Jets' Mark Sanchez likely to play on Sunday after shoulder injury
Even though the most talked about body part since Wednesday is Michelle Ryan’s feet, there are more pressing matters at hand for the New York Jets team.
How about Mark Sanchez’s throwing shoulder? Forgot about that?
An MRI exam on Monday showed that there is a small cartilage tear, said a league source. Doctors, however, do not believe that it is a result of a hard hit, but from simple wear and tear over the years. They also say that it should not be a major encumbrance.
As of now, chances of surgery during the postseason seem minimal.
Sanchez did have some practice time over the week, with slow tosses and some off handed throws. But he vowed that he would be ready for Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears, which they need to win to secure a playoff slot for the second year straight.
"I'm in there. I'm playing, that's all there is to it," the second-year quarterback said after practice. "I have to be on the field. That's what I'm here for and that's what I'm going to do."
Rex Ryan, head coach for the Jets, says that he is certain Sanchez will start, with a 1% chance of not playing. But will he be able to play to his full potential? He needs to practice, with only 29 career starts. But the team is being more cautious than
usual, limiting his throwing time, which means less practice for next week’s game.
During Wednesday’s practice, Sanchez did not participate in passing team drills, and only handed off on a couple of running plays. Later, with an impish grin, Sanchez said that he snuck in a couple of passing plays, but didn’t go all out. In the portion
of practice open to the media, he made a couple of left handed throws in quarterback drills.
Both Ryan and Sanchez said that the injury was not so serious, but would not reveal the extent of injury. Jokingly, Ryan said that he couldn’t even pronounce the “verbiage” of the injury. For now, Sanchez is classified as having a sore shoulder.
Sanchez landed on his shoulder during the first quarter of their win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, 22-17, on Sunday. He played for the rest of the game, but said that he needed to do some warm-up throws to keep his shoulder loose.
Sanchez was “very pleased” with the results of an MRI exam on Monday coming in as negative, indicating no separation, dislocation, or rotator cuff damage.
The Jets are hopeful that Sanchez will be well enough to practice fully sometime this week, but don’t want to push his limits.
"I'm being safe about it and I'm in for the long haul," Sanchez said. "We have, hopefully, six or seven weeks left -- or whatever it is -- and I want to make it through all those weeks."
He is referring to a run for the Super Bowl, but first the Jets and, hopefully, Sanchez, have to defeat the Bears on Sunday.
Stay tuned!
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