Jets quarterback Josh McCown knows he's not New York's long-term solution under center, but he believes No. 3 pick Sam Darnold is rightfully the heir.
"With Sam, we have the right guy," McCown said on an interview with Sirius XM over the weekend. "He's wired the right way, he loves the game, he asks the right questions and he's willing to work … That's the foundation, you have to have that," McCown said.
The Jets traded three second-round picks to move up three spots from No. 6 to No. 3, where the USC quarterback ultimately fell to them. Darnold has impressed several people early on, including offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates, who said Darnold has handled everything the team has thrown at him so far.
The 39-year-old McCown, who threw for 2,926 yards, 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 13 games last season for the Jets, was brought in to be a placeholder until they had their franchise quarterback.
Christian Hackenberg, a second-round pick in 2016, never earned a snap at the NFL level, and Bryce Petty threw for 1,353 yards, four touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 10 games over the past two seasons.
Neither of the two are on the Jets roster, and while New York also signed Teddy Bridgewater in the offseason, it drafted Darnold to be their quarterback of the future.
McCown told reporters last month he thought Darnold was "getting better" every day, and only time will tell how long it will take for Darnold to go from the future to the present.
