The Real Culprit Behind the Sam Darnold Holdout: Jimmy Sexton

Training camp is here, and there is only one player not in attendance: Sam Darnold. The Jets and Darnold’s agency has yet to agree on a deal. 254 of the 256 draft picks have been signed, and Darnold is not among them. Is there anything to worry about? No. Not yet at least.

Quick reminder to Jets fans: Darnold is not the one negotiating this contract. Darnold’s agent, Jimmy Sexton, is the one handling the deal. Does that name sound familiar? It should, cause it’s the same guy who was responsible for ex-Jet QB Ryan Fitzpatrick’s holdout. Fitzpatrick was in love with the Jets. He even visited Brandon Marshall during his holdout just to hang with him.

Darnold’s situation is one very similar to this. Allow me to give a run down on Sam Darnold’s life right now. The man is dying to play football. He is living two minutes away from the Jets practice facility. No, I’m not lying. He asked his agent to just get the deal done, and his agent told him to “let him handle the business side of things”.

#Jets QB Sam Darnold is still unsigned as his team practices. Why? Let me explain… pic.twitter.com/xAMPtYsLqm

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 28, 2018

Agency & Offset Language

The world of the player agency is a competitive one. Agents want players, and they need to be above the rest. Sexton has been taking this philosophy to a whole different level. Baker Mayfield, the first overall pick in this years draft, was also represented by Sexton. Mayfields contract included offsets, which give the team that drafted him benefits in the scenario of that player being cut.

The Jets have long-held a philosophy of having these offsets in case their draft pick doesn’t pan out. Sexton is challenging this philosophy, hence why the two sides haven’t agreed on a philosophy. In reality, the probability of Darnold being cut within his first three years is slim to none. However, having no offsets gives Sexton leverage on other agents, ultimately leading to representing more players.

Think of it as recruiting college football players. The more games you win, the more players you recruit. In the agency world, when you get a player a good contract, more players will come your way as clients. Sexton’s greed and selfishness is hurting Darnold, causing him to miss the first couple of practices.

It’s time for Sexton to give in. It has basically come to the point where he is kidnapping Darnold for his own benefits. The fan base, and possibly some members within the Jets staff, are furious at him. When really, Sexton is the one at fault, not Darnold. Darnold wants to be there, his teammates want him there, and his coaches want him there. Sexton does not. It’s time for Sexton to quit being selfish and get his client onto the practice field.

– James Cunningham is a staff writer for Full Press Coverage Jets and covers the New York Jets. Like and follow on Follow @JCunninghamNFLFollow @FPC_Jets