Sam Darnold out for Jets game against Dolphins; Joe Flacco to make second start
Sam Darnold will miss his second consecutive game with an AC joint sprain suffered in a primetime loss to the Broncos nearly two weeks ago. Veteran Joe Flacco, who went 18-for-33 for 195 yards and a touchdown in a blowout loss to the Cardinals last week, will make his second consecutive start when Gang Green travels to Miami on Sunday.
The Jets are 0-7 in games that Darnold has not started in the past three seasons.
For all the criticism heaped on the Jets for their curious choices, it’s the wise course of action to rest Darnold, who is feeling intermittent pain in his throwing shoulder, until he’s fully healed.
Darnold, who has three touchdown passes and four interceptions with a league-low 5.7 yards per attempt, has regressed in his second season with Adam Gase.
The Jets will ultimately make a coaching change, but Darnold needs to prove over the final two months that he can be the quarterback that many hoped he would become when he was taken with the third overall pick in 2018.
The Jets, of course, haven’t done him any favors. While teams across the league with young quarterbacks are providing help with playmakers, Joe Douglas & Co. are keeping their fingers crossed that the 23-year-old signal caller can leap tall building in a single bound without much of a supporting cast.
The Jets stripped Darnold on one of the few weapons that he actually had by cutting Le’Veon Bell on Tuesday night, leaving him with a 37-year-old and fourth-round rookie in the backfield.
“I love Le’Veon,” said Darnold, who is increasing the range of motion of his shoulder, “Loved having him around and having him as a teammate. Obviously wish him nothing but the best moving forward … He’s a good player. Obviously, we’re going to miss him. It definitely hurts us in some ways.”
It’s ridiculous to think that the Jets can properly evaluate Darnold with this barren supporting cast. Meanwhile, Gase confirmed that he will continue to be the player-caller after he said earlier in the week that he might consider relinquishing those duties.
Gase’s offense ranks last in scoring, passing, first downs, red zone efficiency, scoring margin, points per play and yards per passing attempt. The Jets are 31st in total yards, touchdowns, yards per play and punts per game. Jets running backs are averaging 3.4 yards per carry.
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