NFL News Report

The New York Jets have played in and won a single, solitary Super Bowl. It was Super Bowl III, with Joe Namath at quarterback.

When the NFL stages its championship game at the end of this season, Namath’s and the Jets’ improbable triumph will be 50 years old. And no quarterback has even begun to approach Namath’s accomplishments for the Jets.

Now, hope bubbles up anew. Rookie Sam Darnold, after a stunning mistake on his first throw in the NFL, grew up quickly and helped the Jets to a 48-17 victory on the road against the Detroit Lions on Monday night.

Darnold made the classic mistake – throwing across his body and therefore across the field – on his initial pass, which was intercepted and returned for a touchdown.
Yet Darnold was smiling on the sidelines afterwards.

“Can’t get much worse, unless I throw another one, which I knew that I wasn’t gonna do,” he said later.

Darnold got his first touchdown pass with less than two minutes remaining in the first half with a 41-yard throw to Robby Anderson and the rout was on. The Jets scored 31 points in the third quarter, burying the Lions. Futility note – the Lions have never played in a Super Bowl and last won a playoff game 26 years ago. Their franchise quarterback, Matt Stafford, was intercepted four times.

Darnold overcame one brief bit of adversity and he’ll face more. Rookies always do. Even so, the Jets now have some hope they’ve begun an era of stability and success with the quarterback they’ve so long sought.

One more NFL note: With the Lions’ loss on Monday night, followed by the Oakland Raiders 33-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, the seven new head coaches in the league went 0-7 in their openers.

 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman