Losmeister Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 copy and paste- Connor Hughes/The Athletic- i didnt bold or italacize anything. " Sam Darnold and his development Darnold looked outstanding during New York’s three-game win streak earlier this season. Then he took a step back against the Bengals. The Jets hoped he’d turn things around versus Miami. That didn’t happen. Guys were open in the secondary. Darnold either didn’t see them or saw them late. He instead made throws that got the Jets in trouble. Like the interception to Steven Parker. Or the one Miami corner Jomal Wiltz dropped. Instead of throwing the ball away, he took a sack on the game’s final possession that could have cost New York a shot at a field goal. He finished 20 of 36 (55 percent) for 270 yards with a pair of touchdowns and that interception. It wasn’t regression, but it certainly wasn’t progression. “I know there are some things on tape that I am not going to like when I see it,” Darnold said. That’s exactly what the Jets don’t want in another lost year. The worst-case scenario for this team is entering 2020 not knowing — without a doubt — if Darnold is a franchise quarterback or not. Not belief. Not hope. Concrete knowledge. This take sent Twitter into a frenzy during the game. So let me explain. The Jets hoped they’d make a playoff run this season. They wanted to believe the offseason pieces acquired by Mike Maccagnan would put them on the track to championship contention. But what they needed was for Darnold to take the next step in his development. They needed to know he was, without a doubt, the guy. That would make this offseason so much easier. Instead, after 10 games, they have about the same evaluation of their young quarterback as they did last year: Flashes of brilliance, a dose of questionable decisions. He’s 5-5 this year as a starter and 9-14 over the last two years. He’s endured injuries. He’s thrown 26 interceptions in 23 starts. There’s as much evidence out there to say Darnold is just another guy as there is that he’s the guy. Now, Darnold is 22. He started playing quarterback late in high school. He started just 27 games in college. He’s still a developing player. The Jets believe he will be a franchise quarterback. Personally, I agree. They believe he will improve when surrounded by additional playmakers and a serviceable offensive line. Personally, I agree. But while there’s belief from those inside One Jets Drive that Darnold can be a top-5, top-10 passer, that’s all that is right now: Belief and hope. It was imperative this year that the Jets know. You simply can’t make that statement right now. Darnold hasn’t shown enough. It doesn’t mean he won’t be a franchise quarterback. It doesn’t mean he hasn’t made some progress. But you can’t say the same thing about Darnold after his second year as you could about Carson Wentz (pre-injury) or DeShaun Watson or Jared Goff or Patrick Mahomes. The injuries are a reason for that. Maccagnan’s failures in the draft are a reason for that. You can even blame Gase. These final three weeks present Darnold an opportunity to flip that script. He has a chance to show what he can do against three teams that look destined for the playoffs. The Jets play the Ravens (11-2) on Thursday night. Then the Steelers (8-5). Then the Bills (9-4). Darnold needs to step up his game. He needs to elevate the play of those around him. If he does that, he will give this team an entirely different outlook entering the offseason." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry McCockinner Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 10 hours ago, southtown24th said: ups and downs. welcome to life as a second year NFL QB. Right - it's not like there are any QB's in recent history who have done better in year 2. Plus, he's only 22. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butterfield Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 So far, with the ups and downs, both this year, and last, he is mediocre/average. No need to under or over rate him at this point. Hopefully, he gets better, but it is not guaranteed. But, with a better team, I think you can win with him either way. The thing I hope most, is that the streakiness ends and he becomes more consistent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsfan80 Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 8 minutes ago, Barry McCockinner said: Right - it's not like there are any QB's in recent history who have done better in year 2. Plus, he's only 22. Lamar Jackson? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry McCockinner Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 1 minute ago, Jetsfan80 said: Lamar Jackson? I was being sarcastic. It's not just one QB either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbatesman Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 4 hours ago, Losmeister said: copy and paste- Connor Hughes/The Athletic- i didnt bold or italacize anything. Not gonna quote the whole thing, but Hughes nails it here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HawkeyeJet Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 Connor Hughes, less than two months ago: I personally am very invested in his which way is the wind blowing opinion. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sec101row23 Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 5 hours ago, Losmeister said: copy and paste- Connor Hughes/The Athletic- i didnt bold or italacize anything. " Sam Darnold and his development Darnold needs to step up his game. He needs to elevate the play of those around him. This take is such a lazy, cliche’ that these writers say when they run out of other stuff to write. Few QBs in this league are truly capable of “elevating” those around them. The rest of the QBs in the league need the rest of their teammates to perform around them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warfish Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 Good (and IMO fair) article. 2019 will go down as a lost and wasted year for this franchise, where almost nothing good happened, and nothing was learned about Darnold's ultimate fate. Dear lord I hope Douglas provides the first legitimate GM'ing we'd have in a decade+ this coming offseason. And that we get a few new strength and conditioning and medical folks, because the injury thing is just too much this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HawkeyeJet Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 19 minutes ago, sec101row23 said: This take is such a lazy, cliche’ that these writers say when they run out of other stuff to write. Few QBs in this league are truly capable of “elevating” those around them. The rest of the QBs in the league need the rest of their teammates to perform around them. Yeah, I hear this thrown around a lot too. I am not sure how much NFL teams actually live by this notion though. I can't think of any team(other than maybe the Packers) off the top of my head who haven't spent a a lot of premium resources(high draft picks, FA signings) to insulate their young QB. Hell there are tons of teams that throw tons of premium resources at the offense with very, very good veteran QBs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Losmeister Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 24 minutes ago, sec101row23 said: This take is such a lazy, cliche’ that these writers say when they run out of other stuff to write. Few QBs in this league are truly capable of “elevating” those around them. The rest of the QBs in the league need the rest of their teammates to perform around them. I agree... i prefer to use the word INSPIRE 1b- to exert an animating, enlivening, or exalting influence on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost420 Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 Imagine getting a buttfumble for stating a fact. @JTJet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTJet Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 4 minutes ago, Ghost420 said: Imagine getting a buttfumble for stating a fact. @JTJet Imagine stating a fact without any context and also mentioning said QB has bottom 2 O Line in the league. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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