Optimistic isn't a trait one would typically ascribe to a player on a 1-6 team. But Jets wide receiver Eric Decker sounded that way when talking to NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport Thursday night, believing New York is still in the hunt for the AFC East.
"I really feel like this is a good football team," said Decker, who spoke following an event at Macy's in New York for Buffalo David Bitton, a clothing company for which he is the spokesperson. "We're just not there yet and we just need to get that momentum, have a snowball effect, win that one game, play better as a team and see what happens. But I really do feel like we're still in it."
It's hard to believe a team that's last in its division and four games behind the leading New England Patriots could sneak into the playoffs, but it's not totally inconceivable. Of the Jets' final nine games, five are against divisional opponents. (They host the Billson Sunday.)
"If we can string some games together," Decker added, "we know we have a chance."
The Jets' 1-6 start is their worst through seven games since 2007, when Gang Green wrapped up its season with a 4-12 mark. The hope is that recently acquired wideout Percy Harvin will spark an anemic Jets offense led by quarterback Geno Smith that currently averages 320.4 yards per game (26th in the NFL) and scores a meek 17.3 points per contest (28th). If Harvin doesn't, Decker's first season in the Big Apple will be one to forget.
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