PHILADELPHIA — Todd Bowles is still not budging.
The Jets coach refused to name his Week 1 starting quarterback after Thursday’s preseason finale. All signs point to rookie Sam Darnold starting Sept. 10 against the Lions, but Bowles will not concede that yet.
“I’m not making that decision right now,” Bowles said.
The Jets traded Teddy Bridgewater to the Saints on Wednesday, ending any thought, as remote as it was, that Bridgewater could get the nod over Darnold. Now, it is just Darnold and Josh McCown, who played in the preseason finale against the Eagles on Thursday night while Darnold watched from the bench. Darnold being held out of the 10-9 loss to Philadelphia is yet another sign he will be starting against the Lions.
Bowles would not even admit that he has made the decision in his head.
“If I did, I haven’t told [the quarterbacks] and I haven’t told the coaches,” Bowles said. “I’ll make that known to them as the days go on.”
The 21-year-old Darnold stuck to the script after the game, downplaying any idea that he believes he will be the starter.
“I’m not sure yet,” Darnold said. “Coach hasn’t talked to me about it. Whatever that role is, I’m excited.”
The Jets were sad to see Bridgewater go. He was a widely respected and loved teammate during his short time with the team.
“This is obviously my first season being in the NFL,” Darnold said. “It took me a little while to understand what was going on. Just saying goodbye to him was kind of the hardest thing about the whole thing. He taught me so much in such a little amount of time. I’m just excited for his next step in his journey and excited to see what he’s going to do in this league. I know he’s going to be a good player for a long time.”
Bowles said the deal with New Orleans was too good to pass up. The Saints sent the Jets a third-round pick in exchange for Bridgewater and a sixth-round pick.
“It was a good deal,” Bowles said. “We love Teddy, but at the same time we had three good quarterbacks. It was a good deal for us. It was a good opportunity. We got good value back. It was something we had to do.”
Jason Myers may have won the kicking job Thursday night. He made field goals of 58 and 43 yards in the game. Taylor Bertolet hit a 19-yard field goal.
“I’ll watch the tape and we’ll go over everything and review,” Bowles said. “He had a long field goal today, but it’s just one day.”
The Jets forced four turnovers in the game. J.J. Wilcox, Juston Burris and Derrick Jones all had interceptions. Wilcox also caused Eagles quarterback Christian Hackenberg to fumble with a big hit.
Three takeaways
- None of the wide receivers fighting for jobs distinguished themselves Thursday night. Tre McBride, Charone Peake and Charles Johnson all had drops. Chad Hansen and ArDarius Stewart had no impact.
- Rookie running back Trenton Cannon continues to show his speed, but he has got to do a better job of catching the ball. He dropped an easy swing pass. Cannon did have a 31-yard punt return, which was a plus.
- The preseason is over. The Jets did not sustain any major injuries. That is what every team hopes for. Now, they can prepare for the opener on Sept. 10 against the Lions.