It was not Mark Sanchez, it was the talent around him.
At the Pro Bowl, Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie defended the beleaguered quarterback while taking an indirect shot at recently fired general manager Mike Tannenbaum.
“He needs a better supporting cast,” Cromartie, the Jets’ lone Pro Bowler, told NFL.com from Hawaii. “That’s something the new GM has to look at and evaluate as he’s looking at the roster. He needs to get Mark some help.”
The Jets’ offense was a mess last season, ranking 30th in the league, with Sanchez throwing 18 interceptions compared with 13 touchdowns. Sanchez was benched for a Week 16 loss against the Chargers, but started the season finale after Greg McElroy suffered a concussion against San Diego. He also had to deal with an unheralded receiving corps that lost its only established target when Santonio Holmes tore ligaments in his foot in Week 4.
“We have confidence in Mark,” Cromartie said Friday after the AFC’s morning walk-through. “Like I’ve always said, even with the whole [Tim] Tebow thing, if we’re going to sign Mark to a three-year extension, we need to make sure we put guys around him.”
New general manager John Idzik said during Thursday’s introductory press conference there will be competition throughout the roster.
“If he has good, veteran players around him — ones that know how to practice and compete at a high level every day — then you’ll have a better quarterback,” Cromartie said. “But when you don’t have a supporting cast around him, you’re going to get an average or below-average quarterback. That’s what we got.”