Jets QB Sam Darnold may be a rookie, but his new team isn't treating him like one.
The No. 3 overall pick hasn't been eased into his new role with the Jets, but rather, the team is throwing everything they can at him. Offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates said the entire playbook has been thrown his way during the team's three-day mandatory minicamp.
The reason? Bates says that's how you see what Darnold can truly handle.
"We threw the whole playbook at him, just like same with Josh (McCown) and Teddy (Bridgewater)," Bates said after the team's second minicamp practice. "You know, if you treat them like a rookie, he'll become a rookie. So, we threw the whole book at him. See what he could handle, what he needs to work on just like the other two and he's done a really good job."
The Daily News Live crew dissected Bates' comments, and though he may cover the Giants, the Daily News' Pat Leonard believes the Jets are priming Darnold to start Week 1.
"I think so," Leonard said when asked if Darnold will be under center Week 1. "I think Bates came on strongest when he said, 'Listen, if he can handle it and prove he can be the starter, he's going to be. This is sometimes what happens when you don't put a head coach up on the podium who has scripted everything and a little more honest about what's going on behind the scenes.
"He's an intelligent young player who they took at three because they think, if he's not going to start Week 1, he'll be ready in Week 2 or 5. They're not planning on sitting him..."
Darnold has been bouncing around the depth chart throughout his first practices, but he has seen significant time with the first-team offense. He noted that the adjustment to the NFL hasn't been the easiest of rides, but he is getting the hang of it.
"It hasn't been super easy to adjust but it's all the same plays," Darnold said on the first day of the Jets' mandatory minicamp. "It's just getting used to the different terminology... being able to picture the play in my head when it's called makes it easier to call it in the huddle."
In the first day of camp, Darnold earned about 12 first-team reps during team drills, while Josh McCown led the three quarterbacks with 20, according to Newsday.