Jets QB Sam Darnold again comes up empty in second half

Where have we seen this before: Sam Darnold starts off quite well, moving the ball smartly and efficiently against one of the league’s top defenses in the first half . . . before going kaput in the second half.

That’s precisely what happened Oct. 25 against the Bills, when Darnold staked the Jets to a 10-0 lead, completing 11 of 15 passes and hanging tough in the early going. Then he led the Jets’ offense to 4 total yards in the second half in an 18-10 loss.

There was a similar scenario in Sunday’s game in Kansas City. Darnold was 12-for-18 for 107 yards and produced three field-goal drives in the first half to make it respectable against the defending Super Bowl champions. But after moving within 14-9 in the second quarter, the Jets didn’t score another point as Kansas City rolled to a 35-9 win.

Darnold had 26 passing yards in the second half. And to add injury to insult, he banged up his already tender throwing shoulder on a third-and-10 scramble in the fourth quarter, although he was able to finish the game.

"All indications are right now it seems that he’s OK," coach Adam Gase said. "We’ll be doubling back on that, making sure he is OK. Just [to] keep a close eye on that one."

Darnold was more concerned about his decision to run — and not to slide — than the condition of his shoulder.

"It’s fine. It’s fine," he said. "It was not a great decision by me. It was third-and-forever. I’ve got to get down for that."

Darnold expressed the same frustration with the team’s second-half struggles in this one as he had in last week’s loss to Buffalo. He also pointed to a critical third-down fumble by tight end Chris Herndon, who is having a brutal season with missed catches and turnovers.

"The fumble killed us momentum-wise," Darnold said. "I think for us, we were on a good drive there. I think if we hopefully score seven there, it’s a different ballgame."

Perhaps. Then again, Kansas City was up 28-9 when Herndon fumbled with 15 seconds left in the third quarter. Patrick Mahomes later threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill.

"It’s something you can’t do against a good Kansas City team," Darnold said of the turnover.

The Jets have thrown only four touchdown passes this season, one of many brutal stats but one that particularly irks Darnold, who has thrown three of them. One of the biggest problems they can’t overcome: man-to-man defense against the receivers, which allows teams to apply more pressure on Darnold.

"Just not executing well enough," he said. "For me, I’ve got to get the ball to the open guy and get it out in a timely manner. I feel I can do a lot more to put us in better situations to score some touchdowns."

Darnold was looked upon as the Jets’ salvation at quarterback when he was taken third overall in 2018. But he has regressed this season, to the point that the team almost certainly will consider a quarterback with what will be a high draft pick — perhaps the first overall selection.

Where does that leave Darnold?

"Just have to take it one day at a time,'' he said. "I think for us, the emphasis is going to be getting better every day. Everyone wants to win. That’s why we’re in this business. That’s why we’re professional football players. We got here by winning games. For us, we’ve just got to put our heads down and go back to work."

By Bob Glauber

Special to NewsdayBobGlauber

Bob Glauber retired in 2022 after covering the NFL for nearly 40 years. He was selected in 2021 for the Bill Nunn Career Achievement Award by the Pro Football Writers of America, and is a three-time winner of the New York State Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. President of the PFWA for the 2018-20 seasons, he is the author of “The Forgotten First” and “Guts and Genius.”