ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Ryan Fitzpatrick, at one time in his lengthy career as a journeyman NFL quarterback, brought hope, however temporary, to a Western New York region eager to embrace him if it meant one playoff game. But each of his four seasons with the Bills ended the way the Jets' season did Sunday: in dejection and without a postseason berth.
It was Fitzpatrick's three fourth-quarter interceptions that doomed the Jets, who crumbled in a win-and-in scenario with a 22-17 loss to the Bills. They were leapfrogged by the Steelers for the final AFC wild-card spot a week after beating the Patriots in Foxborough, Mass. It's the fifth consecutive year the Jets will sit out, despite a 10-6 season that, as recently as last week, held much promise.
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Fitzpatrick's disappointment was evident after the game, particularly when asked about a throw to Eric Decker in the back of the end zone that would have put the Jets ahead for the first time with 10:48 remaining, but instead was intercepted by Bills cornerback Leodis McKelvin.
"I think I threw it a little in front of him. I also think Leodis made a nice play," Fitzpatrick said, huddled by reporters at the lectern underneath Ralph Wilson Stadium, where he played for the first time since his 2012 departure. "He read the route a little bit and Leodis did a nice job on that one. Obviously it was a huge moment in the game and I wish I had that one back.
"I had exactly what I wanted with Eric I just didn't make the throw."
Fitzpatrick has never played in a playoff game in his 11 NFL seasons. This time, with his fourth team in four years, the 33-year-old appeared poised to end the drought after throwing for career highs in passing yards (3,905) and touchdown passes (31). The latter broke Vinny Testaverde's franchise record of 29 and helped the Jets set a team mark for total offense in a season.
None of it translated to what would have been the first playoff start of his career.
Fitzpatrick's statistical success has been attributed to Jets offensive coordinator Chan Gailey, who was head coach of the Bills in 2011 when Fitzpatrick enjoyed what stood as, statistically, his best season in the NFL until now. The Bills got off to a surprise 5-2 start that year, but finished 6-10, and Fitzpatrick tossed a career-high 23 interceptions.
So the irony knitted into the outcome of Sunday's loss was uncanny.
The narrative was juicy: Fitzpatrick would vault the Jets back into the playoffs with a win in a building where he made memories, many of which still linger.
But in his best chance to prove himself as a playoff quarterback and show he'd solved the turnover issues that haunted him over the years, he regressed to the mean, completing a season-low 43 percent of his passes. His previous low (44 percent) came Week 10, also in a loss to the Bills.
"It's the most difficult end to a season I've ever had just in terms of how I feel right now and how painful of a loss that was," Fitzpatrick said. "It wasn't about where it was; I think it was a little more because of what was at stake."
At stake, besides a playoff berth, was also a new contract. Fitzpatrick's one-year deal will expire this offseason, and the Jets reportedly have not yet engaged in talks about an extension.
All indications are that Fitzpatrick will be brought back. But his career record as a starter is 43-61-1, and he never did see the end of his last lucrative extension, a six-year, $59 million contract signed with the Bills in 2011. Buffalo cut him loose less than two years later, after Doug Marrone was hired to replace a fired Gailey.
Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall, who caught 13 touchdowns from Fitzpatrick, wants to make sure he'll be back.
"If it wasn't for Ryan Fitzpatrick we wouldn't be in this position," Marshall said after the loss. "Ryan needs to stop that. He needs to keep his head up. He played an awesome game, but not only that, he was the guy who spoke up when we were on that decline mid-season and brought the team together. He led the way, and I thought he played great."
