New York Jets: Sam Darnold is picking up where he left off last season

New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold returned from illness in Week 6 and picked up exactly where he had left off last season.

Having Sam Darnold made all the difference in the world in the New York Jets 24-22 win over the Dallas Cowboys in Sunday’s Week 6 matchup. He came back with a bang and led the Jets to their first victory of the year against a 3-2 Cowboys team that was expected to win.

Darnold wowed throwing for 338 yards along with two touchdown passes in his return. He is back, make no mistake about it.

Having their quarterback back seemed to give the previously 0-4 lifeless Jets hope. It was beautiful to see. Darnold is definitely a game-changing player.

When an impactful player is out, it’s obvious that the whole team feels the loss. When multiple impactful players are out, everyone may be out of sync and feel extreme pressure to step up and fill those voids.

More from The Jet Press

• NY Jets: Jonnu Smith would be a smart free-agent target
• NY Jets: 3 non-quarterback trade targets on offense
• NY Jets expected to be ‘much more aggressive’ in free agency this year
• NY Jets: Patriots will not use the franchise tag on Joe Thuney
• NY Jets officially place the franchise tag on safety Marcus Maye

Darnold finished his rookie season with 2,865 passing yards and 17 touchdowns over a span of 13 games. He put up a solid impression towards the end of his rookie year. Not bad at all for the future face of the franchise.

His 15 interceptions were a bit higher than you’d typically like, but the hope is that those will only become less frequent over time.

The Jets are slowly getting everyone back from their injuries and it appears as though Darnold will have a revamped supporting cast.

His chances of leading this team past powerful opponents such as Dallas and New England improve greatly with the impact the offensive line has had. If the offensive line can do their job, Darnold has it much easier.

Darnold is looking like a natural-born playmaker from what we saw in this week’s game against the Cowboys. In that 24-22 win, Darnold showed poise and growth and seemed to look at ease taking down a 3-2 team that was expected to win even with him back.

It was just impressive to win that game, and it helped that the defense stepped up too.

Darnold is definitely growing and at a fast pace despite missing a chunk of time in his second year. This year is only a growth opportunity for him providing he stays healthy.

By year three he should have plenty of tools needed to play comfortably at the professional level, making him an established quarterback. If he could improve upon his rookie numbers then it will be a successful chapter of his NFL career.

To put things in perspective, Darnold impressed in his rookie year and had a big game in his first week back from his bout with mononucleosis. There are good things in store for Darnold and the Jets if he keeps it up.