No, not at all.
I’ve seen and heard Jet fans recently make the claim that Sam Darnold is a bust and the Jets need a new quarterback. That’s just knee-jerk craziness as far as I’m concerned. Remember – just a few weeks ago everyone was over the moon when he returned to the field, beat the Cowboys, and was awarded AFC Offensive Player of the Week.
I was never as high on Darnold as many were prior to the 2018 NFL Draft. I never branded him to be an automatic “franchise quarterback” as others did. I was consistent during interviews on his next level future – Darnold had more upside than any quarterback in the draft but also had more downside risk than any of the other quarterbacks. His poor mechanics and poor ball security in college were big red flags for me and something which needed development.
He made strides in those areas last season and I was blown away by his resiliency, decision making, and the way he’s able to pull a rabbit out of a hat at times.
You can’t throw a guy under the bus after three or more poor games when you look at the entirety of the situation – an offensive line that’s beyond awful, mediocre receivers, a starting tight end who, though playing well this season, was never anything more than the second guy on the depth chart the prior six years.
Then, of course, there’s the head coach.
I’ve seen and heard Jet fans recently make the claim that Sam Darnold is a bust and the Jets need a new quarterback. That’s just knee-jerk craziness as far as I’m concerned. Remember – just a few weeks ago everyone was over the moon when he returned to the field, beat the Cowboys, and was awarded AFC Offensive Player of the Week.
I was never as high on Darnold as many were prior to the 2018 NFL Draft. I never branded him to be an automatic “franchise quarterback” as others did. I was consistent during interviews on his next level future – Darnold had more upside than any quarterback in the draft but also had more downside risk than any of the other quarterbacks. His poor mechanics and poor ball security in college were big red flags for me and something which needed development.
He made strides in those areas last season and I was blown away by his resiliency, decision making, and the way he’s able to pull a rabbit out of a hat at times.
You can’t throw a guy under the bus after three or more poor games when you look at the entirety of the situation – an offensive line that’s beyond awful, mediocre receivers, a starting tight end who, though playing well this season, was never anything more than the second guy on the depth chart the prior six years.
Then, of course, there’s the head coach.