Well, these days, fanbases expect QBs taken in the 1st round to start immediately, especially when they are taken in the top 10 and traded up for. Bowles was trying to hang onto his job. McCown was a journeyman. Bowles didn't have the stability and security that Reid had. Reid had Alex Smith who could start. Even if Bowles had wanted to sit Sam for half a season or his entire rookie season, the Johnsons and/or Mac may not have allowed it, and the fan base probably would have been apoplectic. Hindsight is always 20-20. With the right CS, and if Mac had significantly addressed the OL and offensive skill positions correctly in 2017, Sam may have been perfectly fine starting immediately. We'll never know.
Yes, you were probably right but that was also probably Sams best season, full of promise to come or not as the case turned out to be.
It's tough because a lot of the great QB prospects do perform well right out of the gate. Murray, Baker, Herbert, Burrow, Watson, Wentz all had good first seasons. Guys like Mahomes and Rodgers sat for a bit but who's to say they wouldn't have played well their first seasons too?
Early 2nd rounder at minimum, with outside shot at late 1st. Teams know full well the incompetence of the Jets FO's and coaching staffs. He's only 23 yrs old, very talented, and has all the tools to succeed. This is not a Rosen situation, where it was clear as day he had neither the right attitude nor skillset, and even he netted a 2nd and 5th.
That's one of the problems with having the HC and GM each report to the Owner.......MM probably knew they needed a new coach in 2018 and instead we wasted a year under a defensive curmudgeon.
Tannehill was essentially traded for a 4th and while not great it's a comp. Tannehill had better stats at the trade time but seemed more like a game manager (still does except Henry's running game creates more opportunities for him), but i think Sam is recognized as better talent/upside/youth i see that as a floor. I can still see a bit of a bidding war though because a good eye (?) might see you can't draft that talent in the third of 4th round. You only need two such eyes to start a war. (If there's just one they'll fleece us). I can easily see Greenbay looking for their next QB. Cowboys? Pats. Bears. Philly? Carolina. 49ers. Long way of saying, i can easily see above translating to a higher pick. It's a basic principle in negotiation not to focus on your needs (or in this case frustration) but on the other guy's. there are a lot of teams that need QBs and you can't draft even this Sam in the fourth. In any event it seems inevitable that it will play out as a trade and it will be fascinitating to watch the tricky question at the moment (in my mind at least) is what do you do now. You want him to play well to drive up value bur run risk of losing draft slot. You also don't want him to get hurt. ideal situation is for him to play amazing yet we still lose enough to get #1. but how do you accomplish that? one way is to suck more on defense. Conspiracy theorists might think JD is playing this angle by trading away all our defensive players that anyone cared about: Jamal, Avery, MClendon,
Sam Darnold will get the Kirk Cousins treatment for sure. Teams will overbid for Sam and JoeD will come out smelling like roses....again. 'Potential' is almost ALWAYS worth more than 'proven', and Sam = potential. 'Potential' allows fans to dream big.
5th rounder. He’s in his last cheap year. There is such a drop off in utility in having Darnold with three years on his rookie deal and one year. Just don’t see him as attractive for the economic aspect. Maybe a 4th if someone is in love with him. But it’s not like his play has evolved either.
Whoever it is doesn’t understand the concept of a salary cap (a cap that will not be going up on top of that). Darnold in an uncapped sport? Maybe a second from a team that really loves him. But in the real world, he’s about to lose his best asset, his rookie contract. And that matters.
I think someone will still give up a 1st or conditional 1st for him. 2nd rounder seems most realistic if we move on from him
For me, there's nothing tricky about the situation. I'm not going to get greedy. The important thing is losing out, getting the #1 pick, and getting Lawrence. We will get for Sam whatever we get. That's relatively meaningless. How dumb would it be for him to play well enough that we win a game or two such that we get a higher draft pick for him, but wind up losing out on Lawrence? That would be like winning a battle, but losing the war. I want to win the war, screw the battle. I want him to play well enough to keep his starting job, but play poorly enough that we lose every game because of him. If Douglas isn't happy with what we're offered for him during the offseason, he can always turn the deals down, have the new HC, QB Coach, and OC work with Darnold to rehabilitate him, then showcase him in preseason next year. They could then wind up trading him before the season starts or before the trade deadline. If worse comes to worse and we have to keep him all next season and see him walk in FA, then so be it. We'd get a 4th round pick then, maybe even a 3rd.
Here's where I believe it's in the Jets' best interest to sign Darnold to a new two year contract at the end of this season for about what he's getting paid now. They could throw in some decent incentives that would payoff if he actually played for one reason or another. This would make him more valuable to a team looking to trade for him because he's be under contract through 2022. It's a bit of a gamble but I like the risk/reward profile.
Cousins was paid like a top 7-8 QB in the league after averaging 4,392 yards per year, 27 touchdowns to 12 picks on 67% completion. Sam averages 3,457 yards, 19 touchdowns to 17 picks on 59% completion. How is that at all a sensible comparison?
Watch how it unfolds. That's all I can tell you. It will be very easy for a team desperate for a QB to convince themselves that a YOUNG Sam Darnold had been ruined by the inept Jets and that all he needs is a fresh start with good coaching, good oline, running game, and weapons and he can start over and become that young FQB we all dream about. Potential. Cousins was a known commodity, He can get you to a wildcard game, but that's as far as he's getting....ever. There are teams that will pay more for the promise of a young Sam Darnold than for a known commodity who's reached his cealing, and that ceiling ain't quite tall enough.
I agree but I still kinda think he could be good in the right situation so I don’t blame other franchises if they end up thinking the same. I just don’t see how the Jets can gamble on that with a new contract on the horizon...it just doesn’t make any sense with Lawrence and Fields at 2 sitting right there
Sam looked good today. 2 touchdown passes. 1 rushing touchdown. He forced the interception and lacked awareness with his 2 fumbles he lost. The Jets were down 24-13 and instead of giving up, he carried them to a 28-24 lead and what should have been a win. Overall, he improved his value. I can't believe how many people here don't realize his worth. 80% of the votes in this thread say a 3rd round pick or less? Blows my mind.
