Jets Country

Jets' Phenom Endorses Sam Darnold as New York's Quarterback

New York Jets running back La'Mical Perine praised quarterback Sam Darnold, saying he wants the Jets to surround Darnold with talent rather than trading him

Max Goodman

Throughout La'Mical Perine's rookie season, the running back had Sam Darnold's back, blocking in the pocket. Now, Perine has his quarterback's back off the field as well.

In an appearance on Good Morning Football this week, Perine endorsed Darnold as the Jets' starting quarterback. 

"No disrespect to any of the quarterbacks that are in the draft, but I actually had a chance to play with Sam and was able to be in battle with him so I know what he brings to the team," Perine said. "He's a great leader, you've just got to put good weapons around him." 

Darnold's name has come up consistently this offseason as a possible trade chip for New York as they have an opportunity to draft a quarterback with the No. 2 pick. The 23-year-old is about to enter his fourth season in green and white and has struggled mightily in developing at this level.

Nonetheless, Perine believes the signal-caller can be "one of the top quarterbacks in this league."

"He's a great vocal leader, a great guy to be around," Perine added. "He's a competitor. I'm ready to look forward to him and I hope he's on our team this year. He's my starting quarterback."

Perine didn't get to play as much during his rookie season as he would've hoped. He spent some time on the sidelines with injuries, and a case of COVID-19, but was able to appear in 10 games. The Florida product had 75 touches in that span.

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Jets for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. He also covers the New York Yankees, publisher  of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Yankees site, Inside The Pinstripes. Before starting out with SI, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. While at school, Goodman gathered valuable experience as an anchor and reporter on NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. Goodman previously interned at MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman and connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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