You don’t have to have a young quarterback on a cheap rookie contract to win in the NFL. But there’s no doubt that having extra cash at your disposal can help, if you spend it the right way.
Joe Douglas saw it work in Philadelphia, with the team built around Carson Wentz. And now that he’s the new General Manager of the Jets, he thinks they can recreate with Sam Darnold.
“I’ll say this: Building around a young guy, there was a sense of urgency in Philadelphia, knowing we had a young quarterback, and we wanted to put the pieces around him,” Douglas said, via Rich Cimini of ESPN. “I think there’s going to be that same urgency anywhere, especially here with a young quarterback like Sam.”
The Jets have some good parts to work with, Darnold being one of them. But Douglas walks into the job knowing that while he can still improve the team this year, this is still very much a work in progress.
And having some flexibility the next few years before he has to consider paying a quarterback will only make the work easier.