FLORHAM PARK Vosean Joseph Jersey Boys , N.J. (AP) — Josh McCown is going from mentor to starter this week for the New York Jets.The 39-year-old quarterback will be under center Sunday against the Buffalo Bills in place of injured rookie Sam Darnold, who’s sidelined with a strained right foot.“I’m ready to rule him out as a starter for this week,” coach Todd Bowles said of Darnold on Thursday. “I don’t know if I’ll rule him out yet for the game.”That means Darnold still could potentially be the No. 2 quarterback on Sunday. If not, Davis Webb would be promoted from the practice squad to serve as McCown’s backup.Either way, the starting job is McCown’s — at least for this week.“I’m extremely comfortable with him,” Bowles said. “We talk all the time. He understands the game and the team, and we see things the same way. So I’m comfortable.”McCown has not taken a snap in a regular-season game this season as the Jets have focused on developing Darnold. The No. 3 overall pick won the job out of training camp, but was injured during New York’s 13-6 loss at Miami last Sunday.McCown was the Jets’ starter last season and had a career year before being sidelined the last three games with a broken left hand. Since the summer, McCown has spoken highly of Darnold and expressed excitement about being able to have a hand in the youngster’s development.Darnold has received lots of advice and tips from McCown on the sideline and practice field. Now, he’ll have no choice but to watch.“I say it all the time: That’s why we do this, to play,” McCown said Wednesday when Darnold’s injury was announced. “If that’s the case, you’re torn because your friend and a teammate, it means he can’t go. In that regard, I don’t wish that on anybody Infant Dawson Knox Jersey , but at the same time as a professional, as a backup quarterback you have to serve your team in that role and go in and play winning football.“That’s what’s fun, that’s what you look forward to and that’s why you play this game. And, we’ll go out and compete.”The Jets are ranked 29th in overall offense, including 28th in the passing game. Some of the struggles can be attributed to the inexperience of Darnold, who has an NFL-leading 14 interceptions. During New York’s current three-game losing streak, the rookie has thrown two touchdown passes and seven INTs.So, some might consider the injury a blessing in disguise. It allows Darnold to take a breather and give McCown a chance to perhaps get the offense back on track.“Obviously, Josh has played a long time in this league,” wide receiver Jermaine Kearse said. “So throughout the weeks, he sees things a lot quicker. Just the mental aspects, he’s a lot further, just with his experience and being in the league. So, him just being able to see things a lot quicker, you know Dawson Knox Jersey Draft , the tempo kind of picked up a little bit.”Bowles made it clear, however, that this is no long-term solution. When Darnold is healthy, he’ll step right back into the starting role.“Yeah,” Bowles said, “he’s our quarterback.”Even if McCown is playing well when Darnold is fully healthy?“Sam is our quarterback,” Bowles answered.Bowles was then asked why that would automatically be the case with Darnold.“Because he’s our starter and he won the job,” the coach said. “I feel comfortable with him in there and I feel comfortable with Josh in there.”While Darnold is the easy target and he has shouldered the blame for the struggles on offense, the Jets have several other culprits. Center Spencer Long has dealt with a finger injury that has led to several wayward snaps out of the shotgun, disrupting the timing of plays. Wide receivers Quincy Enunwa and Robby Anderson have been dealing with ankle injuries, and there have been blown plays and dropped passes by several players.“Like I’ve said, we didn’t play well as an offense,” Bowles said. “He didn’t play well last game, but there’s a couple people that have had bad games here and there, so we go from there.”Offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates has taken some heat Dawson Knox NFL Jersey , as well. The Jets are 18th in points with 198 and have scored just 17 touchdowns on offense. They also rank 30th in the league in first-down success (15.8 percent) and third-down conversions (30.8 percent).“We have to score more points and that’s on me,” Bates said. “I need to put our players in better positions to be successful, need to put our players in better position to score touchdowns and that’s my responsibility. We have to score points in this league to win football games.”NOTES: CB Trumaine Johnson was a full participant at practice for the first time in more than a month after being sidelined with an injured right quadriceps. He’s planning to play Sunday. “Man, it’s been a month and a couple days, so I’m definitely ready,” he said. “Just sitting out there supporting the team and my teammates is a different feeling, but I’m anxious to get back out there.” … Long (knee/finger), Anderson (ankle), Enunwa (ankle), TE Neal Sterling (concussion) and NT Steve McLendon (ankle) didn’t practice. … LG James Carpenter (shoulder) was limited.The Buffalo Rumblings Podcast, episode 22: Josh Allen, o-line struggle vs. Bengals One week after picking up their first win of the preseason against the Cleveland Browns, the Buffalo Bills welcomed the other Ohio-based NFL team to New Era Field in Week 3 of the preseason and suffered a disheartening 26-13 setback to the Cincinnati Bengals. On the latest edition of the Buffalo Rumblings Podcast, co-hosts John Boccacino and Anthony Marino offered up their thoughts on what they liked and what they didn’t like from the loss to the Bengals, while trying to maintain perspective after the Bills’ lackluster effort on Kids Day. If you came to the Bills’ dress rehearsal preseason game late Dawson Knox NFL Draft , consider yourself lucky, because you didn’t miss much from the sputtering Buffalo offense. The first-team unit struggled against an aggressive and talented Bengals’ defensive line, ruining the professional starting debut of prized rookie Josh Allen. Allen was sacked five times and completed only 6 of 12 passes during a scoreless first half. While Allen failed to direct any scoring drives, it wasn’t all his fault, as he barely had two seconds to search for a receiver downfield on most of his passes due to porous play from the offensive line. The patchwork offensive line should be a major concern for Bills fans heading into the regular season. The one positive for the first-team offense? The struggles came as Pro Bowl running back LeSean McCoy and starting left tackle Dion Dawkins were on the sidelines for Week 3 of the preseason, but there is major work to be done in the trenches for the Bills. The good news? Second-year QB Nathan Peterman continued his strong preseason play as he makes a push to be Buffalo’s regular-season starting quarterback. Playing behind most of the same offensive line that was pushed around by Cincinnati’s defensive line in the first half, Peterman played the entire second half, completing 16-of-21 passes for 200 yards and a touchdown.Among the other things Boccacino and Marino liked from the loss: the emergence of tight end Jason Croom, who has played his way into the discussion for the No. 2 tight end job, surpassing Nick O’Leary, Khari Lee, and Keith Towbridge on the depth chart. Running back Marcus Murphy also continued his strong preseason, rushing 11 times for 58 yards (5.3 yards per rush), while linebacker Tremaine Edmunds was in on seven total tackles, burst through the gaps to make several stops Dawson Knox Buffalo Bills Jersey , and held his own in pass coverage. On the flip side, the duo discussed disappointing performances from the entire offensive line, linebacker Matt Milano, and cornerback Vontae Davis, who was burned on a 57-yard touchdown pass from Andy Dalton to John Ross on the first play of the game. His day didn’t get any better after the opening snap, and now Davis could be in jeopardy of losing his role as starting CB opposite Tre’Davious White. Check out our Buffalo Rumblings podcast to catch the complete breakdown from Week 3 of the preseason! Listen here. 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