Selecting Mark Sanchez Is a Bad Move For The New York Jets

The Jets are going to kick themselves over trading up to select USC QB Mark Sanchez, mark my words.

The Jets traded two draft picks (the 17th and 52nd picks), DE Kenyon Coleman, DB Abram Elam, and QB Brett Ratliff to Cleveland (the new home of former Jets head coach Eric Mangini) for the fifth overall selection in the draft, which they used to grab Sanchez.

First of all, let’s get this out of the way; Sanchez is incredibly overrated. Scouts will tell you that he has a big time arm, and he’s pretty accurate.

Fine.

Here’s my issue with Sanchez.

Well, I have two.

First, he only has one year of experience as a starter. Yes, it was at USC, but still. That doesn’t make his transition any easier. I honestly think that he lacks poise, and will fold under pressure.

But that’s not completely his fault.

I question whether or not he’ll be able to play in well in New York. It is a gigantic media market, and he will be scrutinized at absolutely every turn by the NYC media. Had he landed in a smaller market, he might have been successful.

Also, you have to question if a 22-year-old kid, who is now the toast of the town, will be able to handle the NYC nightlife. Hopefully new Jets head coach Rex Ryan is at the pet store as I write this, purchasing a short lease to keep Sanchez on.

Also, another knock on Sanchez is his work ethic. He is not known as a gym rat, which isn’t completely necessary when you’re an NFL QB, but he should be paying more attention to his makeup.

He does not possess a body that can consistently absorb NFL-level abuse. His durability is a huge question, which is something that any team should have been wary of.

That being said, I do think that Sanchez has a couple of good qualities.

He plays a relatively smart game, and doesn’t force the ball a whole lot. However, he does have a tendency to fixate on a sole receiver and delaying his throws, which could cost him in the NFL.

He also possesses a great arm, and is extremely capable of throwing the deep ball, which was a huge weapon for the Jets last year when they had Brett Favre throwing to Jerricho Cotchery and Laveranues Coles.

However, Coles is now plays for the Bengals, and it will be up to Cotchery to pick up a lot of that slack.

Frankly, I don’t think he’s up to the task, and neither is Sanchez.

Mark this down as the first NFL draft day bust of 2009.