Confident Darnold hits Jets practice field for first time

[doniceage]

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Todd Bowles chuckled for a moment and then just couldn't resist the urge to break from his normally low-key, stoic public persona.

The New York Jets coach had just been asked what his initial impressions were of first-round pick Sam Darnold at rookie minicamp Friday — and Bowles went wild. Well, sort of.

"He was great! I want him to play right now!" a smiling Bowles shouted while slamming his left hand on the lectern for emphasis .

It was stunning. And made a room filled with wide-eyed reporters laugh.

https://pro32.ap.org/article/confide...=244+281088008

[camsue]

Very nice

[Jameis1of1]

SAM "WHITE JAMEIS" DARNOLD should have been the #1 overall pick and has all the tools to be a great QB in the NFL ... however, he is surrounded by GARBAGE on the Jets and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see both Mayfield and Rosen have better rookie years and to see Sam have a ton of turnovers if the team asks him to be a gunslinger and carry them ...

[Devlin]

The Jets .are a historically inept team. I don't see it changing in the near future

[doniceage]

SAM "WHITE JAMEIS" DARNOLD should have been the #1 overall pick and has all the tools to be a great QB in the NFL ... however, he is surrounded by GARBAGE on the Jets and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see both Mayfield and Rosen have better rookie years and to see Sam have a ton of turnovers if the team asks him to be a gunslinger and carry them ...

Sounds like Joe Namath and his terrible stats (turnovers). Of course for one SB win he is immortalized.


Don

[Jameis1of1]

Sounds like Joe Namath and his terrible stats (turnovers). Of course for one SB win he is immortalized.
Don

Don't get me wrong ... had Darnold been drafted by a good "team" like the Cowboys or Titans, I think he could have instantly beaten out both Dak and Mariota for the starting position and put up great numbers, but the Jets just have nothing on the offensive side of the ball for him to work with ... they do seem to have a good coach and a very good offensive coordinator though, so we'll see what happens.

[jplcom]

Don't get me wrong ... had Darnold been drafted by a good "team"

What if..... the Buccaneers had drafted him?! Winston vs Darnold, who ya got???

[doniceage]

What if..... the Buccaneers had drafted him?! Winston vs Darnold, who ya got???

Gotta be Darnold!

Don

[Jameis1of1]

Honestly that's a tough one ... especially as I'm not a Jameis homer or even a Bucs fan really, and I try not to let emotionalism cloud my judgment when it comes to my investments, whether that investment is sports cards or artwork or real estate or even rare books ... emotionalism can kill a bank account quickly.

Also, I don't call Sam "White Jameis" for nothing. The kid plays the game of football EXACTLY like Jameis imho.

If you're asking me who I think is better "right now" ... it's Jameis all the way. Sam hasn't thrown an NFL pass yet, so no matter how much talent he has, he's got to prove he can put it all together at the NFL level.

If you're asking me who I think has the "higher ceiling", I'd also say Jameis, simply because as talented as Sam is, Jameis has more arm talent, is more of a natural leader of men, throws with better anticipation and is also known to have a higher football IQ than Sam ... however, Sam is a bit more athletic, though since they're both natural pocket-passers, that doesn't mean all that much as both scramble to pass, rather than scramble just to scramble.

HOWEVER, had Darnold slipped to #7 and the Bucs chosen to draft him and trade Jameis to a team like the Broncos for Bradley Chubb (the #5 overall pick) along with extra picks from the Broncos this year and Denver's 2019 #1 pick, that may have been best for the team, not because Darnold is as good as Jameis right now, or even because Darnold will ever be quite as good as Jameis, even when both players are in their prime, but merely because over the next 5 years Jameis will make around $125 million, whereas Darnold, on a cheap rookie deal, would only make around $55 million or so, so the Bucs would have had an extra $14mil or so each year to spend on free agents, which would mean one extra "star" free agent each year or two quality starter-level players each year!

Generally speaking, teams that have a QB making 15% or more of the salary cap NEVER win a Super Bowl ... and Jameis will likely make far more than 15% of the salary cap starting next season and going forward ... I think it will be tough for a smaller market team to win a ring with a QB making that much money.

Team sports are tough with their ridiculous salary caps ... I honestly believe every team should be able to have one player whose salary does not count against the cap. The league could call it the "face of the franchise rule" or some such thing, but it just makes so much sense to me ... the Packers should be able to exceed the cap to pay Aaron Rodgers, the Lions should be able to do so for Matt Stafford, the Bucs for Jameis, the Eagles for Wentz, the Colts for Luck, etc ...