5 questions for...
Adam Archuleta
Former NFL safety and CBS analyst Adam Archuleta talks with The Post’s Justin Terranova about the resurgent Jets, the Lamar Jackson takeover and serious Jared Goff concerns.
Q: What can the Jets take away from a strong finish to the season?
A: After hitting rock bottom in the Miami game and being able to pull from that and stay together as a football team and really finish strong down the stretch means something. I don’t know if it carries over to next season, but I think it’s really important for a development of a football team, especially with a first-year staff under Adam Gase like they have.
Q: What have you seen from Sam Darnold’s growth since the disastrous mono and “ghosts” start to the season?
A: It’s that he didn’t let that ruin him. His ability to bounce back from negativity is a great quality. He hit a point where it wasn’t looking good. He was making some real bad decisions, turning the ball over, couldn’t handle pressure really well, the offensive line was breaking down around him. The No. 1 thing that gives you hope is that he didn’t let that spiral out of control. He really rebounded and turned that around.
Q: Will Lamar Jackson change the way we look at quarterbacks?
A: Guys like Lamar Jackson don’t come along very often. To me, whether it’s a drop-back passer or a guy like [Patrick] Mahomes who has ridiculous throwing ability or a guy like Jackson, to me it comes down to football instincts, football IQ and awareness. Those are the special traits that no matter how fast you are, how far you can throw the ball, those are the traits that make special players. I put a guy like Deshaun Watson in the category, Russell Wilson. It’s really rare when you combine all of that in one package.
Q: How worried should the Rams be over Jared Goff?
A: I’d be really concerned. I said before the season the key to the Rams was Todd Gurley. When he was in his “MVP form” last season, that’s when the offense was unstoppable. When you saw a decline in Gurley, with how they used him or his effectiveness, the offense wasn’t the same. Q: A couple of weeks ago you made a comment about your moustache and used the phrase “Dirty Sanchez,” which has a different meaning than you realized. How much have you heard about that? A: I honestly say this from the bottom of my heart, I really had no idea that was the meaning of what I said. That’s how I always described my inability to grow facial hair and no one has ever said, “Hey, you know what that really means.” I just thought it meant a crappy mustache. But it teaches you that you have to be careful and whether I meant it in an innocent way or not, the internet isn’t always going to be forgiving. I take my job seriously and I would never want to bring embarrassing attention to myself or CBS. I don’t know if the Urban Dictionary is going to be on my reading list to stay up on these terms, but I just have to be a little bit more careful.