Vinny Testeverde had arguably one of the most talented Jet teams ever assembled around him, yet that had zero bearing on him diving for a fumble, tearing his achilles and what was an anticipated SB run was over week 1. Point being, injuries happen and not a single person has ever been able to predict the play when/where their career ends. If they went with Bridgewater over Sam, so be it. I would've understood the logic and supported it...
Gotta disagree. For me it's less about the physical punishment. That's a concern with the o-line being trash, but for me it's the mental aspect of the game. I have no faith that this coaching staff is teaching him what he needs to know about being a successful QB in the NFL. I have no faith in the talent around him. The bad habits he displayed at USC are still prevalent. And why shouldn't they be? At work I depend on management to put me in a position to succeed. I need tools and knowledge to get the job done, and if that support isn't there... Well then I suppose I would fall into bad habits. Bad habits are hard to break.
That's absolutely true. He has virtually no experience at the college or pro-level. Sitting him would make him 22 with virtually no experience at the college or pro level. It's not like he's learning behind Alex Smith and a talented offensive team or behind Brett Favre with a talented offensive team. Sam's a project and he is going to have to man up and make it here or he probably gets moved down the line and maybe makes it somewhere else later. There is no development plan that guarantees SD is a good starting QB this year, next year or ever. He's also on a rookie contract. There is huge financial pressure for the team to get him up to speed under his first contract. It may have nothing to do with Sam's actual ability to be on the contract time line but it's clearly a pressure point for the GM and his survival is tied to it. The day TB was traded the team was out of options on any long term plan that wasn't SD being a very good QB by next year. The reality of the NFL wage scale is you can't pass on Watson and Mahomes when they're in your wheelhouse at a low cost. Time and salary cap are the enemy of NFL management.
No question he would have been better off getting drafted by the Rams and sitting behind Goff for 12 years.
Yo I'm not saying that Sam couldn't thrive as a rookie. I'm saying that he couldn't do it here, this year.
If he’s healthy he should play. He’s shown he can feel the pressure and adjust. If he couldn’t, he’d have been sacked 40 times by now. I think the Jets could lose out at this point, but getting Sam experience should still be P1. He won’t learn much watching the team lose from the bench.
I agree with the bulk of your post but we need to realize there is a lot more to sitting and development than just “watching a game from the sidelines”. That is just a small part of it. It’s about practicing and learning a hundred different things week in and week out in practice until your prepared to be a starter. The QB position is so fast and complex that you have to be developed to be the starter before you can be developed as the starter. Otherwise you’re just not ready. Sam was young, inexperienced, and not ready yet. Sitting for a month would go a long ways towards that (IMO he should have sat the entire first half of the season). I agree with the rest. After that he has to start and then sink or swim. Surrounding him with more talent sure would make swimming a lot more viable. Agreed about the financial stuff and it’s just the way of life. That’s business but our ownership tends to RUIN our teams with bad or rushed financial decisions. We all know the ownership fails a lot. I agree we have done a poor job of drafting QBs over the last…too long really. I worry it may be the case again this time. From what I’ve seen Rosen would have been a much better fit for us - from who was available to us. But who knows? I hope that is wrong. I believe Sam can be a winner. Let’s don’t rush this though.
My comment about Neanderthal, wasn't intended to be a personal insult, nor was it about "calling you out" as one poster suggested. I'm sorry that you took it that way. It was intended to say that it is a mode of thinking from the '50s or '60s. I have a lot of respect for you and your opinion. It was just this specific opinion that I was frankly shocked by. Much of what you say above regarding adversity and attrition above is true. I disagree that NFL QBs need to get hit over and over. Yes, they have to keep themselves together, but Darnold is only 21,only played 2 years of college ball, and has only been playing QB for around 5-6 years. He needs to be put in a position to succeed and have a chance to succeed. Right now, he doesn't. He's got an utter dumbass for a HC and for an OC. He has no one to hand the ball off to or no one to throw the ball to, and doesn't have a C who can consistently hike the ball to him accurately . He may not be getting killed, but he's having to run almost every snap that's a pass play, and is regressing and developing some bad habits. We'll just have to agree to disagree on this one, because our opinions are diametrically opposed. Again, my comment was not meant as a personal insult. I'm sorry that you took it that way.
In the 60's the pressure to start him would be much less. Namath didn't start for the Jets when he was drafted. I guess I'm a big believer in the more you play the more you learn regardless of the circumstances. The idea that guy won't or will develop is a lot more about them than it is about do you play them or not. There are a lot of QB's who were drafted by real bad teams and matured with another team down the line. That doesn't mean the adversity and the mental toughness they endured wasn't part of the development. There are other guys who sit and step out on the field and it clicks. I think the idea that a great coach or great talent is going to make a great long term QB, sitting or not is going to make a huge difference is over rated. It's the QB, does he have the tools, is he committed to make himself great regardless of the circumstances. Tom Brady is the GOAT because he is mentally tougher than almost any QB who ever played the game. BB didn't develop Brady, Brady did and nobody was going to hold him back. As far as the coach. Bowles has been around a lot of good QB's and offensive coaches. If Sam was playing in Bruce Arians system with this OL he would have been hit at least 10X more. He believes in a deep route tree and going down the field. Sam may well get killed with a HC like that. Goff took an absolute beating his first year and looked terrible. It helped him not hurt him.
I hate being personally insulted without intent. Where's the joie de vivre. Hopefully Sam and Brady came from the same pre-mordial soup.
No. The kid needs to play. I know the oline isn't great but they, much like every single aspect of the team is horribly underachieving under Bowles as we've always had. 13-30 since week 17 2015. Everything Bowles touched turns to rancid shit.
Yeah ,,get him out there and play. So what if he gets badly injured ???..Uncle Toilet Bowles with be at his bedside with some chicken soup assuring him he will be the jets Coach for several contract extensions..plus his other Uncle Mac is so smart and now hes got 100 mil to get those nuclear weapon players for him...all is well and good in Jet land Just take a big step back guys ...none of you will be smiling after the kid is on his back or in rehab Could this happen?? Take a long look at the defenses he has to face going forward and the brain trust that has him running for his life Let me be clear..Round One drafted players have to have an immediate impact..couldn't agree more But the problem here is that while experience is valuable its also a potential ticket to disaster...plus we need to have this jalopy of a franchise look like a Benz with a healthy SD to potential HC...the future matters here Trubitsky and Goff had alot better team surrounding them to help them get through their rookie season..plus we know that plenty of FQB have sat and waited to play eg A Rogers Sam is our FQB ..you want to see him get "experience"? ,,save the season...?earn his $ ..yep I get it..but not smart imo
Hard to think of the mental impact of not having that break out game that build some confidence for him. If he doesn’t play another snap, it’s what, the Lions game? No me gusta.
Every game he sits on the bench is a wasted game for his development. If he is healthy I want him in the game.
