Super Bowl III—the 16-7 win over the Baltimore Colts where "Broadway Joe" guaranteed victory. But what gets lost is how consistent they were for that brief window. They followed it up in 1969 with a 10-4 record and another division title.
Then, the merger happened.
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In 1970, the Jets moved to the NFL, and things got... complicated. They didn't have another winning season for over a decade. Imagine that. From 1970 until 1981, it was a sea of 4-10 and 3-11 records. It wasn't just losing; it was the way it happened. The team struggled to find an identity post-Namath, and the roster was often a revolving door of "what-ifs."
The Sack Exchange and the 80s
The 1980s gave fans a reason to care again. This was the era of the "New York Sack Exchange"—Mark Gastineau, Joe Klecko, Marty Lyons, and Abdul Salaam. In 1981, they finally broke the curse, finishing 10-5-1.
1982 was the year they almost made it back to the big dance. It was a strike-shortened season, so the records look a little weird—they finished 6-3. They went on a tear in the playoffs, beating the Bengals and the Raiders on the road. Then came the "Mud Bowl" in Miami. They lost 14-0 to the Dolphins on a field that looked more like a swamp than a football pitch. That 1982 AFC Championship game is still a sore spot for older fans.
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The rest of the decade was a mix of decent 10-6 or 11-5 seasons (like 1985 and 1986) followed by immediate collapses. You'd have a year where they looked like contenders, and then they'd go 6-9 or 4-12 the next.
The Parcells Turnaround and the Rex Ryan Peak
If you want to see a masterclass in fixing a broken culture, look at 1996 to 1998. In 1996, the Jets were arguably the worst team in history, finishing 1-15 under Rich Kotite. It was a disaster. Then Bill Parcells showed up.
- 1997: 9-7 (A massive 8-win improvement)
- 1998: 12-4 (Their best regular-season record ever)
In '98, they were winning games 34-24 in the playoffs and had a lead in the AFC Championship against Denver before it all fell apart.
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Fast forward to 2009 and 2010. This was the Rex Ryan era. It was loud, it was obnoxious, and it worked. They went 9-7 and then 11-5, making back-to-back AFC Championship appearances. Mark Sanchez was the "Sanchize," and the defense was terrifying. They beat Tom Brady and the Patriots in Foxborough in the 2010 playoffs—a game many Jets fans consider their "second Super Bowl."
Recent Struggles and the Drought
Since that 2010 loss to the Steelers, the ny jets records by season have been objectively tough to watch. They haven't made the playoffs since. That's the longest active drought in the NFL.
We’ve seen the 4-12 years, the 2-14 year in 2020, and several 7-10 finishes recently. Even bringing in a future Hall of Famer like Aaron Rodgers didn't immediately flip the script, as the 2023 and 2024 seasons were marred by injuries and offensive struggles. In 2025, the team finished 3-14, a reminder that in the NFL, hope can be a dangerous thing.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Analysts
If you're tracking these records for betting, fantasy, or just historical curiosity, keep a few things in mind:
- Look at the coaching cycles: The Jets tend to have "dead cat bounces" where a new coach (like Parcells, Edwards, or Ryan) sees immediate success for 2-3 years before a sharp decline.
- Home field advantage is a myth: Over the last decade, their record at MetLife hasn't been significantly better than their road record.
- Division volatility: The AFC East was dominated by the Patriots for twenty years, which skewed the Jets' records. Now that the division is more open, look for more "middle-of-the-pack" finishes rather than total basement-dwelling.
The history of the Jets is basically a lesson in resilience. For every 1-15 season, there's a 12-4 outlier that keeps the hope alive for the next generation. To stay updated on current stats, always cross-reference the official NFL standings with historical databases like Pro Football Reference to see where the current team stacks up against the ghosts of 1968.