RandBall: Sunday was a reunion of failed Jets QBs — and a reason to rethink the position

During a lighter moment in what was mostly a tense game, Fox broadcasters Adam Amin and Mark Sanchez found themselves discussing that day’s quarterbacks — Sam Darnold for the Vikings and Geno Smith for the Seahawks.

It was not lost on the Fox crew that there was a strange synergy between Darnold, Smith and Sanchez: All of them were, at one point, high draft picks of the New York Jets and anointed as franchise saviors. And they all, to varying degrees, came up short of those hopes and dreams only to resurface (again, to varying degrees) for a second chance with a new team.

They surprised Sanchez by including him in a “Spiderman” meme-style graphic, with images of Sanchez, Darnold and Smith all pointing at each other.

Sanchez, the No. 5 pick in the 2009 draft, started 15 games as a Jets rookie. The team went 8-7, but Sanchez threw 12 touchdown passes with 20 interceptions. The next year the Jets made it all the way to the AFC title game with Sanchez functioning as a game manager but little else.

After two more mediocre seasons the Jets moved on in 2013 and selected Smith in the second round — plopping him into the starting lineup for all 16 games as a rookie.

Smith lasted just two unsuccessful seasons as a starter, leaving the Jets treading water until 2018, when they took Darnold No. 3 overall. Darnold started 13 games as a rookie and 38 overall with the Jets before he, too, was cast off.

All three quarterbacks enjoyed their best seasons in the NFL after they left the Jets and had a chance to mature. Sanchez posted a career-best 55.8 total QBR in eight starts with the Eagles in 2014. Smith resurrected his career in Seattle, throwing 30 touchdown passes and making the first of two consecutive Pro Bowl trips in 2022. And of course Darnold has found a revitalization this season with the Vikings.

It’s tempting to view this as simply a matter of dysfunction with the Jets, and certainly that is not a well-run organization. But as Patrick Reusse and I talked about on Monday’s Daily Delivery podcast, the examples of all three quarterbacks — particularly Smith and Darnold — lend credence to the idea that some quarterbacks take longer to develop and shouldn’t be discarded after a rough start to their careers.

Baker Mayfield in Tampa Bay is another prime example of a mid-career quarterback finding success in a new environment. Short-term investments in QBs like Mayfield and Darnold certainly seem more prudent than long-term investments in quarterbacks like Kirk Cousins. But what about the long term?

Part of the issue is that the salary cap incentivizes teams to play young (cheap) quarterbacks as early as possible to maximize their rookie scale contracts. And there are just enough examples of QBs who succeed right away like the Texans’ C.J. Stroud to encourage teams to believe they can do the same thing.

The Vikings’ most fascinating offseason question ultimately will come down to this very idea: Try to keep Darnold, who is leading a 13-2 season, or turn things over to inexpensive second-year QB J.J. McCarthy?

There’s no guarantee McCarthy will succeed — at least not right away with the Vikings.