Sam Darnold staying in college good for future of Jets

The New York Jets plans to tank for the number one overall pick may have hit a bump in the road, and it’s good for the future of the franchise.

Many news outlets, including the New York Daily News and NFL.com, have reported that the man many New York Jets were hoping for in the 2018 NFL Draft may stay in school. It would be good for both quarterback Sam Darnold and the Jets for him to stay.

From Darnold’s perspective, the more reps in college the better. Aaron Rodgers is the only quarterback with as few starts in college as Sam Darnold could potentially have after 2017 to win the Super Bowl.

From a Jets perspective, Kirk Cousins is very likely to hit the free agent market. The Jets could have more than $90M in cap space going into the 2018 free agency period. Unlike most sports, the NFL runs its free agency prior to its draft. Therefore, the Jets will know exactly what they need going into the yearly event.

That means the Jets will have plenty of money to sign Cousins to the mega-deal he wants, and that would be good for the Jets moving forward. By landing Cousins, the Jets would do so much more for their offense.

They would have an established quality quarterback who knows how to play in the West Coast offense. Then, they can get a young, dynamic running back in the draft. That would go a long way in helping the offense.

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A running back can open so much more of the offense than a young quarterback can. The Dallas Cowboys proved that last season. Part of the reason Dak Prescott was so successful was the presence of Ezekiel Elliot.

Imagine if the Jets had this fall into place. They build a team with a veteran quarterback, a three-down and dynamic threat at running back, and wide receivers who could burn the defense for playing man-to-man.

That’s what the Jets could have with the combination of Cousins and Saquon Barkley, for example. Before thinking that Darnold choosing to stay in school burns the Jets, think again. It may be just what the Jets need.