The New York Jets invested the No. 3 overall pick in the NFL Draft on Sam Darnold, and the rookie quarterback will have a chance to immediately reward the team for having faith in him.
On Monday, Jets head coach Todd Bowles confirmed that Darnold will start when the Giants take on the Detroit Lions on “Monday Night Football” next week.
Todd Bowles: “Sam (Darnold) will be starting Monday night.” @RapSheet had it last week. #NYJets
— Kimberly Jones (@KimJonesSports) September 3, 2018
Darnold beat out veteran Josh McCown for the starting job, and Bowles said he won the competition fair and square.
Todd Bowles on Darnold: “He loves to compete. We didn’t hold him back. …He (has) a work-hard mentality & he earned it. That says a lot about him.” #NYJets
— Kimberly Jones (@KimJonesSports) September 3, 2018
The Jets have gone with rookie quarterbacks in the past and had it not work out, so they must be confident they are not going to stunt Darnold’s growth by handing him the keys to the offense right away. As ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted, the 21-year-old Darnold will be the youngest NFL quarterback to ever start a game on opening weekend.
