Deep thoughts, cheap shots & bon mots ...

The hottest race in the NFL this year might be between the Jets and the 49ers: Sucking for Sam, or Diving for Darnold — USC quarterback Sam Darnold. The Jets probably have the edge, but watch the fun if both teams hit the midpoint 0-8.

Fanning the flames of 49er fans’ hopes: Darnold is 6foot-4, 225 pounds, and his grandfather was an Olympic volleyball player and a Marlboro Man — the rugged admodel cowpokes who gave their trusty steeds secondhand lung cancer.

Coffin-nail quote from Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen, per website DK Pittsburgh Sports, after the Bucs lit up Matt Cain: “We knew there wasn’t too much that he could throw by us. So we were just trying to be selective.”

Jordan Spieth’s finish at the British Open was a classic, and so was his victory speech. This guy might be too nice and too squared away to become a superstar. Another drawback: He doesn’t hit awesome home runs off the tee. Putting is so vital, but to many fringe golf fans, putting is free throw shooting on grass.

A lot of golf fans have suffered back injuries just watching Tiger Woods swing. So the Warriors’ top brass must have been reassured watching Stephen Curry on TV at the recent American Century Championship, challenging the big guys with his buttersmooth and controlled swing.

The 2017 Dodgers are the 2014-15 Warriors — the hot new kid on the block, with dazzling talent, deft managing/ coaching, strong ownership and a gift for making miracle finishes look routine.

One difference: The Dodgers aren’t leaving Dodger Stadium for Beverly Hills.

The critics who question JaVale McGee’s intelligence suffered a setback when McGee signed for the minimum with a team that is flying to the moon, not merely to Detroit and Portland.

McGee signed on the cheap, for sure, but it’s not like he was standing outside Warriors’ HQ with a cardboard sign, “Will alley-oop dunk for food.” Two-point-five million for six minutes per game is a pretty good deal for both sides.

Attention-grabbing story in the Huffington Post about rumored widespread use of cocaine and marijuana in bigleague baseball. The weed part isn’t going to throw anyone into a tizzy, but the cocaine part will get the attention of the commissioner, who probably believed Bud Selig when Bud said he had cleaned up the sport.

Idly wondering: Why did Superman need a real job? Need cash? Grab a lump of coal and squeeze it into a diamond. Want to get close to Lois Lane? Call her and say, “Superman here, let’s have lunch.”

And if Superman needed a real job, why newspaper reporter? Should I fight interplanetary crime today, or cover the Metropolis school board meeting?