For the pro-tank portion of the New York Jets fan base—a crowd that seems to be exponentially growing with each embarrassing defeat—Sunday felt more like a win than a loss.

New York was routed 42-10 by the New England Patriots, while the Cleveland Browns secured a narrow victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, which also significantly helped the Jets in the tank race.

All things considered, it was hard to draw up a better day for those tracking NFL draft position, making Sunday arguably the most successful tank day of the season for Gang Green.

The updated draft order (top 10)

Las Vegas Raiders (2-14, .542 SOS)

New York Giants (3-13, .531)

New York Jets (3-13, .548)

Tennessee Titans (3-13, .576)

Arizona Cardinals (3-13, .580)

Cleveland Browns (4-12, .491)

Washington Commanders (4-12, .507)

New Orleans Saints (6-10, .491)

Kansas City Chiefs (6-10, .509)

Cincinnati Bengals (6-10, .517)

New York rose two spots thanks to their loss and some help from Cleveland, who upset the DK Metcalf-less Steelers at home. Now, the Jets can still move up and also obtain the No. 1 overall selection, but it would require some favors from around the league.

For the Jets to finish with the No. 2 pick, a Giants win in Week 18 and a Jets loss would get it done. With just one week left, it would be tough to surpass Big Blue with the SOS tiebreaker. Therefore, the Giants would not own an outright better record than the Jets, a similar path to how the Jets leapfrogged the Browns this week.

The easiest path for the Jets to get the No. 1 pick is pretty straightforward when looking at Week 18. The Giants and Raiders would have to win, the Jets would have to lose, and a few results around the league would have to go in the Jets’ favor.

The Colts’ pick situation

As for the Jets’ second first-round pick, the one acquired from the Indianapolis Colts at the trade deadline, it remains slotted at No. 18 overall.

That’s the floor. With Indianapolis officially eliminated from playoff contention, the pick can no longer slide any further.

The ceiling, however, is far less likely to change. The Colts are tied at 8-8 with the Baltimore Ravens, Detroit Lions, and Minnesota Vikings, but with only one game remaining, Indianapolis cannot reclaim the necessary tiebreakers.

In a best-case scenario, the selection could climb as high as No. 15 if the Ravens, Lions, and Vikings all win while the Colts lose.

With just one game remaining in the 2025 NFL regular season, the tank race is nearly over, and the New York Jets have a chance to win the highly sought-after top selection.