Jermaine Kearse claps for Sam Darnold’s return

It was quite the scene at One Jets Drive to have rookie quarterback Sam Darnold finally end his contract holdout and hit the field with his teammates on the New York Jets. Jermaine Kearse explains why Darnold earned claps from players.

After a few days of holding out, rookie quarterback Sam Darnold is back in the mix and ready to begin his first year with the New York Jets. Darnold didn’t miss much but once he signed his new contract and got into uniform, the moment he stepped foot on the practice field at One Jets Drive, he heard it.

Aside from cheers and smiles, players started to do a slow clap as he jogged across the field to join veteran quarterbacks Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgewater. It was quite the scene to see as the slow clap by his teammates undoubtedly made him feel weird about the entire situation.

When it comes to contract negotiations and all that legal talk, it’s just a natural part of the business. Regardless of what it was, this entire holdout by Darnold will likely be forgotten once preseason action is here and especially if he progresses quicker than expected.

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Wide receiver Jermaine Kearse was a part of the slow clap for Darnold as he knows the rookie will likely continue getting ribbed by his teammates for not being at training camp.

In an article written by Randy Lange of NewYorkJets.com, here is what Kearse had to say about finally seeing Darnold the moment he saw him on the field:

“It was good. I was clapping for him,” WR Jermaine Kearse said after practice. “He may have to stand up there tonight and sing a song with the rest of the rookies. But we’re excited to have him back and we’re looking forward to him to just start catching up to everything we’ve been doing.”

One can only imagine that Darnold likely doesn’t have as good a singing voice as he does like throwing passes but at the end of the day, it’s great to see this entire ordeal is over so everyone can focus on the task at hand. Coming off two straight 5-11 seasons isn’t easy as the Jets have a lot of work to do besides what happens from now and the end of training camp with Darnold.

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Overall, everyone is excited about Darnold’s potential as he’ll be the most talked about and watched player on the Jets from here on out. Now it’s just a matter of hoping everything comes together for the Jets to field a competitive roster this upcoming season.