NEW JETS ERA STARTS WITH GHOST OF QB PAST
Face of franchise squares off against Gang’s last ‘savior’
The time has arrived to officially begin a new chapter of Jets football when Gang Green battles the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte on Sunday. Robert Saleh is the new head coach and has brought an “All Gas No Brakes” slogan to the organization. And the new driver stepping on the gas is the No. 2 overall pick from April’s NFL Draft, Zach Wilson.
This is the first game together for Saleh and Wilson and the rookie duo hope it’s the beginning of a long run together in green and white.
And, of course, the first opponent out of the gate is the team that features the “franchise” quarterback that preceded Wilson in the Big Apple, Sam Darnold.
Darnold wasn’t good during his three years in New York. And at times, he was downright awful. He threw for 8,097 yards, 45 touchdowns and tossed 39 interceptions with a passer rating of 78.6. His record as a starter was 13-25. Four wins as a rookie out of USC after being the third overall pick in the 2018 draft. Seven the next season and two in 2020.
Memories of his Monday Night Football performance against the Patriots in October 2019 still haunts Jets fans. As he gift-wrapped four interceptions to New England’s defense — and finished with only 86 yards passing in an embarrassing 33-0 loss — he infamously uttered “I’m seeing ghosts” for the whole nation to hear.
Last year, you could count on your hands how many touchdowns Darnold threw. Nine. That’s it. Yes, Darnold would make an occasional Patrick Mahomes off-script throw. But he would follow it up with boneheaded interceptions. The good moments were too rare, which led to the Jets trading him in April to the Panthers for three picks and starting over with Wilson.
And no matter what happens during Darnold’s time in Carolina, it was the right decision for the Jets to move forward with Wilson. Some might feel the former BYU star needs to justify the move in Week 1, but he isn’t focused on that narrative.
“That’s definitely not something I think about. He’s doing his own thing now, he’s got a great situation going for him,” Wilson said. “I think the organization already decided to go one way and it’s not because Sam’s not a good football player, it’s just they wanted a fresh start. So, I’m happy for him and it’s a new situation for me. That’s not even something that crosses my mind. It’s just how can I continually get better every single day, prepare to do the right things on Sunday. How can I help our team win football games?”
This is the correct — and mature — response because Wilson’s tenure will center around how many games he can win.
Saleh believes he has done everything he can to put his rookie QB in the best possible situation to succeed.
“We’ve given it to him in camp the best we could with the way we run our defense,” Saleh said. “He’s kind of getting used to all the stuff . ... Flipping coverages and just trying to make it hard on him. And it’s gonna be no different [in the game]. … Talking to [Mike LaFleur] on the field, we make it so chaotic in practice and we just can’t help but feel the game is going to be slower to him.”
And on Sunday for the Jets to get a win on the road Wilson is going to need help, starting at the line of scrimmage.
The Panthers defensive line poses a huge challenge to Saleh, Wilson and the rest of the rebuilding Jets. Brian Burns, former Arizona Cardinal Haason Reddick, Derrick Brown, Morgan Fox and DaQuan Jones headline this unit and can cause issues for Gang Green.
Burns has All-Pro talent. In 2020, he finished with nine sacks, eight tackles for loss and three forced fumbles. He causes problems even when he doesn’t sack the quarterback, finishing with 57 pressures, seventh-most in the NFL.
The Panthers signed Reddick — a New Jersey kid who played at Temple — after he put up a career year with 12.5 sacks, 15 tackles for loss, 56 pressures and six forced fumbles. Brown is a former Top 10 pick out of Auburn and has talent.
The Jets counter to the Panthers imposing front is last year’s first-round pick Mekhi Becton, rookie Aljiah Vera-Tucker, Connor McGovern, Greg Van Roten, and either Morgan Moses or George Fant. An inconsistent group at best during training camp and preseason because of injuries. They have to win this matchup so Gang Green can execute their offensive game plan.
“They got a good defensive front. We got a lot of things we got to key on,” Becton said. “They’re a penetrating team. We got to come off the ball like they come off the ball. It’s gonna be a real grimy game, a real muddy game. We ready for it.”
If the offensive line can create running lanes for the running backs, then offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur can feature his creative play-action calls. That could lead to explosive passing plays.
And for the Jets defensive, it starts with their defensive line.
They have to pressure Darnold — we all know what happens when he feels the pressure — and disrupt running lanes to contain star running back Christian McCaffrey. If they don’t, then the Panthers can exploit the inexperienced Jets secondary with receivers Robby Anderson, DJ Moore and Terrace Marshall.
Sunday is the start of a new era for the Jets. And the first chapter for Saleh, Wilson and the rest of the team will be written against their former quarterback.
Let’s see if they can rise to the challenge.