Keyshawn Johnson believes the Jets got the right guy

As all eyes are on quarterback Sam Darnold as he prepares for his rookie season with the New York Jets. Many fans love the pick with former wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson believing they got it right selecting him in the 2018 NFL Draft.

When it comes to the New York Jets, it’s easy to see why they haven’t had a consistent franchise quarterback in place for decades now. It’s not an easy process but hopefully, general manager Mike Maccagnan found a player that can be “the guy” for years to come under center.

Once again in an NFL Draft, Maccagnan got lucky. Very few analysts and draft gurus predicted that quarterback Sam Darnold out of USC would slip a few spots since he was widely considered the top prospect in the positional group of the entire draft class.

The Cleveland Browns shook things up for everyone in the draft order when they elected to go with quarterback Baker Mayfield out of Oklahoma instead of Darnold. The New York Giants, who could have also drafted their future franchise quarterback, decided to take Saquon Barkley out of Penn State to finally address their running back situation.

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Needless to say, it was a no-brainer for Maccagnan who probably made that decision in a matter of seconds and thus, the Jets once again got the best of the best in a positional group. The moment Darnold was drafted, Jets fans undoubtedly were smiling, happy, and heck, some probably cried. Darnold has everything and then some to be the definitive answer the Jets have been desperately looking for once he gets acclimated to life in the NFL.

Even former wide receiver and member of the Jets, Keyshawn Johnson, believes the Jets finally got it right here and drafted a player that fits their style of offense.  In an article written by Steve Serby of the New York Post, here’s what Johnson had to say about the Jets drafting Darnold:

“He can make all the throws. … The thing that I like most about him is he can run,” Johnson said. “You don’t need to have a perfect situation around him, because he can utilize his legs along with his arm to get out of trouble. I think that that is a key component to being successful in this day and age in the quarterback position.”

With the way the game has changed over the years, a team needs a quarterback that can not only manage the tempo of the offense but also make all the throws. Darnold is accurate and can hit receivers in stride whether it’s a short, medium, or long pass. If a passing play starts to break down, Darnold is more than capable to run out the pocket and extend it to keep those chains moving. That’s an element that could push the envelope for the Jets to have such a dynamic playmaker under center.

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Excitement is brewing over at One Jets Drive with the hope that Darnold develops nicely over time and when his number is finally called, can turn this team into a playoff contender. Johnson knows that Darnold can be a special player once everything falls into place.