This weekend, when Gang Green plays the Minnesota Vikings from London, a certain faction of New York Jets supporters finds themselves in a strange situation. With their team in dire need of a win on Sunday, supporters of Sam Darnold who have always steadfastly trusted in him must hope he goes back to his Jets ways. Kevin O’Connell has brought out the best in Darnold. With 11 throwing touchdowns and a passer rating of 118.9, he leads the NFL and is tied for second place in Minnesota history through four games (Daunte Culpepper had 13 pass touchdowns and a passer rating of 126.0 in 2004).
Darnold is the sixth quarterback (10th overall) to have a passer rating of 100 or higher and two or more passing touchdowns in each of his team’s opening four games of the season. Tom Brady in 2007, Aaron Rodgers in 2011 and 2020, Peyton Manning in 2013, and Matt Ryan in 2016 were the five of the previous nine players to win the AP NFL Most Valuable Player award that season. The other four winners were Ryan in 2012, Brady in 2015, Russell Wilson, and Josh Allen in 2020. One of the few remaining players from the Darnold era in New York, Quinnen Williams, is pleased with the quarterback’s turnaround.
According to Williams, “I think he’s doing a great job,” on Monday, the New York Post said. “He’s doing a lot of amazing things right now, including playing like he has no limits and balling.” I spent a few years here with him. Extremely eager to take him on; it will be a fantastic challenge.” Darnold played 13-25 games with the Jets in 2018 after being chosen third overall. It was a miserable three seasons for the quarterback, complete with mononucleosis jokes, “seeing ghosts” memes, and clumsy play. Then, after spending two seasons as a starter in Carolina, he moved around until finishing the previous season as a backup in San Francisco.
He’s now found new life in Minnesota. Darnold has appeared more composed in the pocket, committed fewer errors (though he has gotten away with a couple) and delivered the pigskin with style under O’Connell’s QB-friendly scheme. It’s a system that answers his questions and occasionally lets the quarterback show off his huge arm. A starting quarterback will face his draft team with a 4-0 or better record for the third time in the previous 50 seasons on Sunday. The other two incidents were Manning against Indianapolis; although he lost both games, the Hall of Fame quarterback guided Denver to the Super Bowl each time.
Quincy Williams, a linebacker with the Jets, is well-versed in redemption tales. The older Williams spent two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars before being cut, and he later moved to New York where he developed into an All-Pro. “If you’re one of those people who get that second chance and you take full advantage of it, that’s great,” said Quincy Williams. “A lot of people say things like, ‘It was the team’s fault,’ and they don’t look in the mirror and ask themselves, ‘Well, what can I do to improve and what can I do to help this next team I’m on, or how can I stand out on this team?'”
“(Darnold’s) one of those guys that said, ‘What can I do to stand out on this team and what can I do to better this team?’ So I’m excited for him, for real.”
The Williams brothers can be both impressed by Darnold’s redemption and excited to knock him down on Sunday.
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