The Jets did not get the news they were hoping for about Sam Darnold on Monday, and now it looks like he may not be ready to play Sunday against the Eagles.
After an evaluation Monday morning, doctors cleared Darnold to throw and participate in non-contact drills as he tries to return from mononucleosis, but the quarterback still cannot have any contact and is not even permitted to lift weights yet.
All of this makes it seem unlikely he will play Sunday against the Eagles as the 0-3 Jets try to get their first victory of the season.
“It’s not an ideal situation,” Jets coach Adam Gase said, calling Darnold’s status a “question mark.”
Gase sounded like he is holding out hope that the doctors will give Darnold the go-ahead to play, but admitted that there are a lot of hurdles to clear before then.
“There’s a lot of gray right now,” Gase said.
If Darnold can’t play, Luke Falk will make his second career start. The Patriots roughed up Falk in his first start two weeks ago and the Jets offense managed a paltry 105 total yards.
Gase said one of the tricky situations with Darnold’s uncertain status is simultaneously getting Darnold the reps he needs to get ready if he can play and preparing Falk if he needs to play.
“It would be one thing if you were looking at a guy who had played in the league for 12 years or something, that we could go the whole week and all of a sudden get the rug pulled out from under us,” Gase said. “This is more of a situation when you have a younger backup and if he was going to play, he would need the reps. It’s kind of one of those things where the sooner, the better that I have an answer.”
Darnold said he feels like he can play now, but he knows he has to listen to the doctors. Mono causes the spleen to enlarge and it could rupture if he is hit the wrong way, which could lead to death. Gase said Darnold is “pressing” to return after missing two games.
“I’m super anxious to get out there but right now I’ve got to control those emotions,” Darnold said.
Darnold would not say if the exam on Monday showed his spleen is still enlarged, but it feels like that is a safe assumption since he was not cleared for contact. Neither Darnold nor Gase would say when he will be checked again.
It sounds like the plan is for Darnold to practice on a limited basis Wednesday and then see if the doctors clear him later in the week. There are also questions about Darnold’s conditioning that need to be factored in as well. He has not done much in three weeks since getting diagnosed.
“I’m looking at everything. That’s been running through my head,” Gase said. “Is his arm going to be OK? Monitoring how many throws he does per day and building up there. It’s been a while since he’s thrown a football. The conditioning level – where is he at on that. There’s so many little steps we’re trying to go through here.”
Darnold said he is not worried about conditioning despite the time off. He also said he is not feeling the effects of mono anymore.
“I feel 100 percent. I’ve been feeling 100 percent for a week now,” Darnold said. “I think that’s kind of the most frustrating part about this.”
Darnold said he knows this is out of his hands.
“For me, it’s just about doing what the doctors say,” he said. “Like I said, it’s out of my control. My spleen at this point is going to do what it’s going to do.”
The Jets face a tricky situation between protecting their 22-year-old franchise quarterback and also trying to get back in the win column. They will have little hope on Sunday if Falk is at quarterback.
“I would hope to practice starting Wednesday,” Darnold said. “I would hope to get a full week’s worth of practice in before I play in the game. That would be my goal. If I can’t do that but I can still play in the game Sunday, then I’m going to do it. I’m going to do what I can to get out there with my guys because I miss the game too much. If I can go out there and play, I’m going to play.”