Sam Darnold isn’t adding any fuel to the fire when it comes to his upcoming matchup against the team that drafted him.
Darnold’s Carolina Panthers face off against the New York Jets in Week 1. The Jets drafted Darnold third overall in 2018 and put the hopes of the franchise on him before ultimately trading him during the past offseason.
If Darnold holds a grudge, he’s not showing it. In fact, he’s not showing much of anything based on his press conference quotes Wednesday.
Boy, Sam Darnold did some dancing today to avoid ANY talk about the Jets. Asked him what he has with the Panthers here that he didn't have with the Jets, he said "It's a little warmer here."
— Steve Reed (@SteveReedAP) September 8, 2021
You can’t really blame Darnold. His time with the Jets didn’t end well, and he’s taken some shots at the team before this, but there’s no need to give them fresh bulletin board material days before their meeting.
The game could be an uncomfortable yet exciting occasion for Darnold’s replacement, too. Any talk of a grudge match, however, is clearly being kept under wraps.
