Sam Darnold is well aware of all the talk surrounding the Jets possibly drafting his replacement. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Jets QB Sam Darnold: Trevor Lawrence speculation 'out of my control'

The New York Jets sit at 0-6 without a future win in sight, are at the bottom of many NFL power rankings published earlier this week, are responsible for the league's worst pass offense, and have a third-year quarterback who hasn't performed like a future franchise savior this season when he's been able to stay on the field. 

Jets QB Sam Darnold realizes more than a few fans and local sports-talk personalities out there want the team to finish dead last in the overall standings and earn the right to draft Clemson star signal-caller Trevor Lawrence next spring. As of Thursday afternoon, though, the 23-year-old is focused on returning from the shoulder injury that's sidelined him the past two weeks and helping Gang Green attempt to notch an upset victory over division foes the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. 

"Yeah, you know, I mean, I have social media," Darnold told reporters on Thursday, per Rich Cimini of ESPN. "I've seen some of the things, but ... Yeah, we've got a game to win this week, and that's all we're worried about."

Darnold added: "For me, it's out of my control. I'm here to do my best and help this team win games."

Darnold suffered an AC joint sprain during the Oct. 1 loss to the Denver Broncos but returned to the practice field earlier this week. 

"I feel good," he explained while updating his progress toward making it back into the lineup this weekend. "The last two days have gone really well. I'm throwing the ball, and I've recovered pretty quickly. Obviously, it's still to be determined what's going to happen Sunday as far as who's starting, but I've felt really good the last couple of days."

One-time Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Joe Flacco remains second on the depth chart and would likely start against the Bills if Darnold can't play. 

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