FLORHAM PARK, NEW JERSEY - AUGUST 14: Sam Darnold #14 and Le'Veon Bell #26 of the New York Jets fist bump at Atlantic Health Jets Training Center on August 14, 2020 in Florham Park, New Jersey.
(Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

New York Jets star running back Le’Veon Bell want the team’s leader and quarterback Sam Darnold to stay healthy at all costs. 

According to Le’Veon Bell, there’s a clear leader in the New York Jets locker room. Sam Darnold isn’t the kind of leader who’s going to deliver a rousing half time speech. He isn’t going to get everyone pumped up in the huddle on the game-winning play. He isn’t going to celebrate every big play.

Instead, Darnold is the kind of guy who leads with his presence and by example.

According to Le’Veon Bell, he’s the kind of guy you want to follow and work hard for. He’s the silent leader that the Jets have been looking for.

His biggest issue has been his health. Darnold missed three games in 2019 due to a bout with mononucleosis. Bell isn’t ready to lose his starting quarterback again, in much more perilous times.

Bell was clearly making a joke here, but it’s true. Darnold has dealt with health issues his entire career to this point. He missed three games his rookie season with a sprained ankle. In 2020, he tore a ligament in his thumb that needed offseason surgery.

Mono might not be an issue in 2020, but COVID-19 is. Sam Darnold has already told the media that he’s made the proper adjustments to his lifestyle, but it’s not that easy. The NFL plans to allow fans into the stadium, depending on the region. The Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins, both places the Jets will visit, are allowing fans into the stadium.

The Jets will also have to make a number of flights across the country. They have two west coast road trips this season. MLB has already proved it’s incredibly difficult to have a season outside a bubble. They’ve had four teams miss games due to COVID-19, two of which had major outbreaks.

The NFL is taking even fewer precautions. So, Bell may have been joking that Darnold needs to avoid bars, but it’s the truth. The whole team needs to avoid bars.

A contributor here at elitesportsny.com. I'm a former graduate student at Loyola University Chicago here I earned my MA in History. I'm an avid Mets, Jets, Knicks, and Rangers fan. I am also a prodigious prospect nerd and do in-depth statistical analysis.