Sam Darnold - Pro Football Rumors

Jets’ Sam Darnold Cleared To Play

October 8th, 2019 at 12:19pm CST by Zachary Links

Excellent news for the Jets, Sam Darnold, and Darnold’s spleen – the quarterback has been cleared to play for Sunday against the Cowboys, per an official club announcement.

With that, Darnold will make his long-awaited return. The QB has been out of action since Week 1 with mononucleosis, rending him too weak to lift a pencil (at least, that’s what they say about mono) and too prone to serious spleen injury. He’ll return to the Jets just in the nick of time – the Jets are 0-4 under new head coach Adam Gase and are already dangerously close to putting themselves out of playoff contention.

These Jets aren’t built for a Super Bowl run, but Gang Green is at least hoping to take a step in the right direction this year. Even without Quincy Enunwa, the Jets may have enough offensive firepower in Darnold, running back Le’Veon Bell, and other key pieces to make some noise and brush up to the .500 mark. They’ve also got a stockpile of defensive talent, though they’ll need some better luck on the injury front in order to capitalize.

After Dallas, the Jets will have a second showdown with the Patriots, followed by games against the Jaguars and Dolphins.

Jets QB Sam Darnold Won’t Play Vs. Eagles

October 4th, 2019 at 10:22am CST by Zachary Links

The Jets will be without quarterback Sam Darnold for a while longer. They were hoping for him to be cleared in time for this week’s game against the Eagles, but head coach Adam Gase says he won’t be able to play.

Darnold has been out with mono, which has badly affected his energy and potentially would put his spleen in jeopardy if he were to take the field. In the meantime, the Jets have turned to Luke Falk, a young and inexperienced QB. His last start dropped the Jets to 0-3, though that’s not necessarily his fault – there are problems abound in New York.

Darnold, the No. 3 overall pick in 2018, went 4-9 as a starter last year. He completed 57.7% of his throws in the Jets’ rocky offense and, so far, has only played in one game this season. In that losing effort against the Bills, he completed 28 of 41 passes for 175 yards with one touchdown.

QB Notes: Darnold, Allen, Bears, Colts

September 30th, 2019 at 3:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

Previously targeting Week 5 for his return from mononucleosis, Sam Darnold did not hit a key checkpoint Monday. Doctors did not clear the Jets quarterback for full work Monday, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com notes. This scuttles some momentum for a Darnold return against the Eagles. Adam Gase said Darnold remains a “question mark” as to his Week 5 availability. While Cimini adds the second-year passer received partial clearance and can begin doing some non-contact work, he points out Gase did not sound optimistic about having Darnold back for the Jets’ next game. This points to Luke Falk receiving another start, with recently promoted backup Mike White being the Jets’ QB2 against the Eagles. Falk completed 12 of 22 passes for 98 yards and an interception against the Patriots.

Here is the latest from some quarterback situations around the league:

The Bears have yet to announce anything on Mitch Trubisky‘s injury, but Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets the team may be without its starting passer for a bit. Trubisky’s MRI revealed a dislocated left shoulder and a slight labrum tear, per Schefter, who adds the third-year QB is unlikely to face the Raiders in London. Trubisky is not expected to need surgery. Chase Daniel has proven to be a capable fill-in, having piloted the Bears to two wins in relief of Trubisky in the past two seasons. Trubisky missed two games with a right shoulder malady last season.
As expected, Josh Allen is going through the Bills‘ concussion protocol. Sean McDermott said backup Matt Barkley will prepare this week like he will start against the Titans. With the Bills having a Week 6 bye, it would make sense if the improving team held its starter out this week.
Chad Kelly made his way back to the Colts after initially being waived. Now on Indianapolis’ practice squad, the 2017 Mr. Irrelevant will still make a fair amount of cash in his third NFL season. Kelly will earn $33K per week, Mike Chappell of CBS4 tweets. That comes out to around $570K for the season. The NFL’s practice squad minimum is $8K weekly. Kelly is back on the developmental track, serving as the Colts’ de facto third-string quarterback behind Jacoby Brissett and Brian Hoyer.

Jets’ Sam Darnold To Return Week 5?

September 23rd, 2019 at 4:55pm CST by Zachary Links

Jets quarterback Sam Darnold is “trending in the direction” to return to the field in Week 5, head coach Adam Gase announced. The only question, perhaps, is whether the Jets’ season will still be salvageable by the time he recovers from his bout of mono.

The Jets, now 0-3, will have a bye week before taking on the Eagles, who are presently 1-2, in Week 5. For now, Luke Falk will run the offense in practice.

The Jets were, predictably, outclassed by the Patriots on Sunday. Still, Gase did not place the blame on the shoulders of Falk, so he’s a good bet to stay on the roster, even if Darnold is strong enough to lift a pencil or football.

Jets’ Sam Darnold Eyeing Week 5 Return

September 17th, 2019 at 5:40pm CST by Zachary Links

Jets quarterback Sam Darnold is eyeing a Week 5 return against the Eagles, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweets. Darnold, of course, missed last week’s contest with mono and is still feeling sluggish as he recovers. In a few weeks, doctors say he’ll be ready to take the field again.

The Jets’ QB situation went from bad to worse on Monday night after Trevor Siemian‘s ankle folded like a Slinky. Siemian is out for the year, leaving young Luke Falk as the club’s de factor starter.

Darnold, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 draft, showed flashes of promise last year, though he finished out with only 17 touchdowns against 15 interceptions in 13 games. This year, the Jets were excited to see what he could do, but all they’ve seen so far was his start in a losing effort against the Bills.

At minimum, the Jets will be without the USC product for their contest against the Patriots on Sept. 22. On Oct. 6, after their early bye, they might just have Darnold back in action.

Sam Darnold Hopes To Return After Week 4

September 15th, 2019 at 6:41pm CST by cwcrouse

The Jets may not be without Sam Darnold for as long as initially expected. FOX’s Jay Glazer (Twitter link) caught up with Darnold and the QB told Glazer that he was feeling much better. Darnold, who was diagnosed with mono, said that he hopes the doctor allows him to re-join the team sometime this week.

Darnold’s been told it should take him 21 days to completely recover and with that timeline, the former No. 3 overall pick expects to return to Jets’ starting lineup after the team’s Week 4 bye.

It’s worth noting that previous reports have pegged this timeline as optimistic, instead, presenting Week 9 as a viable return date. However, hearing from Darnold (through Glazer) is encouraging.

The Jets have been uploading information and sending it to Darnold in hopes that he stays mentally sharp and up-to-date with the playbook. Yet, without game reps in Adam Gase’s offense, Darnold will certainly face an uphill battle in getting back up to speed once he returns.

Backup QB Trevor Siemian will start Monday’s game against the Browns and likely Week 3 vs. the Patriots.

Latest On Sam Darnold

September 15th, 2019 at 11:03am CST by Rory Parks

We heard yesterday that Jets QB Sam Darnold, who is suffering from mono, could be back on the field for Week 5, after the team’s Week 4 bye. However, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network hears that may be an overly optimistic prognosis, as his sources tell him Darnold could miss three to seven weeks (video link). Of course, if Darnold returns on the earlier end of that timeline, Week 5 would still be in play, but it sounds as if there’s a real chance the second-year signal-caller could be sidelined until Week 9.

Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports adds that there is no definitive date for Darnold’s return and that the Jets could be rolling with backup Trevor Siemian “well into October.” Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com also weighed in on the matter, observing that while Darnold remains quarantined, he is already feeling better (Twitter link). The team has not ruled out a Week 5 return, and Darnold will have more scans next week to monitor his spleen.

After dropping a Week 1 heartbreaker to the Bills, the Jets’ 2019 outlook is already grim. Though Gang Green was not necessarily viewed as a playoff contender this year, the team entered the offseason with high hopes given the promise Darnold showed in his rookie season and given the addition of several high-profile free agents and No. 3 overall pick Quinnen Williams. But in addition to Darnold, Williams and new LB C.J. Mosley have already been ruled out of Monday’s game against Cleveland, and new RB Le’Veon Bell is questionable. Plus, the more time Darnold misses, the longer it will take for him to master HC Adam Gase‘s offensive scheme.

Mortensen says the Jets are uploading daily practice installs for Darnold so that he can stay mentally sharp, and he is already studying future opposing defenses, but there is not substitute for regular season action (Twitter link).

Jets Notes: Darnold, Mosley, Bell

September 14th, 2019 at 9:00pm CST by cwcrouse

Sam Darnold will miss this Sunday’s contest against the Browns after being diagnosed with mononucleosis and the quarterback could miss extended time, as Rich Cimini of ESPN.com relays. The risk of contagion is high with the infection and the Jets have quarantined Darnold so that he would not spread it to any of his teammates.

Trevor Siemian, who signed with the Jets this offseason, will start in Darnold’s place. Siemian is 13-11 as a starter, all of which from his time with the Broncos.

It’s unclear how many games Darnold will miss, though with New York’s bye coming in week 4, it would be surprised if we saw him on the field before then.

Here’s more from New York:

Brian Costello of the New York Post hears from a former NFL team physician that Darnold could miss four-to-six weeks with the ailment. “With this diagnosis of mono, an injured-reserve stint is not off the table,” Dr. David Chao said. “I’m not saying he’s going on injured reserve but this starts at four to six weeks. Any four-to-six-week injury puts IR in the conversation.”
LB C.J. Mosley and DL Quinnen Williams did not practice this week and are officially out for Monday’s game against Cleveland, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News tweets. Mosley is dealing with a groin injury while Williams has a bad ankle.
Le’Veon Bell is dealing with an injured shoulder and is officially questionable for Monday’s game, per the team’s Twitter feed. New addition Demaryius Thomas is also among the players who may not play in the game.

Jets’ Sam Darnold Won’t Play Vs. Browns

September 12th, 2019 at 11:30am CST by Zachary Links

When the Jets take on the Browns on Monday night, they’ll be without starting quarterback Sam Darnold. Darnold will be held out as he recovers from mononucleosis, head coach Adam Gase announced.

Darnold was held out of Wednesday’s practice this week with an undisclosed and previously undiagnosed illness. The illness was a bit more serious than first thought and, according to Gase, Darnold has lost a significant amount of weight as a result. It’s possible that Darnold will miss additional time, but the team should have a better read on his condition next week.

Without Darnold, the Jets will turn to Trevor Siemian as their Week 2 starter. To back him up, the club has promoted QB Luke Falk from the practice squad.

Siemian, 27, fared reasonably well as the 2016 Broncos’ starter, leading the team to a 9-7 record and throwing 18 touchdown passes against ten interceptions. In 2017, he rated as one of the NFL’s worst quarterbacks, prompting the Broncos to change course. The Jets inked him to a one-year deal this offseason to serve as Darnold’s safety net and he’ll be thrust into action as the club looks to reach .500.

One Team Was Interested In Recently Retired Josh McCown

June 23rd, 2019 at 9:55am CST by Micah Powell

Earlier this week, longtime quarterback Josh McCown called it quits on a 17-year career. He had the opportunity to push it another year, ESPN’s Rich Cimini writes.

McCown, 39, who became a free agent this offseason, had at least one team interested in bringing in the veteran QB as recently as two weeks ago. The journeyman signal-caller decided to retire instead of take that offer.

It’s safe to assume that team would have pursued McCown as a mentor to a young quarterback, similar to the situation he was in with the Jets in 2018 as a de facto coach to first-round pick Sam Darnold.

Cimini also asked McCown about what Darnold could improve upon entering his second season. McCown responded with, “Playing fast and smart on early downs.” That criticism was dead on from the veteran, as Darnold performed better on third downs than he did on first and second downs as a rookie in 2018.

“He needs to know when to cut bait on a play and when to rip it,” McCown said. “That will be more fine-tuned this year because I know Adam [Gase] will help with that. That will be the biggest jump for him. If he can eliminate five or six incompletions per game, it’ll be a major improvement.”

As Rich Cimini of ESPN.com writes, McCown has accepted a position as an NFL analyst for ESPN.