Sam Darnold, Jets Dominate Lions 48-17 in Rookie's Anticipated Debut

The New York Jets earned a 48-17 road win over the Detroit Lions on Monday at Ford Field to get their 2018 regular season underway.

Sam Darnold, who was making the first start of his NFL career after the Jets selected him third overall in the 2018 draft, finished 16-of-21 for 198 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

The Lions offense struggled to find a groove, with Matthew Stafford in particular having a tough time. He threw for 286 yards, one touchdown and four interceptions.

Sam Darnold's Rebound from Early Interception Bodes Well for Rookie Campaign

Darnold's NFL career couldn't have gotten off to a worst start. On the first play from scrimmage, he threw a pick-six to Lions cornerback Quandre Diggs.

According to NFL Research, Brett Favre and Jameis Winston are the only other quarterbacks since 1991 to have pick-sixes on their first career pass attempts.

From that point forward, though, Darnold showed a ton of poise, which is a necessity for a rookie quarterback.

It helped that Darnold appeared to find a security blanket in Jets receiver Quincy Enunwa, who caught six passes for 63 yards and a touchdown. Enunwa's numbers certainly will have caught the attention of fantasy football owners.

Darnold threw 22 interceptions in his two years as the starter at USC, and he's playing for a team that's likely to miss out on the playoffs. Monday won't be the first time he makes a headline-grabbing mistake.

How he responds to those mistakes will go some way toward answering whether he can be the Jets' franchise quarterback. Based on Week 1, the team was justified making Darnold the starter right out of the gate in 2018.

Health of Matthew Stafford a Clear Concern after Underwhelming Performance

In the first half, Stafford got kicked in the knee by his own offensive lineman, and in the second half, he was sandwiched by two Jets defenders, after which he remained on the ground for some time.

Neither injury was enough to knock Stafford out of the game entirely, but they may have played a role in his performance.

And it largely goes without saying how costly any injury to Stafford would be for Detroit going forward. Matt Cassel was 2-of-6 and threw and interception in his brief cameo Monday.

Especially with Stafford enduring a brutal night, the diminished role of the running game was a puzzling aspect of Detroit's offensive game plan.

The Lions signed LeGarrette Blount and selected Kerryon Johnson in the second round of the 2018 draft to join a backfield that already included Theo Riddick and Ameer Abdullah. The trio of Blount, Johnson and Riddick combined to carry the ball 13 times for 34 yards.

Lions head coach Matt Patricia, offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter and the coaching staff need to go back to the drawing board to figure out how to capitalize on the team's new-look backfield, all the more so given the punishment Stafford absorbed.

Lions Facing Potentially Disastrous Start With Tough Schedule Ahead

In terms of first impressions, Patricia's debut in Detroit was an unmitigated disaster.

Things may not improve before Detroit's Week 6 bye either. Before then, the Lions face the San Francisco 49ers, New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers. Detroit could be looking at fewer than two wins through its first five games.

The Lions defense is liable to get shredded again, too, after surrendering 349 yards to the Jets, who also averaged 5.9 yards per play, according to ESPN.com.

Detroit finished 19th in defensive efficiency in 2017 after ranking 32nd in 2016, per Football Outsiders. The team clearly wanted to continue making strides on that side of the ball by hiring Patricia, who spent the previous six seasons as the New England Patriots' defensive coordinator.

Expecting Patricia to make Detroit an elite defensive team overnight was unrealistic, yet Monday's game offered little in the way of optimism regarding that unit's potential for the rest of the season.

What's Next?

The Jets have their home opener in Week 2 against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, while the Lions hit the road to take on the San Francisco 49ers on the same day.