INDIANAPOLIS — All you had to do was look at Mark Sanchez’s face to know the outcome of yesterday’s AFC Championship game.
No, it wasn’t the frustrated look Jets fans saw many times this season.
Instead it was the fact that he was clean-shaven for the first time in weeks. Sanchez shaved off his playoff beard in the wake of the Colts’ 30-17 victory, signaling the Jets’ first loss in more than a month.
Sanchez was not quite the “Sanchise” yesterday, but he played well enough to leave his teammates encouraged that the Jets may have found a long-term quarterback.
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“It can be scary with the way we play defense around here and having Mark at quarterback,” receiver Jerricho Cotchery said. “If he continues to get better, he’s going to be a scary thing to handle in the future.”
Sanchez completed 17-of-30 passes for 257 yards, two touchdowns and a late interception when the Jets were already out of the game. He ended the postseason with a quarterback rating of 92.7.
The Jets seemed to find a formula that worked with Sanchez during the playoffs, using safe passes that required him to make quick throws off short drops and play-action.
“I think the best thing about Mark is him and [offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer] have gotten on the same page,” receiver Braylon Edwards said. “I think he and Mark are developing their own chemistry.
“To be a good quarterback in this league you and your offensive coordinator have to be on the same page. You’ve got to feel each other. That’s what happened in the last part of the season.”
Sanchez made his receivers laugh when he threw a no-look pass yesterday.
He glanced at Edwards down the field to get a cornerback to come off Cotchery, then hit Cotchery on the sideline without looking at him.
“I was saying in my mind ‘Did this dude just throw a no-look pass?’ ” Cotchery said. “Brett Favre does a lot of that but that’s a heck of a throw, 15 yards down the field. I’ve seen Brett do it on shovel crosses but a 15-yard pass down the field is crazy.”
The Jets hope this was just the beginning of Sanchez’s heroics in the playoffs.
“It’s great experience,” right tackle Damien Woody said. “Now he has a taste of it. It’s going to be invaluable going into next year.
“Like I said, the future is bright. He’s going to be a heck of a football player.”