Draft Preview - Sam Darnold

in the first round. Ethan Greenberg and Eric Allen here in studio on the Official Jets Podcast, we got a loaded show. What are people gonna be here in today? Well, we're gonna be here from Sam Donald's collegiate coach, that is Clay Helton. We also talked to the A four mentioned Sam Donald on his first day here in Florham Park as a member of the New York Jets. And then finally, a lot of the draft pundits out there have praised Mike mcagnet and the Jets scouting staff for

grabbing Donald at number three overall. Included amongst that bunch is Matt Miller, And we got a chance to talk to him. You're absolutely right, we did, and this is some pretty unique sound that we're gonna have on this show. But e a for fans that don't know anything about Sam Donald, which I would imagine it would be a small contingency. Who is Sam Donald? Why is he a good fit here? And why was he so productive at USC? Well?

First off, Sam Donald is the sixth first round quarterback selected in franchise history, and that's something that's really something because this franchise goes back to the days nineteen sixty, so the Jets haven't taken a ton of quarterbacks as far as the first round is concerned. But Donald was a two year starter SC. He's a guy who led them to a Rose Bowl victory in his first year of dramatic victory over Penn State. He is a guy who is ultra talented in terms of making good throws

when his feet are bad. Everybody talks about his athleticism greens as far as okay, he can go through his progressions inside the pocket, but he's also good making place off script and finally, last, but not least, leadership. The guy has a lot of charisma. People are drawn to him. He has a tremendous upside as well. Just twenty years old, will turn twenty one in June. That should make you

feel old. It does make me feel old, and I know he a We we talked about this on a previous podcast when we analyze Donald, is that if you had one reference for a beer for Sam Donald, it was dog Fish Hat at the time. Just but then I asked you again and you said you might want to go with something a little more West Coast. Yeah. Man, we go into Stone Right because that's a brewery in

southern California. And we gotta pay homage to southern California because the Jets take Sam Donald in the first round. So I think a lot of Jets fans were toasting the selection of Mike mcagnet on Draft night. I think that they'd have to be. They'd be foolish not to be, especially when you hear all these draft pundits on NFL Network ESPN. We're gonna talk to Matt Miller about this later.

Across the board, everyone seemed that Sam Donald was the number one quarterback prospects and he fell to number three. And we broke it down a couple of days before the draft that it was possible that it could happen, and indeed it ended up happening. So I think we should pat ourselves in the back for a little bit right there. Well, I thought there was a chance that happened.

But when myself and you were right here in this studio and we went through the exercise, I kind of thought it was gonna be Josh Chalon who the Browns would take with the number one overall selection. And then we go back to our days in Indianapolis when everybody was talking about se Kwon Barkley, how clean of a pick he was, and how well he was going to perform at the combine, and indeed he did that. E Ever since that in February, I really thought the Giants

were probably gonna take Barkley, and indeed that happened. We'll never know what would have the Jets done if Baker Mayfield won one and then Donald went to and then the Jets picked three. I mean, there's a thousand different scenarios that will never know. But because I'll tell you what, the Jets exciting Jets getting somebody. It was Passer at usc and he of fifty seven touchdowns and twenty two interceptions along the way, and he also averaged four yards

to carry. Sam Donald is very impressive, not only on the field, but listening to his press conference, He's very collected and you you often use the term California cool. Well, he seemed to be in control of it. Didn't seem that the media questions that you knew were gonna get thrown at him really phased him. And we've talked about this before, and I saw this a couple of different places.

If you look at the successful New York athletes in the past, and I'm not saying Sam Donald is certainly going to be successful, but he definitely has a couple of the same characteristics that other athletes that succeeded in New York did, people like Derek Jeter. I'm gonna throw in someone from the NHL world for you, Mark Messier when he played for the Rangers. You don't, I do you do vaguely? Vaguely? Why do you tell the listeners

how old you were? Messier raised that cup? Well, it depends when was the cup hoisted the exact day it was in June. That still doesn't help. Because I was born in June. I believe it was like a June twelve or so. Well, well then I was not on this earth. I was almost one years old. I was almost zero years old. I love how you. I've done my research those two guys, Eli, Yes, thank you. I

would say those three for sure. But they're the rather you know, stoic in the way they operate on the field, and they just kind of seemed unfazed by everything from a media perspective and off the field. And one thing about Sam Donald that everyone says is you never have to worry about him when you leave work because he's not gonna You're not gonna wake up with a call at three thirty in the morning that Sam Donald did something bad. He was raised right. We were going to

hear from him here in a few moments. But the son of a medical gas plumber, his mother physical education teacher at the middle school level, and his older sister and accomplished vol of ball player, and now she's coaching at the University of Rodout where there you have at go Rhodies. That's what Sam Donald said in his press conference. But I think it's time that we should speak to

Clay Hilton. You actually spoke to him a couple of days ago, and he really had some interesting insight on what made Sam Donald a top prospect in the NFL draft. There aren't many people who know New Jets quarterback Sam Donald and USC head coach Clay Hilton coach after Sam, what twenty four is a starter for you? And one of Rose Bowl along the way. He was drafted by the Jets with the third overall selection. How did Sam

help you set the tone at USC? Well, everybody sees the production on the field, but what I was most proud of while he was with us is just the culture that he established in the locker room on a day to day basis. I mean, he's a true professional, you know, tries to be a master of his craft, student in the game, first one in, last one to go, and the other players see that he's a guy that leads by example, that works his tail off, and the other guys follow because they respect that he defined our

culture in our building. And I think that's a very valuable thing when you especially for the quarterback position. How did the system there at USC that you guys ran offensively help him make the pro transition? Because Sam went through a lot of multi route progressions, also had to remike and I'll help you guys set protections up front. Yeah, you know, we've r in this same system here basically

almost since two thousand one. It is a pro style system that is a multi progression system getting five men out, and we do allow the quarterback to have the opportunity to remike any timing once. I think that's one of the areas he's grown a lot over the last two years, is protecting himself by remiking. We also give him the ability to get us in the correct play, diagnosed front, diagnosed coverage, and be able to get us in the correct rouno, the correct pass depending on what he sees.

And uh so, you know, and he grew in all those areas while I was here, and when he left us, I mean it was just we all knew as a coaching staff he's pro ready. I mean, he's ready to go lead an organization when his time comes. That's music to a Jets fans years of course, coach, he said, Sam is the highest ceiling of anybody in this draft and he's only twenty years old. He's gonna turn twenty one this summer. Are you excited to watch him as his pro career starts? And are you amazed how wise

he is beyond his years. I saw it when I first met him when he was sixteen and just said, oh my gosh, this guy's sixteen going on twenty six, and he's always been that way, that maturity and that poise that he brings to the table. And I'm just fascinated that the guys don't have been here five semesters and he's been with us two and a half years, and to see his progress and to know that he hasn't even touched his ceiling yet, I can't even imagine where he's going to be two, three or four years

down the road. He's just a really terrific prospect, a dynamic player and person. The Jets really hit the lottery with this pick. I'm so glad to the well coach Clay Halton. We appreciate your time and thank you so much for your great insight today. Green's My major takeaway there is that Halton said, this guy is a tremendous communicator and he provided that one on one leadership from the get go at USC and he was a program changer.

And you could tell just listening to Clay Holton how much he meant to him as far as that program is concerned because he went about it the right way and he earned the respect of that coaching staff, the fans, and most importantly, teammates. I think what really stood out to me was what you mentioned when he was entering the week of starting his first game at Utah and he brings Juju Smith Schuster over and talks with one alone.

He's like, hey, man, like we you know, we gotta focus him over here for and the fact that Jujue was like, yeah, man, you're right, You're right about that. We we gotta get to work. Thank you to me, that speaks volumes because because they didn't want the guys celebrating too much and practice, because what they were doing was this executing, just keeping your mindset on the task

at hand. And Sam is very young, like you said, he's gonna be twenty one in June, and he's walking into a rather young team and the fact that he has the courage to do something like that in college can only bode well for what he's going to do in the NFL. And how about this where Clay Helton Sam donald story. He didn't mention this, but I heard this on a separate interview with Clay Helton is that someone asked him, what's an example of Sam Donald's work ethic,

and he said, I'll give you an example from last week. Again, at the time, this was probably a week or so before the draft. So Halton said, I came in to work at six thirty in the morning and Sam Donald was already throwing, already working with some USC staff on their indoor turf field. And he walked up to Donald and he said, Sam, well, what are you doing, buddy? And he said, coach, this is this is every day now.

So if you have any questions, if Sam Donald gets it, there should be none because he fully understands what he needs to do. He has a tremendous work ethic, and he's gonna give his for the New York Chess movie, didn't. Charlie Castley works for NFL Network now, of course, say that he pulled twenty four general managers around draft time and said, hey, who was the top quarterback on your board?

And seventeen of them said Sam Donald. He did say that someone else that had Sam Donald number one is Bleacher Reports Matt Miller, and that's another guy that's very high on Samald. So let's listen to hear what at NFL Draft scout had to say. Now let's bring in bleacher reports Matt Miller, who continues to do an excellent job as NFL Draft scout. You can follow him on Twitter. Matt You said after the Jets grabbed Sam Donald with the number three overall selection that he was the best

quarterback in this class. Why, man, I think Sam Donald is a special kid and a special player. I mean, and he's he's twenty years old. I feel like I am finally old enough to because use the kid label for him. But I think the things that I look for a quarterback accuracy, toughness, poise, the ability to take over games in the clutch, and just how great of a fit he is for that Jeremy Bates offense, because he's athletic enough to get outside the pocket a little bit.

He has that thick frame where he's not gonna break down in the cold, He's not gonna break down if he gets hit a little bit. And he's so good spinning the ball in tight places. His timing and anticipation I thought were the best in the class. His accurate see especially up the scene, is dangerous. And then he is just so gritty and he's not gonna let little

things rattle him. And I think something you and I've talked about before is that when you're drafted to play quarterbacks the New York Jets, you've gotta be able to walk into a hospital environment with the expectations, the biggest media market in the country, and everyone watching you to see if you're gonna crumble or if you're gonna write to the occasion. And I think that the way that he's made up the intangibles allowed to do that. But on the field it sounds cliche, but it factor. He

has it. Matt, you know the city very well. You're often here doing stuff for Bleacher Report. What do you think about his steadiness off the field? Now, he's kind of a businessman in the sense that, hey, listen, he wants to put the hard hat on and go to work. Yeah, we'll take care of his media obligations, but he's not really worried about too much what's happening externally. Finally, you're have to worry about Sam Darnald getting caught up in the light of New York. He's might gonna trying to

get a marketing deal or a fashion deal. He's gonna be great for Jersey. He just wants to go to work and care about football, and I think that is one thing that I remember talking to you last year about Mitch Drabinski was guys like that are perfect for this situation that's really unique in New York because they're not going to get sucked in by everything else. They're gonna be workers and really just dedicated to football. And

I think he fits that moment really well. What did you see the differences in him from two thousand sixteen to two thousand and seventeen. He passed for more yards last season as a junior. I know, the turnovers one up, and some people express concerns about that as well, but

he's working with some different personnel. Yeah, I think that's a big parton and I think stats always need context, right, So, yeah, he had a lot of turnovers last year, and I think you can look at someone like Marcus Mariotta who fumbled a decent amountain college and hasn't been a bumbler in the NFL, so you can obviously make corrections to

clean that up. And I know that's something he talked about, was, you know, he needed to change some things with his delivery so that he's not dropping the ball down so much. And I'm a firm believer that a coach like j Emmy Bates can really get in there and help clean up some of the issues that that I saw on tape. But it's not like you've got to reinvent the wheel here.

I mean, he was highly successful at USC the last two years, and I would say this year did so with not a great supporting cast, especially at the wide receiver position. He lost three starters on his offensive line this year and he was a completely different team and it showed up on tape of times, but he never complained. I think he's just the ultimate leader in that he just he worries about himself and he takes care of

his mistakes, and it's never anyone else's fold. That's Matt Miller who calls home in the show Me state, of course, that is Missouri, and he's saying that Mike mccagne has showing a lot here in his fourththraft as New York Chess general manager. Greg catching up with you is always Matt,

so Green says. Miller talked about Donald was the top quarterback on his board, and he thinks that mccagnet's got some good forts in surrounding him, because a lot of people two thousand and fifteen talk about Leonard Williams falling

to the Jets at six. Then you have Jamal Adams falling to the Jets at six in two thousands seventeen, and then Mike mcagnant on March seventeenth moving up from six to three in order to take as Sam Donald, who most people on St. Patrick's Day, unless they were having a couple adult beverages, didn't think he was gonna

be there at three. I think that what's most interesting is that when the Jets made that move in March, a lot of people around the league said, this is an interesting trade because you don't really know who's gonna be there at number three. And it was one of the first trades that they could recall, where you make a move at the time you did and you don't really know who's gonna be there at the time. And at that time everyone thought Sam Donald was gonna go

number one overall to the Browns. And then a week or so later, the owner of the Browns is in the stands of usc s Prota with Sam Donald's parents, and then how it's funny how things fall work out, because you could call it fortune, you could call it an educated guests, whatever you want to call it. The fact of the matter is is that the Brown didn't

ended up taking Baker Mayfield. The Cagnet said he had a good feeling that the Giants very much like say, Kwon Barkley, and how could you not because he's a tremendous talent. And then Sam Donald there for the Jets at three for the taking. I feel like it was

a rather simple decision at that point. I thought it was a lazy argument because a lot of people were saying that just gonna move up to three, just three selections in the first round, they're gonna give up a trio of second round picks in the process, and potentially they're gonna get the third quarterback on their draft board. But with all that being said, you always had to

let it play out. And what mcagnan did was he took away a lot of uncertainty because if you were sitting there at six, who knows what would have happened. That changes the dynamic completely for more quarterbacks. One in the top ten on Thursday night, of course, Baker Makefield goes one, Sam Donald goes three. The Bills traded up to seven in order to get to Josh Allen. They

had conversations with the Denver Broncos. In fact, the parameters of a deal were in place, but the Broncos said, John I always said, oh no, no, rarely Chubb's on the board, I'm not doing that trade. But the Bills still got their guy who they've been linked to for a long time. And then Arizona made the move up in order to get to Josh Rosen. I thought Rosen potentially might fall actually to Miami at eleven, and you

would have saw three a FC East teams. And now we're getting all this talk about how the Patriots were very interested in Baker Mayfield. Well know, we don't know the Patriots tell you that unless Belichick tells you that. Yeah, unless it comes right from Belichick and he's looking in the camera and it's recorded, I'm not gonna believe it. Because everybody was talking about all they're gonna package this, they're gonna move up, they definitely need a guy and

whatever and things like that. You don't know. The other thing you don't know is you don't know the way the Jet's board was stacked. People can't guess all they want about it. But with all that being said, mccagnan moved up in March and he got his guy in April. He should be applauded for that. An aggressive move and it paid off. Bottom line, it paid off. There was great value there, no matter what the compensation he gave up. And I will say this, I understand it from the

what the Colts did, Greens. When you look at what the Colts did, I think that in a nice draft. And this started with Quintin Nelson and number six overall who everybody said it was the top offensive alignment and the entire draft. The Colt again, this is a wind wind deal and they're saying that he's gonna be healthy. We were in Indianapolis. Everybody's saying, Chris Bellard told reporters there that hey, listen, we're comforta well where he is.

And you don't make that deal unless you think Andrew luck is coming back. It was a win win in March, and it was a win win in April, and now it's May, it's still a win win. But here's the thing, here's another interesting nugge you talked about the potential of three a f C East quarterbacks. Well, they're definitely two with Sam Donald and Josh Allen, and they're extremely close. They've trained together all off season with Jordan Palmer. They'll

be four ever lengthd and not. You're a great point there, because Donald is gonna be linked to sin Juan Barkley, no doubt about that. I mean, Barkley goes to and then Donald goes three. But obviously the FC East connection there with Slick and Sam and Josh Allen. Josh Allen my had the biggest arm we've ever seen come out. Ever. Oh yeah, well, at least in my lifetime. Absolutely, of course in your lifetime. Well, I'm just saying JaMarcus Russell

was close. I think did you see Jamanhall Adams sweet the other day? I didn't tell fans about that. Yeah, I think fans will like it. I didn't know if I was gonna bring it up. I'd like you to bring it up. It's a little salty. But to Jamal

Adams rivalry starting already. Someone tweeted video of Josh Allen throwing an interception and said, oh boy, that Josh Allen to Jamal Adams connection is gonna be real nice and Jamal Adams quote tweeted it and said, I can't wait to catch some passes from one of my favorite qbs. Here we go babying on social media. He really is something. He's all in on social media. But you know, we've

we've talked about Sam Donald so much. Now I think that we should listen to your interview when Sam toured One Jets Drive as the first time as a jet. Of course he was here on a Top thirty visit, but let's listen in on what Sam told you about the process and about what he expects to do in the green and white. Sam, what was the thought process when the car was rawn in here to One Jets Drive today? See in the fields first, that's the first

thing you see rolling up. It's amazing, you know, I just want to get out there and play, you know. And then coming in here, meeting with Mr Johnson, meeting with Coach Bowls was amazing. Actually got to see Leo and Claude Polone, my former teammates. So it's just been amazing so far. And that's one thing that you keep on reiterating that, Hey, listen, I talked to Jeremy Bates. I love talking ball. You like not the camera's so much, you'll do that, but you're here to be a football

player and you're eager to get started. Yeah. I mean it's you know, I really want to get started. Um. I think for me it's I know that the quarterback position, you have to be available to the media, be able to talk about certain things. But you know, down in my core, I just really want to play football. That's what I came here to do, and I'm just really excited to get started. How much of a role did your family play in all of this huge role? They've

always been there for me, um, no matter what. Same with my best friends and my teammates and all my coaches I've ever had. It's just it's amazing to kind of think about all those people that have been in my life and be able to give them thanks throughout this whole process, because I wouldn't be here without them. What did you get specifically for him? While from your dad and your older sister, they just they're really good leaders for me. I think that's the biggest thing, is

just you know, teaching me how to work hard. Um. The work ethic that all three of them have is amazing. And you know what what my dad especially was able to do with his life, you know, coming home after work and wanting to take a nap on the couch, me waking him up once I get home from school, and wanting to go throw a football out in the front yard or play hoops in the backyard. It was just he was always willing to do those things, even

though he worked his butt off during the day. So it's just learning from him and learning how to work hard. Is is something that I really cherished. What have these moments been like for you and your family? It's been amazing, you know, It's it hasn't been anything short of that. It's just very surreal and something that you know, I'm gonna remember for a long time. But I understand, you know, with the end of this chapter comes the next chapter, and that's being a jet and um, see how many

ball games I can win? Why was this a good fit? We talked about it last night. You said you talked to your mom after your visit here to the Jetsy said, listen, I got a real good feeling about it that I might go to them at number three. Yeah, you know, I've had a really good feeling, you know, depending on

what you know Cleveland and the Giants did. I knew that if I was there at three, that I could probably you know, go there, and I was very confident and that I had a really great meeting with all the coaches, front office, you know, I met some of the players. It was amazing. So just getting to know everyone, Um, I had a really good feeling afterwards. You had a chance to experience Jets Nation already at the Dallas or airport.

See people recognized, Yeah, I don't know if you were in your green tie already, but what did they say to you? You know, they're just really excited, you know, as any fan would be. But it's just it's amazing to be able to embrace that and just say hi to everyone, get to meet the fans, signed some autographs, take some pictures. My whole time here, I'm just going to continue to embrace everything, whether I'm a rookie or

whether I'm a tenthier vet. You know, I'm just gonna always embrace the moment because that's really all I know how to do. If you were able to watch yourself on tape and somebody said, hey, give me a scout on that guy self, scout, what would you say as far as what you bring on tape? Yeah, I think I bring really good football instincts to the game and confidence that you can see when I play, whether it's

fitting in the tight window. And yeah, it gets me into trouble sometimes, but um, you know, I'm really confident whenever I pull the trigger. And that's something that I'm going to continue to do here and just continue to be really confident with every decision that I make. And last week, can you believe it's only a couple of days away when you actually will be on these fields right here in Flora Park for rookie Minicamp. Yeah, it's amazing. You know again, I can't wait to get on this

field and start practicing with all my teammates. Alrighty, So we we broke down Sam Donald, we heard from him, We heard from Matt Miller, we heard from Donald head coach at USC Clay Helton. Let's look ahead now, Rookie Minicamp is around the corner. Josh mccount is still the starting quarterback of the New York Jets. Todd Bowles said that it is McCown's job entering training camp. However, he did say that with Donald, he's not gonna throw him in there, but he's not gonna hold him back either.

No timetable bottom line, that's what you get from Todd Bowles. If the guy is ready to play, or play he's not ready to play, he won't play. I think that's the proper approach. I don't think you set certain benchmarks along the way. I'm sure you have some kind of plan as far as what kind of erupts these guys are gonna be given through our training camp and things like that. But Todd Bowles is taking the right approach here.

That's the only approach you should have. And the other thing is it's a great situation because Sam Donald was asked about Josh McCown a couple of times. I asked him about McCown. He said, guys amazing. And when he was asked during his press conference about McCown, he said, listen, Josh already texted me said whatever you need, I'm here for you. What else can you ask for? Josh McGown is a perfect guy to learn from, you know, and he's just a great dude. Let alone, you know, throw

the stats out the window. Everything like that. He's just a great guy that everyone likes to be around. Whether you're a media member, a friend, a player, everyone seems to like Josh McCown. And the big thing in social media nowadays too, is to take a photo of your text, right, bank a photo your text conversation and let the world know about it. What's said about gres Josh McCown's daughter did that, didn't she? Well, no, he didn't the conversation he was having. Yeah, so so I apologize to Josh

McCown's daughter. That's well, well, well do you well what she said was a little bit of a singer, She texted, that's all right to do that, that's very so, oh you're calling him all well he so if you if you didn't see Josh McCown screenshot at a conversation between himself and his daughter, his oldest daughter, and she said something like, you do realize that he's you know, a year younger than me, or you're older than me or something something crazy, And then he he obviously felt a

little dated with that, but but you let the world know about it. Hum, that's a way to people's hearts. But I didn't know this was the thing. I'm starting to see this. I'm starting to see this more and more with people want to converse with on a daily basis. Maybe that could be like your your mid season, your midyear revolution is to start, is to start screenshotting funny moments in your texts and hosting them on Twitter. Should I do that? It depends how funny the moment is.

And you've got to make sure to crop the because there could be some things in there that you don't want out there right there. Yeah, it depends. Like no one needs to know a grocery list. You know, it could be a number of things. But you know, I'll show you how to crop the photo. Hey, Josh wants to be big in the texting because he texted Darble too. But whatever you need. I mean, he's not ancient. No, I didn't say that. I think he knows how to text,

Yes he does. He knows how to play some football too, and some hoops. Yes, yes, the hoop video. But Tabows was not that impressed. He knew he was athletic. We talked to him about the owners meetings. He said it didn't look like people were really playing too much defense. No, but then when he threw down the Doug he said, Okay, that was impressive. Yeah, well listen, McCown can bring it well.

Speaking of high school basketball, didn't Donald average. Donald was a high school point guard, which is where his vision and he also played linebacker. He likes contact, He likes Yes, I do because because I think it's even though I grew up in the East Coast, I don't like it when people said, oh, who's from southern California might be a little bit soft. The sun got this guy a little bit. This guy, there's nothing that is soft about him. Again, blue collar family, and this is a guy who does

nothing but working. Like I said before, look at what his parents brought to the table and their occupation and the way how authentic this kid is in genuine and sincere and his approach when you talked to him, he says, I can't wait to get on the field. I love talking ball with people who know ball. Sam Donald, New York Jet. How do you like that? Jets Nation. I'll pause for a response, won't hear it because you can't speak. Maybe they'll send a text message with the screenshot it.

They'll send it into us, and that's how we close out this episode on the official Jets podcast. That's all. We have Ethan Greenberg and Eric Allen again in studio. Next up on the pod, we're breaking down rounds two through seven. Stay tuned.