By Rafique Louison
The New York Jets have suffered years of losing seasons, except for the 10-6 2015 team led by former quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. Of course, they couldn’t get the job done against Buffalo that year. Just three years later, the Jets have No.3 draft pick Sam Darnold running the show. Sure, he did have a pick six to start his career, but he shook that off over the rest of the game, throwing for 198 yards and two touchdowns while completing 76.2 percent of his passes en route to a 48-17 win over the Detroit Lions this past Monday.
He had another rather solid game against the Miami Dolphins this week, going 25/41 for 334 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Not great, but not bad either.
Now, it’s a question of whether the Jets rookie sensation can hold his own against the best the NFL has to offer. They have upcoming games against the still-winless Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos, along with last year’s playoff standouts Jacksonville Jaguars and Minnesota Vikings over the next month.
The Jets did win games against the Jaguars, Dolphins and Browns around this time last year, but with McCown at quarterback. With Darnold taking over the Jets offense, all the Jets can do is hope that they have the same results.
By the time November and December come around, Darnold will have his hands full when he faces some of the NFL’s best quarterbacks. Following Week 11, he will go up against Tom Brady and the five-time Super Bowl Champion Patriots twice, along with Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in the Jets last home game of Darnold’s rookie year.
The Jets have not been in the playoffs since 2010, when the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated them in the AFC Championship game. That year’s Jets team was led by quarterback Mark Sanchez. Since then, the Jets have had Geno Smith, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tim Tebow and Josh McCown at quarterback.
After last Monday’s performance, plus another solid showing in the loss to Miami, the New York Jets hope Sam Darnold can be the answer to the team’s struggles in these past years. Of course, the season-opening victory wouldn’t be possible without the contributions of Isaiah Crowell, Robby Anderson and not to mention Darron Lee’s pick-six and Andre Roberts touchdown punt return.
Overall, the Jets played with promise, and it’s the best football the team has played in quite some time. The 48-point outburst is the most points the Jets have scored in a season opener since they scored 47 points against the Boston Patriots in 1967. Being the youngest QB in the NFL in a season opener since the AFL-NFL merger, you never know what to expect from the former USC standout against a 30-year-old Matthew Stafford. Can this overall offensive outburst lead to more victories for Darnold’s Jets? We’ll have to wait and see.
