The New York Jets have long been looking for a solution at quarterback, and the team believes it finally has one in rookie Sam Darnold.
In Jan. 1969, the Jets pulled off the biggest upset — and most important victory — in pro football history. Behind Joe Namath, New York toppled the Baltimore Colts, 16-7, ushering in a new era and giving the Jets their first championship.
Unfortunately for Gang Green, it has also been its last to date.
New York has tried to recreate the magic it had with Namath over the years, whether it be with Richard Todd, Ken O’Brien, Browning Nagle, Chad Pennington or Mark Sanchez. No luck. Now, the Jets believe they might finally have the answer in San Darnold, the USC product that general manager Mike Maccagnan traded up to third-overall for. Per ESPN:
"“I think people are going to look back — I honestly think they’re going to look back 20 years from now and say this is the moment the Jets shifted into a new year, that they became a great team,” owner Woody Johnson told reporters at a charity event in Manhattan."
New York won’t be climbing out of the cellar immediately in the AFC East, but the long-term prognosis is promising. This is the highest the franchise has taken a quarterback since Namath, and while other hopes have been dashed over the decades, Darnold represents true promise that maybe wasn’t there in other instances.
The Jets can also take heart in Tom Brady being 41 years old. Should Darnold be the right fit, Brady will be out the door before New York’s prodigy is in his prime. Finally, some good time for a team that has been woeful over the years in that department.
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At some point, one would imagine that the football gods smile on the Jets. If nothing else, the law of averages say that eventually, New York will find its leading man on Broadway, finally taking it to the heights it enjoyed during the age of counter-culture and Vietnam.
Now, the Jets believe Darnold is finally representative of that new leaf turning over, something their fans are happy to hear about.