Mark Sanchez and Jamie Lynn Sigler Pics: The NFL's New Power Couple

Talk about a good year.

On the field, Mark Sanchez went from a much-hyped and much-debated question mark—did he leave college too soon?—to the AFC Championship as he managed the Jets into one win after another down the stretch.

Off the field, Sanchez has found a way to continually trade up in the high-profile dating department.

Sanchez's latest catch is Meadow Soprano herself, Jamie Lynn Sigler.

The two met at the Tribeca Film Festival last week and were seen canoodling throughout the night.

Here's the lowdown on Sigler and the recent history of Sanchez's trade-ups.

My, How We Blossomed

Sigler was born on May 15, 1981 in Queens, N.Y.

She grew up on Long Island in Jericho, where she was discovered doing community theater.

David Chase was looking for an authentic New York teen to cast as the daughter in his soon-to-be-hit "The Sopranos."

The series immediately took off, with Sigler going from so-so Long Island girl to smokin' hot can't-wait-until-she's-18 between seasons one and two. She was actually 18 when the series launched in 1999 but played and looked younger.

We Nearly Lost Her

Sigler has occasionally tried to turn her TV success to the big screen. Her first attempt in 2000 was in "Campfire Stories," an indie flick where she had a bizarre incident on set.

The actress was actually paralyzed below the waist for several days, the early effects of contracting Lyme disease.

Broadway Bound

Sigler turned to The Great White Way in 2002, playing Belle in "Disney's Beauty and the Beast" from October 2002 through February 2003.

A Convincing Madam

Sigler took on an infamous role in 2004, playing "Hollywood Madam" Heidi Fleiss in the USA Network movie, "Call Me: The Rise and Fall of Heidi Fleiss."

She won rave reviews for the role.

How Jamie Got Her Groove Back

The post-"Sopranos" days were mostly filled with movie roles that went direct to DVD.

Sigler continued to do lad-mag photo shoots to keep her profile up and landed a role playing herself on "Entourage" in October 2008.

She went on a hot streak of publicity, guest starring on "How I Met Your Mother," playing a hot checkout girl in an "SNL" digital short and doing a five-episode arc on "Ugly Betty".

Dating on the Job

Sigler's real life and on-screen life got confused for a bit. She played herself on "Entourage," the first legit love interest for the eternal tagalong Turtle (played by Jerry Ferrara).

The script became real as Sigler and Ferrara dated throughout 2009 before breaking up in December.

Sanchez Starts on Campus

As for Sanchez, he was first linked and seen out quite often with hot blonde USC track star Jennifer Mueller.

Hello, Hot Stuff

When Sanchez began his preparations for the NFL draft, he also became a tabloid favorite.

Soon after being drafted by the New York Jets, Sanchez appeared in a GQ photo shoot as the modern day Hasselhoff on "Baywatch."

His gorgeous arm candy in the shoot, Hilary Rhoda, was his initial foray onto Page Six. The two were seen out and about Manhattan acting as a PDA-comfortable couple.

Sanchez Goes Reality TV

After his near Super Bowl run, Sanchez was the toast of New York and took full advantage of the attention.

Sanchez made the rounds in Miami during Super Bowl week, where he was seen partying deep into the night with "The Hills" star Kristen Cavallari. The romance was short-lived but apparently hot and heavy.

What's Next for the Couple?

The Sigler-Sanchez hookup is very new. Us Magazine reports that the two are hitting it off handsomely after meeting and being photographed adjacent to each other at the film festival last week.

The match is made in New York tabloid heaven—the next coming of Broadway Joe together with an icon of recent Big Apple pop culture.

HBO must be especially giddy. As if they didn't have enough storylines for their Jets version of "Hard Knocks," a third connection with Sigler—this time as the Jessica Simpson-esque distraction?—could mean ratings gold.