Sam Darnold Is No. 1

Remember way back in October when it was fashionable to downgrade Sam Darnold? ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay lists Darnold as the No. 1 pick in the draft. Can he possibly come back if that is the case?

46 thoughts on “Sam Darnold Is No. 1

  1. If he has to wear that uniform next year, maybe. Plus, he didn’t even have a great season at USC this last year. Who knows? My gut says he comes back.

    • It would be better for him to stay. Let Rosen go to the Browns and get beaten up like a tool that he is.

      • I have a strange feeling that with Cam Smith saying he’s staying might help swing Sam. They’re buddies and roommates. Or, I could be completely off. Plus, I like what you’re saying about Rosen also.

  2. Sam will do what he and his family decide. Conjecture here does nothing. We can all hope for him to stay and I would think Cleveland would weigh into it a lot.

  3. If Gomer, uh Swann, can get him a good QB coach, he’ll come back, otherwise, why not take the ton of money and go pro.

  4. Cleveland Browns, where QB’s go to die. I can guarantee you Sam will not be playing for the Browns next season

  5. With 2 signing periods, how would you handle the 3 star guys if you have scholies available after the first period. Do you have them wait or sign them? I could depend on positional needs. What a bummer if you accept a 3 star loi and a 4 or 5 star decides to flip to you between periods. What a poker game.

    • I don’t think coaches look at the # of stars like fans do. They do their own evaluations and I would assume that anyone that they truly covet they will want to sign as early as possible. So, there might be a 3-star they would want and a 4-star that they might hold at bay.

  6. Can Sam picture himself living in Ohio ,playing behind that line, fighting to just stay physically healthy? Any way one spins it ,he will get boat load of money. Stay or go.With insurance he can cover himself from injuries staying.
    San Francisco, maybe. Browns, Bills no.

    • Unfortunately, Darnold’s such a gamer, he would be up for the challenge. Just look at the body types between him and manzel. Sam wears Cleveland better. I’m hoping he stays for more QB starts under his belt. He could gain experience reading defenses before the speed of the game jumps up to the highest level. If he stays, recruiting will go off the charts.

  7. The problem with CLE is it’s chaotic bedlam history 4 head coaches in the past 7 years and 3 gm’ s not counting the present change. Many feel the latest mgmt will use their # 1 pick to snag a number of picks from s current contender as the Browns are on d3sperate need of a number of decent players and it wouldn’t matter who quarterbacked them Darnold or no Darnold. I hope he comes back. Sam Da4nold is study in focus and not showing emotion. He’d definitely gain by returning with more reps and better pro pose8bilities. Rosen#s best fit is with the NYG.

      • The NYG would love him if only for a season – packed houses i.e. 1st Hebrew qb since Sage Rosenfels (played 2001 – 2011) 5 NFL teams journeyman qb – then there’s the best there ever was Sid Luckman and his 12 year career with all the Bears.

        Rosen is no Sid Luckman

      • Cam’s already announced he’s coming back. He’s got real speed problems if he expects a successful NFL career. Terrific, solid USC player with physical limitations that can be much more greatly exploited in the NFL.

        • Totally agree. GREAT kid and great player, but the NFL middle linebacker spot is a whole different ballgame.

  8. Cleveland is the best reason to stay at Fig Tech. That NFL team has been a dumpster fire forever!

  9. Did anyone else see Deshone Kiser’s interception in Overtime on Sunday against the Packers? Looked like a scared Junior High Kid playing out there. Pathetic….

  10. Nobody ever emphasizes the main reason Darnold might leave after the Cotton Bowl, which is that he is ready to move on from USC and isn’t looking forward to another year of school. Some kids are just “done with the school thing,” or want to help their families with $.

    I don’t know if Sam really wants to stay in school or not, but I think he’ll leave for the #1 money after he beats OHIO ST, and it’s his agent’s job to make sure he doesn’t go to any team he hates. That stuff can all be worked out and is every year. In fact, the Browns are already putting out signals that they are looking hard at Baker Mayfield.

    • If Darnold indeed would be a prospective top pick for the next year’s NFL draft, don’t you think he’d have much more to gain than to lose by leaving SC? What more upside would he really have by staying considering possible injuries and other unexpected variables?

      • I’d leave if I were him for a dozen great reasons, unless, and this is a big unless, he just really likes school and wants another year of the college experience before he moves into a totally different world.

        • Yes, for sure. I really can’t see how much he has to gain by staying, even though his return would make many SC people ecstatic.

          • If USC beats OHIO ST and finishes with 12 wins for only the 5th time in school history, in the minds of many, USC will have still been a big disappointment because we didn’t make the POs. Who needs that flack?

            Unless he just loves school, he should take the money and begin learning what it takes to succeed in the NFL. I think he’s ready from a talent vantage. Only question is, does Darnold want to leave college now.

          • I doubt that he hates SC. But the lure and temptation from being the first overall pick for the NFL and the big monetary prize would be next to impossible to resist.

            As for winning 12 games, yes, it means a lot, but many of the teams in the past couldn’t win that many games even if they wanted to or were good enough because they didn’t play as many games back then.

          • It’s been very possible to win 12 games for a long time now. Way back in 1972, USC won 12, so it’s been realistic for a long time. The real point is, too many USC fans are never satisfied. With our totally mediocre-to-bad OLs and CBs, it’s a wonder we’re already 11-2, especially since Darnold didn’t look very good much of the first half of the season.

            Unless further coaching changes are made, chances are USC doesn’t make POs again next year. The possibilities are always less for the P12 and away games at STAN, TEXAS, UTAH, ARIZ, ORE ST and ucla (better under Kelly) will be a real challenge. Our home schedule suxx, though we at least get a bye.

          • It’s been rather well-documented that the alumni and fans of the top-tier college football programs aren’t completely satisfied until their teams win national titles, and I don’t think it’ll ever change. Besides, one can also argue that relentless pressure through the expectations is one of the crucial factors for maintaining their high standards.

            The outlook for the next season’s Pac-12 is looking up with a couple of proven head coaches for UCLA and ASU. It might take a few years until we could feel significant resurgence of it, though.

          • I’ve never seen a USC team win more thrilling and tight games in one season, one of our most exciting ever. The Wild Bunch that won ugly. Loved the trick punt return TD against ucla. Just an unforgettable year with more to come.

          • I’ve seen some fans calling this season “exciting” or “entertaining”. Yes, I guess you can feel that way because we’re 11-2, but the truth is many of those close games easily could’ve gone the other way, and if they did, I don’t think they would’ve been even that much fun. So I’d call the 2017 SC football season an eventful and precarious one which bore a better fruit than it looked in the process.

          • This team has always won ugly, right from that first W MICH game up until when STAN was trying to catch us with successful late long throws for the P12 championship.

            In the end, all I care about is winning. For those who insist on style points and big margins with no penalties, I suggest they skip the Cotton Bowl. I just don’t see us dominating and if we win, it’ll probably be ugly. I’ve accepted that.

            Beating the Bucks sloppily will be just fine with me. I think it’s gonna be Darnold’s last Trojan show. Here’s to #12.

          • You’re probably right about the Cotton Bowl. I don’t think we’ll beat them down soundly from the start to finish. But I’ll be excited about the win despite my negative predictions you must be aware of already.

          • Winning ugly is standard operating procedure in the PAC-12 with its Social Justice Warrior officiating. Look at the PAC-12 championship game: the refs gave Stanford a TD right after USC scored first. They would not allow USC to dominate a game and have TV fans get bored with a lopsided score game and shut their TV’s off. Who knows how good USC is outside the surrealistic PAC-12 with its virtual TV football games? And likewise who know how good Sam Darnold is outside the circus ring of the PAC-12? The same goes for ROJO who is equal to or better than any running back that ever played at USC. But it paid off for ROJO because he got lucky with being coached up by Deland McCullough, the best running backs coach in college football who honed ROJO’s talents into a very disciplined running back. Other college QB’s in a similar situation have tried to negotiate or bargain for what NFL team they end up with before leaving college. What team you end up with in the NFL tends to make you into a star or mediocre player. The 49’ers should offer Cleveland a package deal of players in return for Darnold.

          • Pac-12 refs have definitely put a stamp on this season’s performances. They do have a lefty feel to it. RoJo needs more credit! All year long, he help keep the clocks moving and the Defense fresher

          • Gone either way? Yes close games, but Darnold is a hyper-competitive and wills his team to wins. The whole team feeds off it, expects it now, and the Defense did enough, or more, throughout the season to get the W.

  11. The Browns already drafted Baker Mayfield in a sense, aka Johnny Manzel…it didn’t work out so well. Rosen to Cleveland, Darnold back to SC for one more year!

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