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It’s been a long, torturous, tedious fall from grace for Mark Sanchez, and the indignity with which his fourth season as the Jets’ quarterback ended left a sour taste in the mouths of everyone involved — Sanchez included.
One day after losing to the Bills, 28-9, wrapping up a very disappointing 6-10 season, Sanchez stood in front of his locker one more time yesterday and answered questions about a season — for him and the team — defined by regression.
“In my opinion, I underachieved and didn’t play the way I’m capable of playing,” Sanchez said on the day the general manager who drafted him, Mike Tannenbaum, was fired by owner Woody Johnson. “Unfortunately, that led to some losses and some things like that. So I just have to get better and take some time to get away from the game for a little bit and come back strong for next year.”
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Ah, yes, next year, when Sanchez is owed $8.25 million guaranteed. The back-to-back AFC Championship Games that started his career seem so distant after a season in which Sanchez was tied for third-worst in the league with 18 interceptions and coupled it with eight lost fumbles, the most infamous coming from a run-in with guard Brandon Moore’s backside during a Thanksgiving night massacre at the hands of the rival Patriots.
“There were some great plays, some great throws, and then there were some not-so-good things,” Sanchez said. “And those are things I need to focus on this offseason, try to fix those and put us in a better position to take care of the ball.”
Though his name has been brought up in trade rumors, Sanchez’s contract makes it unlikely he will be anywhere else come the start of next season’s training camp.
“Until I’m told different, I’m a Jet,” Sanchez said. “I don’t see anything different. I just want another crack at this thing.”
When asked if he thinks he could be the starting quarterback to take the team back to the playoffs, Sanchez responded, “No question.
“I had a good talk with Rex (Ryan),” he said, “and I know we’re destined for greatness here and that we can be successful here, and that’s what I’m focused on.”
One of the biggest obstacles for Sanchez, more mental than physical, was when the team decided to sign Tim Tebow to a two-year deal last offseason, undercutting the Jets’ public confidence in Sanchez and bringing with it the circus of celebrity attention that follows Tebow wherever he goes.
“I’m not going to make any excuses about anything like that,” Sanchez said about the influence of Tebow, who was not made available to the media yesterday. “[Tebow] worked his butt off while he was here and tried to help this team. So, that’s all I’m going to say about that: He was a good teammate.”
Apparently Tebow wasn’t good enough as a football player to inspire Ryan to play him as an actual backup. He was passed over for third-stringer Greg McElroy as a sub for Sanchez in a Week 14 game against the Cardinals, then again was snubbed when McElroy was named the starter in Week 16 against the Chargers.
When McElroy was discovered to be suffering from post-concussion symptoms, Ryan snubbed Tebow one final time this past week, going back to Sanchez to start against the Bills.
That all but guaranteed Tebow will be gone by the start of next season. Whether somebody else is brought in to challenge Sanchez for the starting job, a repeat of his 2012 campaign would be a disaster.
“It wasn’t my best, and that’s unfortunate because you don’t want to let any of these other guys down,” Sanchez said. “I’ve got some stuff to prove, and I know I can do it.”
bcyrgalis@nypost.com