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It took Sam Darnold on NFL snap – a horrific pick-six – to enter an exclusive club of quarterbacks (Brett Favre and Winston Jameis) who threw pick-sixes on their first NFL passes. It took Sam Darnold one game – a 48-17 bludgeoning of the Lions – to join an exclusive club with a certain future Quarterback Hall of Fame who might end up going down as the greatest quarterback in NFL history.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, Darnold became the first quarterback to win his first NFL start by 31 points since Tom Brady beat Peyton Manning and the Colts by 31 points way back in 2001.
In Brady's first start, the Patriots beat the Colts 44-13, but that did not have much to do with Brady, who only went 13 of 23 for 168 yards, no touchdowns, no picks, and a 79.6 pass rating. That was more about the Patriots' defense, which forced four turnovers, including three interceptions of Manning.
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Clearly, this does not mean Darnold is the next Brady. It's been one game. That might seem obvious, but I just wanted to say it so badly nobody accuses me using something like this: #QBWinz to justify a Darnold-Brady this early in his career.
But again, let's give Darnold the credit he deserves. He could've collapsed after that pick-six, which really was awful.
But he did not. As our Will Brinson chronicled, "Darnold proceeded to go 6-of-8 on his next three series, 23 total plays that generated 10 total points for the Jets and Gave them the Lead."
I have criticized his first touchdown for being an undertone, which gives the defensive a shot at an interception, but that is probably a bit too nitpicky.
He's clearly got the tools to succeed.
Most importantly, the final scoreline indicated, the Jets might actually have a solid team already in place around Darnold. The offensive line is one of the most influential, and one of the most influential, and one of the most influential. The team around Darnold is just as important as Darnold himself. Young quarterbacks can not do everything by themselves.
On Monday night, Darnold got the help he needed to turn a nightmare start into a perfect debut.
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