Sam Darnold once again takes high road when asked about Jets

As if there weren't enough reasons for New York Jets fans to still have an affinity for former quarterback Sam Darnold, he goes out and gives them another one.

Darnold, preparing for his first Super Bowl appearance as quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks, was on The Dan Patrick Show discussing his path through the NFL, including his start in New York.

A lot of other former Jets would've taken the opportunity to slight their old team, but not Darnold. He understands that the journey that led him to Seattle was necessary, and he's a better player thanks to his struggles along the way.

"You don't want to make the same mistakes again, but...the days in New York, the days in Carolina, those were part of my journey. They're part of my experience, and I loved every single part of it, yeah, there were some lows that sucked, I'm not gonna lie to you, you know, and that's part of it."

Sam Darnold

Sam Darnold insists his early Jets struggles were necessary

The entire interview is incredibly honest and humble, and does a great job displaying the growth Darnold has gone through since being the 21-year-old No. 3 overall pick out of USC in 2018.

He explained his positive mindset, despite the trying times in New York, and how he was able to push himself through tough losses or games with multiple turnovers.

"After every single game we lost...I was able to wake up the next day, and see the sunrise, and go into the building, and see my teammates, and have fun with my coaches. I think it allows you to kind of take it one day at a time, and enjoy every single little moment that you get with your teammates."

Sam Darnold

Starting your career in a place like New York, where every player and decision is under a microscope, has to be hard for professional athletes, especially young ones like Darnold was as a rookie.

It feels important to note just how green Darnold was when he was first coming into the NFL. In his first career appearance against the Detroit Lions in Week 1 of 2018, he was the youngest starting quarterback since the NFL-AFL merger at 21 years and 97 days old.

As all Jets fans remember, his first professional pass was a pick-six that resulted in an early 7-0 hole for New York in their season opener. In a game that's eerily representative of Darnold's career, he rebounded from the early blunder and threw two touchdowns en route to a 48-17 Jets victory.

Over the years, Darnold could've easily blamed several factors for his early struggles with the Jets, such as them never supplying him with the proper weapons and offensive line to work with, or giving him a head coach in Adam Gase who hasn't sniffed the NFL since getting fired from the Jets in 2020.

Instead, every time Darnold is asked a question regarding his shaky Jets tenure, he takes the high road, and it's something every fan that bleeds green should respect him for.