New York Jets: 3 Players on the hot seat in 2018 season
1. Sam Darnold
It might not seem fair to have a 21-year old kid on the hot seat, but that’s life in the big city. When you’re the starting quarterback of the New York Jets, expectations are high. The seat is always hot. Sometimes burning.
The USC product has looked primed and ready to take over the offense for Gang Green this summer. He completed 64.4 percent of his pass attempts with two touchdown passes and one interception during the preseason. More importantly, Darnold seems poised well beyond his years.
He has absorbed the playbook and seems ready to take command. There will be enormous pressure on Darnold. Jets fans have been clamoring for a franchise signal-caller since the days of Joe Namath. To succeed in the Big Apple takes determination, dedication and focus. By all accounts, the Capistrano Beach, CA native has the personality to handle the vicissitudes of rookie life in the National Football League.
Before this year’s draft, the top four quarterback prospects were (in no particular order) Baker Mayfield, Josh Rosen, Josh Allen and Darnold. I stated that I liked Darnold the best from among that quartet. I hope I’m right. Sometimes I am right, often I’m not. For the sake of long-suffering fans of Gang Green, this has to be the guy. Darnold must finally be their franchise quarterback.
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He seems to be ready for the task that lies ahead. It won’t be an easy road. It will be filled with some potholes along the way. Pressure will mount. It all gets started on Sept. 10 in Detroit. Can Darnold lead the Jets to the promised land someday? He has to. Plain and simple.