START ME UP!
Darnold ready to roll after getting ‘awesome’ news
When Sam Darnold got the news from Todd Bowles that he had won the starting quarterback job with the Jets on Monday, the first call he made was to his parents back in California.
“They were just excited,” Darnold said Tuesday. “Mom was crying, as usual. My dad was just pumped for me. They just said, ‘You worked so hard. This is what yo u worked so hard for.’ It was a cool, little moment there with them and my sister.”
Darnold’s family will be at Ford Field on Monday night to watch his NFL regular-season debut as he leads the Jets against the Lions. The 21-year-old will become the youngest quarterback to start a Week 1 game since the 1970 merger, but he seems unfazed by what awaits him. He said he took a moment to appreciate what he accomplished, but knows being named the starter is only the beginning for him.
“We celebrate all wins,” Darnold said. “At the same time, I know that just because I got named the starter doesn’t mean we won the game Monday night. It’s awesome and I’m really happy to be a starting quarterback, but I also know I have to go out there and do my job.”
The Jets selected Darnold with the third pick in April’s draft with the hope he could be the franchise’s answer at quarterback. They were not going to rush him into the job, but he came along so fast in training camp the Jets feel he is ready.
“Now that I know I’m starting, it is an amazing feeling,” Darnold said.
He beat out Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgewater, whom the Jets traded to the Saints last week. Darnold will be the 31st quarterback to start a game for the Jets since Joe Namath left the team after the 1976 season. The Jets now hope that number stays at 31 for a long time.
D arnold, who has shown remarkable maturity for his age, said all the right things Tuesday with the media, as he has since he arrived.
“I know that I haven’t done anything yet,” Darnold said. “I haven’t won any ga me s in the NFL I just have to go out there and do my job.”
McCown was the Jets starter last season and had the best year of his career. The 39-year-old said “personally it’s a bummer” about losing out to Darnold, but he saw which way the competition was going in training camp as Darnold began to get most of the first-team reps.
“Obviously, as a competitor you love to play, but I kind of understood which direction it was headed,” McCown said. “I’m just excited for our team and excited for the future. … The coaches and Todd made that decision. We’re behind it 100 percent. Now, it’s focusing on Detroit and doing everything we can to help him be in the best decision to play good football.”
Darnold is the third rookie to open the season for the Jets at quarterback, following Mark Sanchez in 2009 and Geno Smith in 2013. Namath did not start until the third game of his rookie season in 1965. While starting a rookie quarterback on the road in a dome could present issues on Monday night, Bowles does not sound concerned.
“He’s been playing football all his life, he’s not just coming fresh out of the womb and just grabbing the ball for the first time,” Bowles said. “He’s been in crowds. He’s seen crowds and he’s been playing football. I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. It’s always going to be loud in a dome and Detroit is a tough place to play, I get that, but he just has to play football. He’ll be fine.”