Whoever Our Next QB is, We Must Be Behind Them, All of Us: Zero Controversy

After the 49ers traded up to 3rd overall, I was convinced the Jets were going QB at 2, whether an offer was made to Douglas and rejected or if no offer was made. The question at that point was, what to do with Sam Darnold? After some deliberation, I had come to the conclusion that Darnold could not be on our team once we drafted a QB at 2, regardless of the offers made for Sam. I had come to this conclusion based on past regimes mistakes. Mark Sanchez had led us to 2 AFC Championships when surrounded by talent. In 2011 that talent began to erode, then in 2012 Tim Tebow is brought in. Though Mark was still the franchise QB, Tebow would come in on certain plays, mucking up the chemistry and dynamic Sanchez had with the offense. Then in 2013 Geno Smith is drafted by a new GM, and controversy arises over who the starter should be. Mark is hurt in the preseason, which allowed Geno to step in unquestioned, but many including myself still felt Mark was the better QB of the 2.

We knew when we drafted Sam Darnold in 2018 he was far from a finished product. He had the most talent and upside of any QB in that class, but that talent needed to be honed. We got a taste of his potential in 2018, as he looked like one of the best up and coming QBs. However, like when Idzik was brought in and dynamics were changed, in 2019 a new HC comes in. One who was hired to develop and mold Sam Darnold. One who couldn’t have done more of the opposite. Sam Darnold went from one of the most promising QBs in the league to the worst starting QB by far over the next 2 seasons. Many including myself argued that Sam Darnold was still one of the youngest QBs in the NFL, he never had the talent to be successful thanks to Maccagnan, as well was hindered by the abysmal play calling and scheming. As I started to look objectively at Darnold however, I started to see the argument being made on the other side. How Ryan Tannehill and Joe Flacco were much better in this same horrible system, how Darnold was making bad decisions and bad reads and even though Adam Gase was a big part of the problem, all the blame can’t be put on him. There is a difference between low numbers and bad numbers, and Sam Darnold was putting up bad numbers more often than low. Adam Gase is definitely responsible, but if the player is the worst starter at his position the HC cannot be solely responsible. The biggest factor to me though was when the fan base had moved on to Trevor Lawrence. There was a reason we had pivoted to Lawrence, and it seemed counterproductive to believe in Sam again if you felt you needed Lawrence, which got me into further evaluation of the other QB prospects, and you all know what that lead to.

However, do to the unusual situation, many still believed in Sam and felt he was dealt a bad hand, which is definitely true. I had come to realize throughout my Twitter interactions as well as even among analysts that those who felt one way or another at this point were not going to be swayed. They stood pat in their resolve, and that is what led me to feel we couldn’t keep Sam no matter the offer on the table. When you take a QB at 2, you are making a statement. This is the new face of our franchise. A controversy among fans, analysts, maybe even among those in the Jets front office as well as their coaches, could not happen. No matter who was taken at 2, many would still argue that Sam could still be the guy.

Obviously, Joe Douglas agreed with my logic, and like with all of his trades, he pulled off a value we weren’t expecting. Reports had surfaced that GMs valued Darnold at most as a 3rd round pick, and some even felt that was too high. My hope was that waiting until the draft would allow a team to rethink Darnolds value once the top QB prospects were off the board, and the general fan consensus was if we can get a 2nd round pick that would be amazing. Well Joe got us a 2nd. The fact that it is in the next draft is irrelevant. Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh are here for the long term, narrow sighted vision is dangerous. We are at the beginning of something here, and they understand that. The bottom line is we got a 2nd, 4th, and a 6th for the statistically worst starting QB in the NFL, but the outcome from it is even more important.

The outcome is there will be zero controversy now. Whoever we take at 2 will be our starting QB, the man our franchise will be built around. Unlike Maccagnan, we have seen first hand that Joe Douglas not only understand value and can draft well, but he has addressed positions that have been neglected by his predecessors for years, some positions even decades. Douglas approached free agency the same way, getting us our first top edge rusher in 20 years. He will continue to build this team in that vision, and build it around whoever the pick is at 2. The important thing again however is the zero controversy.

We all need to get behind whoever Joe’s QB pick is. Fans, analysts, front office, coaches, everybody. For this to truly work, we need to buy into Joe Douglas’ vision, lock, stock, and barrel. You all know and have known for a while now how I feel about Zach Wilson and all the thing I’ve been saying about him, long before it was popular. I truly believe he is our best option for success, but I hope you all follow me in suit in this next sentiment. Whoever the pick is, be it Justin Fields, Trey Lance, or even Mac Jones, I will get behind it and support it, as the future of our franchise depends on whichever young man it is.

Zero controversy.

Join me in welcoming our next franchise QB, whoever he is, and lets watch Joe Douglas give him all the tools necessary to find success, as our franchise finally turns a well awaited corner.