Are these the final days of Mark Sanchez as a Jet?
The quarterback remains on the team’s roster despite the expectation for months he would be released. But it is coming down to decision time for general manager John Idzik and the Jets.
Sanchez is due a $2 million roster bonus next Tuesday, which is believed to be the deadline to make a decision. No one around the NFL believes the Jets will pay that. There are some people who believe the Jets may try to get Sanchez to agree to a pay cut to stay with the team. Sanchez is due to make $11 million this year. Would he stay for $6 million?
If Sanchez is released, the Raiders and Texans reportedly have interest.
Sanchez was spotted by TMZ over the weekend, and he acknowledged the Jets decision-makers have a big one coming up.
Here are three reasons why it makes sense for the Jets to just let Sanchez go and three why they should keep him:
Cut him
1. It’s time to move on. The Jets and Sanchez looked like a nice marriage during his first two years, but it has soured over the past three. Just the sight of him draws boos from Jets fans, who seem to forget the two runs to the AFC title game and focus only on his turnovers. A fresh start may be what both sides need.
2. It’s time to see what Geno Smith can do. There is a sentiment inside the Jets organization they need to just hand the job to Smith this year and let him play to figure out exactly what they have after an inconsistent rookie season. To get Sanchez to agree to a pay cut, they are going to have to promise him a chance at being a starter. What if Sanchez outplays Smith in training camp? Then you go back to Sanchez? It feels like a step back.
3. Sanchez deserves the chance to find a new team. The Jets already have hurt Sanchez’s market by waiting this out. This, of course, is the Idzik way: Never do anything until you have to. But Sanchez has had to sit and watch quarterbacks start to take jobs for which he might have been considered while he waits to be released. You can knock Sanchez as a player, but he has been a good employee. Sanchez never has criticized the team publicly and he’s had plenty of opportunities (think: Tebow, the shoulder injury). The team should do right by him and let him hit the open market sooner rather than later. If the Jets decide to pay the roster bonus and hold on to him, then cut him later this spring or summer, it severely hurts his chance to find a good deal.
Keep him
1. What’s the alternative? The free-agent quarterback market is unimpressive. If Sanchez is released today, he is probably the second-best quarterback on the market. Michael Vick might be an upgrade, but that is debatable. Vick is injury-prone and a turnover machine. Plus, he’ll be 34 this summer. Josh Freeman? Ryan Fitzpatrick? Shaun Hill? Are any of these guys better options than Sanchez?
2. Sanchez and Marty Mornhinweg really seemed to click last spring and summer. After the disastrous 2012 with Tony Sparano as his offensive coordinator, Sanchez seemed reinvigorated by Mornhinweg’s arrival and his West Coast offense. But we never got to see Sanchez actually play in it after he injured his shoulder during the preseason. Sanchez has shown he has talent when he has good wide receivers and a system that plays to his strength.
3. If the Jets are truly about “competition,” Sanchez could push Smith. The two had a good battle last summer with Smith leading early, injuring his ankle and then Sanchez taking the lead before hurting his shoulder. If the idea here is truly to find the best player to man the position, Sanchez could win the job. Now, some will argue Idzik won’t want that because he drafted Smith in the second round last year. It would be egg on his face if Sanchez beats out Smith. It is true he would face criticism, but if the Jets win, who cares? Does John Schneider, Idzik’s old boss in Seattle, get ripped for signing Matt Flynn to a $20 million deal a month before drafting Russell Wilson? No, because it worked out.