The New York Jets and their fans have to be downright giddy following what they saw from rookie quarterback Sam Darnold in the season opener against the Detroit Lions Monday night.
After throwing a pick-six to open the game, Darnold led the Jets to 48 of the game’s final 58 points in a blowout win over the home team. It has fans excited that the Jets have a franchise quarterback for the first time since Broadway Joe.
Pretty much here to rain on the parade, Jets head coach Todd Bowles is not yet ready to buy into the hype. It’s just one game, right?
More Bowles on Darnold:
"It’s only been one game. To sit here and say whether he’s great or whether he’s trash or whether he’s anything else is kind of way too early for that."— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) September 12, 2018
This is certainly Bowles’ way to keep his quarterback grounded. No one needs to display a huge ego after just one NFL start, no matter how tremendous it might have been.
Bowles isn’t wrong here, either.
If Darnold had stunk up the joint in his first regular season start, not a single objective person would have immediately called him a bust. The same rings true here.
Darnold now has a chance to prove himself once more at home against the Miami Dolphins in a battle for a share of first place this week.