| Dwayne Smith. 12th May, 2009 - 4:44 pm
 The first days on a job out of college are an exciting time for anyone. Over the weekend of May 1 to 3, 2009, Mark Sanchez went to his first job as quarterback of the New York Jets. Sanchez became another high first round pick in recent years that the Jets traded up to acquire. Most New York fans realistically hope he becomes at the very least a leader in the likes of Chad Pennington, who can take the Jets to the playoffs without having a cannon arm.
What they do not want is a first round bust like DeWayne Robertson, who the Jets spent two first round picks to acquire, only to release after an average career in a Jets uniform. Sanchez, Offensive Coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and Head Coach Rex Ryan were all smiles during their first weekend together and the more you hear the decision makers talk, the more you realize that the Jets starting quarterback position is Sanchez’ to lose.
By the time the rookies on offense lined up against the rookies on defense at the first practice, one side had a decided advantage. Despite not having an official playbook meeting, the offense already had an offensive scheme of 18 plays installed and ready to roll, while the defense had eight plays ready after some “speed coaching.” When Ryan asked Schottenheimer how he had the time to install an offense in one day, he said, “I guess Sanchez got them together last night.”
It appears that the acclaimed work ethic of the Jets rookie QB was on display as he independently got the other offensive rookies in camp together and met up in their hotel to go over the playbook after they left the Jets facilities. The night of extra credit work has clearly gone a long way with his coaches as it is clear that Sanchez already has a strong command of the terminology of calling the plays in the Jets offense.
Schottenheimer explained his observation of Sanchez in the rookie huddle. “He is just very natural. He is very comfortable in the huddle. You want a quarterback who is not robotic. When a quarterback goes in the huddle, you don’t want him to just sit there and repeat a play. There is more to it than that. You have to segment the play. You have to break it up. The formation comes first, then the play, then the cadence. You always want it to feel like there is a person, that there is a personality there.”
This personality is also apparent with the New York media. These famously grizzled and critical curmudgeons have been putty in the hands of this Southern California born and raised rookie. Sanchez handled the questions from the assembled media like a seasoned pro, as it is clear that being the quarterback for the biggest football team in Los Angeles has left him ahead of the game as far as NFL rookies go.
He joked about his perceived arm strength issues by recalling about how he’s been scouted, “Deceptively strong, right?” He also informed us about the final University of Southern California class for which he is studying for while learning the Jets playbook… Argumentation and Application, if you are interested on what his last college final will be.
All in all, the first weekend as a member of the New York Jets was a successful honeymoon. As much as Ryan tried to provide examples of how impressive Jets QB Kellen Clemens has been in the recent mini-camp, he made it clear that the investment the team put into Sanchez was done in order to make him the team’s starting quarterback and face of the franchise for at least a decade.
So the fans of the New York Jets get to look forward to what will either be a quarterback competition between Clemens and Sanchez or a coronation of the future of the New York Jets and their fortunes as a franchise. In one offseason, the team has changed the personality of the team with an aggressive, defensive minded coach and the image of the franchise with their fresh-faced quarterback. Both of these moves come with the hopes of making fans forget how unaffordable it will be to go to games at their new stadium next door in the Meadowlands of New Jersey in 2010. Hopefully Sanchez knows that all honeymoons end and with the New York media it takes a lot less time than the clichéd seven year itch. |
