Brian Costello

Brian Costello

NFL

A beaten man with Jets, Sanchez rejuvenated with Eagles

PHILADELPHIA — Pronouns are the biggest problem for Mark Sanchez these days.

As he spoke about his new team on Thursday, Sanchez kept referring to the Eagles as “they” instead of “we.”

It is just part of the adjustment for the 27-year-old who spent his first five seasons with the Jets. Sanchez was on the practice field with the Eagles for the first time this week as the team began organized team activities. His surgically repaired shoulder is healed and he is a full participant.

In some ways Sanchez looks the same. His throwing motion is familiar, his playful interaction with staff members looks the same … and yes, he did throw an interception during 7-on-7 drills. But in many ways, Sanchez looks different and it’s not just the No. 3 jersey, the wings on his helmet or the different shade of green he’s now wearing.

Sanchez looks rejuvenated.

There were too many times over his last three seasons with the Jets that Sanchez looked like a beaten man. Whether it was dealing with Santonio Holmes’ act, looking over his shoulder and seeing Tim Tebow, enduring the embarrassment of the “buttfumble,” or the way things ended with the injury against the Giants in the preseason, Sanchez’s time with the Jets got complicated.

Sanchez on the field with Eagles.AP

A two-hour trip south from where the Jets train and a new team looks like just what Sanchez needed to get his career back on track. He has put the baggage of the Jets behind him. Here his name is not met with derision from fans. The 69 interceptions he has thrown in his career don’t matter now. All the mistakes and miscues that caused the Jets to fall out of love with their former golden boy are now part of his past.

On Thursday, it was clear Sanchez has put his time with the Jets in his rearview mirror. He would not reflect on it much and he never even said the word “Jets” during a 15-minute interview.

“I’m not going to do the comparison thing,” he said. “I loved everything that happened there, everything — good, bad, ugly, I don’t care. It was an awesome time. But I’m an Eagle now. I love being here. This is the best place I could have landed. That’s the way I’m approaching it.”

Sanchez said Thursday he feels like the first chapter of his career has ended. Now he’s hoping for a long second one. It is not unheard of for quarterbacks to have second acts in the NFL. Jim Plunkett was the No. 1 pick of the Patriots in 1971, but became a star with the Raiders nearly 10 years later. Jets fans saw firsthand what Vinny Testaverde, a washout with the Buccaneers, could do late in his career.

That chance likely won’t come this year for Sanchez and it may not even be with the Eagles (he only signed a one-year deal). Sanchez worked with the second team on Thursday as he tried to keep up with coach Chip Kelly’s breakneck pace. Sanchez was signed to back up Nick Foles, not to beat him out. Unlike with the Jets, no one is pretending there is a competition here.

Instead, Sanchez came to Philadelphia to learn under Kelly, whom he faced in college when Kelly was coaching at Oregon. With the Jets, Sanchez played where the offensive players were always second-class citizens.

He said he is not worried about his role. If it is to help Foles get ready, that’s what he’ll do. Sanchez is approaching this year like he is a rookie all over again, putting his head down and getting to work.

“I’m competing my ass off,” he said. “That’s what I’ve got to do.”

Several teams were interested in bringing in Sanchez to compete for their starting job, but the Jets held onto him as free agency began and the seats in the game of QB musical chairs began to fill up. That left Sanchez looking at teams who needed a backup. He said the Eagles appealed to him immediately.

It looks like a good fit. Sanchez was asked many times in the last two years if a change of scenery would benefit him and he always said positive things about the Jets. Now that it has happened, he still won’t say he is better off.

“I think whether I stayed or left a lot of it is going to depend on my attitude,” Sanchez said. “I can only be positive and think that this is right. If I had stayed there, I would have thought that was right.”

That is a nice positive thought, but it is clear the breakup of the Jets-Sanchez marriage was the best thing for both sides.

Sanchez’s new uniform and surroundings fit him well. Now, he just has to get his pronouns straight.