CORTLAND — When the Jets hit the Motor City on Friday, Mark Sanchez will be in the driver’s seat.
Jets coach Rex Ryan announced yesterday Sanchez will start the team’s preseason opener against the Lions on Friday and not rookie Geno Smith.
“It seemed like the natural thing to do,” Ryan said.
The two quarterbacks are locked into a tight competition in training camp for the starting job and have been alternating turns with the starting offense. Ryan said the plan is for both to work with the starters against the Lions, but did not reveal how that plan might work. Typically, the starters play just a series in the first preseason game.
Ryan did not offer much of an explanation why he chose Sanchez to start, but he did mention Sanchez is the incumbent.
“It’s been an even competition,” Ryan said. “We’ve been rotating days and things like that. Certainly he’s the incumbent. … We’ll see how it goes from here.”
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REMEMBER ME? Incumbent quarterback Mark Sanchez, not rookie Geno Smith, will start the Jets’ preseason opener against the Lions on Friday. “It seemed like the natural thing to do,” coach Rex Ryan said. (Anthony J. Causi)
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REMEMBER ME? Incumbent quarterback Mark Sanchez, not rookie Geno Smith, will start the Jets’ preseason opener against the Lions on Friday. “It seemed like the natural thing to do,” coach Rex Ryan said. (Anthony J. Causi)
Sanchez and Smith did not speak to reporters yesterday, but are scheduled to do so today.
The two quarterbacks are having different camps. Smith started off strong, but has faltered over the last two days. Smith’s best moments are electric and memorable. Sanchez’s best moments are not eye-opening like Smith’s, but his play has picked up in the past few days.
Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said the decision to go with Sanchez is partly based on his seniority and his play.
“He’s earned it,” Mornhinweg said. “He’s had an outstanding training camp. That’s the first thing. The second thing is he’s been the starter here. The first game will typically be his, but he’s earned it as well. So those two things kind of go together.”
Mornhinweg said the plan is to start Sanchez, get Smith some time with the starters and then let Smith work with the second team. The Jets will probably leave some starters in for Smith, but not all, working in players they feel need some snaps with the first team as well. Ryan joked it would be nice if Lions coach Jim Schwartz would help them out and leave his starting defense in, but he didn’t think that would happen.
The likelihood is Smith will start next week’s game against the Jaguars and the Jets will then make a decision on the starter before the third game with the Giants. But no one is tipping his hand just yet. Ryan said starting Sanchez is just about keeping the competition even. Both he and Mornhinweg sounded as if starting Smith against the Jaguars is the plan.
“The preseason doesn’t end after this first preseason game, OK?” Ryan said. “We’ll take it through as much as possible. We said it was going to be an equal competition and there is going to be a competition and that’s exactly what it is.”
Smith had his second straight sub-par day yesterday and Sanchez played pretty well again. That has made the competition, which was tilting toward Smith, look more even.
“[Smith] had a terrific start of the camp,” Mornhinweg said. “He did some very good things in the Green and White [scrimmage] as well, and then he’s dipped just a little bit so he’s got to recover.”
Mornhinweg likes what he has seen from Sanchez, the Jets’ four-year starter.
“Mark’s had an outstanding camp,” Mornhinweg said. “There’s been about a day and a half where he took a little dip. Early in the Green and White it was a little rough for him, but I was proud of him because things didn’t go just the way we wanted them to. He hung in there, hung in there and then made a heck of a play at the end there.”