Will Mark Sanchez Have a Breakthrough Year So Early?
The New York Jets quarterback (QB) Mark Sanchez may be tough to analyze heading into his second year. Last year, in his rookie season, we saw two sides of him.
He played poorly for a good chunk of his rookie year, as he compiled 20 interceptions and was a turnover machine. Many were already considering him a first-round bust after New York traded up to get him in the 2009 draft.
From weeks 4-15 last season, Sanchez’s touchdown/interception ratio was 8/18 and 12/20 for the season. He did recover well in the playoffs though. He threw the ball less, made less mistakes, and seemed to make just enough plays to lead the Jets to playoff upsets over the Bengals and the Chargers. However, their magic ran out as the Jets were overmatched in the AFC Championship by the Colts.
Many are now expecting the Jets to pick up right where they left off and especially ride the wave of all the new players they brought in. Many fans also think that Sanchez will experience a breakout season, but those judgments may need to be brought back down to earth.
You can’t expect Sanchez to become an elite quarterback in his second season. He has gotten some offseason help as the team went out and traded for wide receiver (WR) Santonio Holmes, who is a former Super Bowl MVP. However, Holmes will be suspended for the first four games of the season.
Braylon Edwards was acquired in October last year, and Sanchez has a full offseason to develop chemistry with the former Browns receiver. Sanchez’s supporting cast may have improved, but his second year may still be difficult.
Also, don’t forget that Sanchez plays in the same division as Tom Brady and an improving Chad Henne, who got some offseason help of his own as the Dolphins traded for Brandon Marshall, one of the best receivers in the game.
You also may remember that last season the Jets' running game was their bread and butter on offense, as Thomas Jones, Leon Washington and Shonn Greene combined to lead the Jets to being the number one rushing team in the league. Washington though was injured and missed most of the season. He was traded this offseason, and the team released Thomas Jones, which was a questionable move.
Now the Jets will still have to continue their success running the ball. That responsibility will now fall with second-year back Greene, who will get a lot more carries, while LaDainian Tomlinson and rookie Joe McKnight are there to also chip in with carries.
Sanchez also had offseason surgery on his knee, but he says it feels better than ever. He has attended organized team activities (OTAs) and even flew in his offence to California to practice with them and build their chemistry. Head coach Rex Ryan said no player he has been around worked harder than Sanchez did this offseason.
Sanchez’s work ethic was never in question last season and his knee didn’t seem to bother him that much either.
What really affected his performance the most was his decision-making. That may remind us of his idol Brett Favre. Like Favre had an old habit of doing, Sanchez forced throws into tight coverage when it would’ve been wiser to throw the ball away. This led to turnovers and severed the Jets drives.
Sanchez did show improvement in the playoffs as he began to make smarter decisions with the ball. He wasn’t overly impressive, but he didn’t force as many bad throws, and the Jets had success when turnovers didn’t kill their drives.
Nevertheless, those three games are still a very small window in which to judge his improvements and Sanchez has to prove he can keep that up for a full season.
This isn’t to say Sanchez won’t have a good season or that he won’t eventually become an elite quarterback in this league. The bottom line is though that it’s only his second year and many quarterbacks experience sophomore slumps; although there are exceptions. Just a word of advice, curb your enthusiasm. Be patient and let Sanchez develop slowly.
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