THAT WAS CLOSE: Mark Sanchez talks to the media yesterday in the locker room after being named the starter this week vs. the Jaguars. Sanchez was pulled during last week’s 7-6 win over the Cardinals. (
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The Jets are not ready to kick quarterback Mark Sanchez to the curb.
After two days of deliberating, Jets coach Rex Ryan named Sanchez his starting quarterback for this week’s game in Jacksonville, over Greg McElroy or Tim Tebow.
“The biggest thing I kept coming back to is what I had mentioned before about who gives us the best opportunity to win and, in particular, this week,” Ryan said Wednesday. “When I kept coming back to that, I believe the correct answer is Mark Sanchez.”
Ryan yanked Sanchez in Sunday’s 7-6 win over the Cardinals after the fourth-year quarterback threw three interceptions. McElroy entered the game in the third quarter and led the Jets to their only touchdown, sparking a quarterback controversy.
The players publicly supported Ryan’s decision. Privately, a few said they were ambivalent, feeling there was not a great quarterback among the three. The hope now in the locker room is this was a wake-up call for Sanchez, who never has been benched before.
“I think [Ryan] was, more or less, sending a message,” Sanchez said. “It’s well received. I know. I got it.”
Ryan spent Monday and Tuesday speaking with key members of the organization — including owner Woody Johnson, general manager Mike Tannenbaum, offensive coordinator Tony Sparano and defensive coordinator Mike Pettine — to gauge opinions on whether Sanchez or McElroy should start. Despite lip service from Ryan, Tebow never was a serious consideration because he has been injured with two broken ribs.
Ultimately, Ryan settled on Sanchez, who has won 36 games as a starter, including four playoff games. The Jets felt Sanchez deserved another shot, with the understanding he will have a short leash in Jacksonville.
“I believe in Mark,” Ryan said. “I believe Mark has a skill set that is pretty impressive. He can make all the throws. The thing Mark has to do a better job of is protect the ball and know when it’s OK to take chances and know when you shouldn’t. I believe that Mark is going to do a better job of that.”
Ryan said Sanchez’s contract had no bearing on the decision, but that is hard to believe. The team gave him a three-year extension in March (through 2016) that includes $8.25 million in guaranteed money for next year with no offset, meaning they would have to pay him in full even if they were to release him and another team picks him up.
Ryan informed the three quarterbacks together in a meeting Wednesday morning. He then told the rest of the team.
“I’m pleased with coach’s decision, and now it’s my job to go make him right,” Sanchez said.
One of the points raised during Ryan’s meetings with members of the organization was Eli Manning’s struggles late in his fourth year with the Giants, who won the Super Bowl that year. They pointed out that five years before to the day (Dec. 2) that Sanchez had three turnovers, Manning had three turnovers against the Bears in a game the Giants won, 21-16. The Giants stuck by Manning and it paid off.
Sanchez has 18 turnovers this year, including five in the past two games. He has 44 turnovers in the last two seasons. After spending 10 days absorbing hits from losing to the Patriots on Thanksgiving, the Jets watched Sanchez throw an interception on their first offensive play.
Ryan had resisted pulling Sanchez from a game before. Finally, he saw enough Sunday. Now, he hopes it sparks Sanchez.
“Sometimes you learn when you’re put in that situation when someone goes in,” he said. “Sometimes you step back and you see somebody else in that role. Really, he hasn’t had that before. I think sometimes you learn a great deal from that.”
Sanchez said he believes he can bounce back from the benching.
“It was probably the worst and best experience of my life, and hopefully you learn from it and move on and never look back,” he said.
Ryan said he made the decision without any pressure from his bosses. He reached a final decision Tuesday night.
“I don’t get any pressure from Woody,” Ryan said. “Where I’m real fortunate is from the day Mr. Johnson hired me he’s said it’s 100 percent my decision on who plays and what their role is. That’s it.”
McElroy may plummet from folk hero last week back to third-stringer. Ryan said if Tebow is healthy, he will be the No. 2 quarterback Sunday. The team will make a decision tomorrow whether Tebow can play.
“Coach Ryan’s going to do what’s in the best interest of the team, and we trust him to make the best decision and, obviously, we believe that that is the correct decision,” McElroy said.
The Jets feel they will see what Sanchez is made of now. If he responds Sunday, they will stick with him. If he struggles early, he will be replaced quickly.
“In ’09 we had the red, yellow, green all that kind of jazz,” Ryan said, referring to Sanchez’s rookie year when they had color codes to help his decision making. “I guess you could say we’re in red right now.”
brian.costello@nypost.com