Sam Darnold is a young man in a hurry.

He knows he has an uphill battle trying to leapfrog Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgewater for the Jets starting quarterback job, but he has never shied away from a fight.

“Obviously that’s a coach’s decision … the competitor in me, yeah, I want to start,” Darnold said. “But at the same time, it’s about the team, and whatever’s best for the team.”

So even though there will be no “Just give me the damn ball” edict anytime soon from Darnold to Todd Bowles, there is no question that this is a young gym rat of a colt with great expectations and a grand ambition.

With the carrot of the starting quarterback job dangling in the air, Darnold has that BRING IT ON! mentality the Jets love in their $30.25 million rookie.

I asked him how exciting it is for him knowing he has a chance to win the starting job.

“Competition’s awesome,” Darnold said. “When I went through it at [Southern Cal], it was really cool to come out here and compete every single day, because that’s what the sport’s about. I think it also pushes guys on the team when they’re seeing a vet like Josh, a vet like Teddy and me coming in and competing really hard, I think it pushes everyone.

“It’s really awesome to be able to come out here in this competitive environment and just … compete. I think that’s the name of the game out here, especially in camp once guys’ legs start to get a little bit tired. Competition, I think pushes all of us to be better.”

Jets legend Wayne Chrebet was a camp visitor on the sidelines Wednesday and saw Rashard Robinson make a leaping interception of a deep sideline throw by Darnold.

“Defensive holding,” Chrebet said jokingly.

Chrebet was Everyman when he played, and he is EveryJetfan now. Rooting for Darnold to be the Jets’ long-lost franchise quarterback whenever he is ready to ascend to the throne.

“I think he’s a perfect fit for the organization,” Chrebet said. “Be the quarterback for the next 10 years. This could be the guy we’ve been looking for for a while.”

Chrebet sat down for lunch with owner Christopher Johnson and Darnold on Wednesday.

“Unassuming kid,” Chrebet said. “He knows he’s a good player, but he doesn’t feel the need to tell you that.”

Former Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was also watching from the sidelines.

“The throw that he didn’t throw, I thought was the most impressive,” Spagnuolo told The Post. “He could have thrown it into coverage. They ran a slant, but he was smart enough to pull it down, and then threw it away. Sometimes you don’t see that with a rookie. Sometimes they want to force it in and show how good they are.”

Spagnuolo reflected back to his days as Rams head coach when he started Sam Bradford, the top overall pick that year, in the opener over A.J. Feeley.

“I remember the day, we were up in New England, it’s a preseason game, Sam played a lot in that game and he brought us back and won the game like on a two-minute drill at the end of the game. And you could see all the players on the sideline, in the huddle, and you knew then that he was the guy.”

Darnold has exhibited resiliency — throws a pick, yawns — and resourcefulness and is the same guy every day.

“I don’t know what system he ran in college, but he’s been taking it from the classroom and applying it to the field, and that’s the first step,” Bridgewater said. “I’ve been amazed by that. It’s great to be in a room with him, a guy who’s never too high, never too low, and that’s what you need at the quarterback position. … I’m a huge fan of Sam.”

It doesn’t mean he will win the job.

“It’s like a baseball pitcher if you put in too young, too early, he gets clocked, right?” Spagnuolo said. “What does that do to his mental psyche? So I think you do have to make sure the timing’s right, everybody’s confident about it, and everybody’s all in with it. They’ll do the right thing.”

My early bet is that Bowles will likely err on the side of caution — unless Darnold is Doc Gooden.

“He’s a big athlete that can spin that ball, man,” defensive tackle Steve McLendon said. “Right now he needs to pick Josh’s and Teddy’s brain until they tell him to get away from ’em.

“But man, he’s a competitor, and that’s what you want.”