With two winless teams playing, there wasn't really expected to be much excitement on the field for "Thursday Night Football" this week, but that all changed during the opening possession of the Broncos-Jets game. In one of the most improbable plays that you'll see all year, Jets quarterback Sam Darnold scrambled for a 46-yard touchdown, which is currently the longest run by any quarterback in the NFL this season, and no, that is not a typo, Sam Darnold has the longest run of any QB in the NFL this year.
To make it happen, Darnold escaped a blitz from the Broncos, broke a tackle, faked a slide and then coasted to the end zone. Because none of this sounds believable, let's watch the video below.
Of all the things I never thought I'd see in 2020, Sam Darnold running through the Broncos defense for a 46-yard touchdown is now at the top of the list #Jets #Broncos pic.twitter.com/bxnuYgx4Ul
— John Breech (@johnbreech) October 2, 2020
As you can imagine, Twitter went absolutely nuts after the play.
One of the most notable reactions on Twitter came from LeBron James, who's fresh off a Game 1 win over the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals.
Helluva run by Darnold! The juke move once he got out the pocket was a RB elite move
— LeBron James (@KingJames) October 2, 2020
You know someone is a serious football fan when they're watching two 0-3 teams play on a Thursday night, so that should answer any and all questions about how much James loves the NFL.
Another person who saw the play was Patrick Mahomes and he was just as impressed as LeBron.
Yo that was a crazy run!!
— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes) October 2, 2020
Chiefs players must really enjoy watching football, because Tyrann Mathieu also reacted to the play on Twitter.
What a run!!!!!
— Tyrann Mathieu (@Mathieu_Era) October 2, 2020
One of the NFL's most mobile quarterbacks also weighed in on the run.
Apparently, Bills quarterback Josh Allen was extremely impressed with one specific thing that Darnold did.
The fake slide 👀
— Josh Allen (@JoshAllenQB) October 2, 2020
If Allen uses a fake slide on Sunday against the Raiders, now you know why.
This bettor at William Hill was also pretty thrilled and that's because Darnold's TD run won him $2500 in profit.
That Sam Darnold Touchdown run turned $100 ➡️ $2,600 for a @WilliamHillNJ mobile bettor who took Darnold as the first TD scorer at +2500. #WHWinners pic.twitter.com/zFTyvuYXSY
— William Hill US (@WilliamHillUS) October 2, 2020
As for Darnold, if you want an idea of how improbable this run was, just consider this: It was the longest run by any NFL quarterback since 2017. It was also the longest run by a quarterback in franchise history for the Jets. Overall, Darnold finished the opening drive with 57 yards, which is also notable because Darnold only ran for 62 yards ALL OF LAST SEASON. Darnold's career-high for an entire game was 35 yards before Thursday and he topped that on one possession against Denver.
Unfortunately for Darnold, he got knocked out of the game later in the first quarter, although he did eventually return after missing one possession. For an up-to-date score and live analysis of everything that's happening at MetLife Stadium, be sure to click here for our live blog.
