With the New York Jets’ win over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, the Jets are no longer the favorites for the first overall pick. The Jacksonville Jaguars now own the strength of schedule tiebreaker and are unlikely to beat the Chicago Bears or Indianapolis Colts. Odds are, the Jets will need to face the facts sooner than later – Trevor Lawrence is not coming to New York in 2021. How does that affect the future of Sam Darnold with the club?
In other words, the Jets must determine what comes next at quarterback. Monday night they locked up a top-two pick thanks to the Cincinnati Bengals’ win, putting them in position for anybody not-named Lawrence. General manager Joe Douglas is equipped with enough cap space galore and draft capital to build a much better offense next season. It just comes down to who is starting.
Yes, the Jets could spend the second overall pick on Ohio State’s Justin Fields or BYU’s Zach Wilson. But they could also finally give Darnold a solid offense and give him one last season under center. That is, assuming Darnold can prove himself over the next two weeks.
New York Jets Next Two Games Hold the Future of Sam Darnold With the Team
His Career to This Point
When discussing Sam Darnold’s career to this point, the inconsistent play is what first comes up. Dating back to his days at USC, Darnold has had flashes of unteachable playmaking ability, as well as plenty of turnovers. It has been the imbalance of good and bad play that have the Jets in this quarterback debacle in the first place. If Darnold was able to iron out these issues by now, they would not even be considering taking another in round one.
Without a doubt, Darnold has been horrible in 2020. He has six touchdown passes to nine interceptions, is completing passes at a 59.7 percent rate, and averages 5.9 yards per attempt. Those are not winning numbers, let alone numbers worthy of a starter. But then again, look at some of his playing conditions.
Until recently, Darnold never played with the trio of starting receivers as they have all been hurt at one point or another. Outside of stud rookie left tackle Mekhi Becton, the blocking upfront has been unreliable. The run game has also been poor and largely ineffective, leaving the entire offense in flux. No wonder they average 14.7 points per game.
That has quite frankly been the storyline of Darnold’s whole career. The wide receiver position has been a constant rotation, and the run game has never been efficient. And the coaching he has had is… well… it has not been good, to say the least.
The bottom line is while Darnold has not done much to help himself, the Jets have not given him the circumstances to garner a true evaluation. No young quarterback put into the position he has would. And that is why all eyes will be on until the clock hits zero Week 17 at Gillette Stadium.
Two Weeks to Prove Himself
Have the circumstances of the 2020 New York Jets changed? Not at all. Are there suddenly great players around Darnold? Nope. Has Adam Gase been replaced as head coach? Not yet.
Nevertheless, the now 1-13 Jets seemed like a different team against the Rams. Defensively, the turnaround from their showing a week prior against the Seattle Seahawks was astonishing. Marcus Maye and company had shown more passion than ever, and the offense even moved the ball. They went seven of 17 on third down and did not turn the football over once. Not to mention, they owned the time of possession by almost a ten-minute difference.
The Cleveland Browns, who are 10-4, are a very good football team. Like against the Rams, nobody is going to expect much of the Jets, though as they just proved, anything is possible. The Browns are a solid team defensively, and Becton vs Myles Garrett is going to be an amazing matchup. Cleveland also has struggled against the pass of late, as Darnold will need to capitalize on it.
That also applies in Week 17 against Bill Belichick’s playoff-less New England Patriots. They will be without Stephon Gilmore and have struggled against the run. If the Jets carry the same fight and play like they belong as they did against the Rams, they can at least show signs of life in these games.
Last Word on the Future of Sam Darnold With the New York Jets
At the end of the day, Sam Darnold just needs to close the season strong. This year has not been easy for anyone, especially a 23-year-old quarterback. But to put up a string of strong performances and go out on a high note would go a long way to even having a shot at saying in Gotham green next season. After all, there is plenty of uncertainty on its way for the Jets.
