THE New York Jets have a tough road ahead in trying to end their 14-year playoff drought.

Everyone knows that only three teams that started a season 2-6 in the Super Bowl era have made the playoffs. Just three teams.

For the Jets (3-6) to accomplish the improbable they need to win, at a minimum, six of their remaining eight games. New York also needs help.

This is why that of Cincinnati loss to Baltimore Thursday evening was helpful.

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and receiver Ja’Marr Chase put up some of the biggest numbers of any individual player this season, but the Bengals still haven’t been able to match the Ravens.

The loss dropped Cincinnati to 4-6 for the season and placed it in ninth place in the AFC ahead of New York.

So how exactly does this loss help the Jets, who are preparing to play the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday?

Well, that’s the first link in a potential chain of events that could significantly improve New York’s position in the playoff race by the time it reaches the bye week.

The Jets obviously have to win Sunday. In the meantime, Indianapolis goes to Buffalo. If the Colts lose this game, then the following would happen:

New York would improve to 4-6 with a 4-4 conference record;

Indianapolis would fall to 4-6 with a 3-4 conference record;

Cincinnati would remain 4-6 with a 2-4 conference record.

And thus, the Jets would move up two spots in the AFC standings in just one week.

Surreptitiously, the Jets will host the Colts next Sunday, which would give New York the opportunity to win the head-to-head tiebreaker if it needs one at the end of the season.

That would leave New York with a 5-6 record and an eighth-place finish heading into the bye week. That would be the best-case scenario for the Jets, who seemed dead in the water just a few weeks ago.

It would still be an uphill climb for New York. Of the seven teams that would make the AFC playoffs if they started today, the only team remaining on the Jets’ schedule is Buffalo, which takes place Week 17 at Buffalo. It would still be up to New York to keep winning.

Thanks to the Cincinnati loss, this week and next will be crucial if New York wants a chance to contend for the playoffs. The Jets still wouldn’t control their own destiny, but they would at least have a fighting chance.