The Jets got the ball first on Monday night and called for the first pass of quarterback Sam Darnold’s NFL career right out of the gate.
It will go down in Jets lore alongside some other moments of infamy.
Darnold rolled right and threw back across the field for running back Bilal Powell. Lions safety Quandre Diggs stepped in front of the floating ball, picked it off and sprinted 37 yards for a touchdown. The extra point put the Lions up 7-0 with 14:40 left in the first quarter.
Darnold has plenty of time to make a better story out of his debut and not throwing back across the field would be a good way to accomplish that task.