B/R Debate: New York Jets QB Controversy More About Media or QBs?

Mark Sanchez needs to improve his decision-making. Tim Tebow's throwing mechanics are great.

Both of these opinions come from the same coach, quarterbacks coach Matt Cavanaugh, and were written by the same reporter, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News.

Erik Manassy of Jets Twit brings up a great point: The nature of these reports becomes questionable when looked at side-by-side, taking into account that the comments on Tebow and Sanchez were likely a part of the same interview.

Never mind that whole part where the same person who's been coaching Sanchez for three years is the same person who says Tebow's mechanics are solid.

Mehta isn't from the only one getting caught up in "Timsanity." 

That being said, the constant chatter begs one simple yet complex question: Is this quarterback controversy more about the media or about the quarterbacks themselves?

To debate and discuss the topic, we bring in Andrew Garda of Bleacher Report's NFC North Blog. Garda is a self-described "recovering Jets fan" who can also be found on Twitter.

As usual, the guest will lead us off. Take it away, Andrew.

Andrew: Certainly, it's a bit of both. Tebow is a phenomenon. I have friends in the Denver media, and it was insane—and great radio and to get eyeballs to your newspaper, blog or Facebook page. It doesn't even matter what you say—someone will hate it and someone will love it.

So you knew when he arrived in New York City, it was going to go nuclear.

He doesn't even need to court it; it just happens. Tebow doesn't go looking for a spotlight; he just attracts them. That in his case (unlike Sanchez's), it's often about some charity he's doing or his religion as much as it is about football is almost besides the point. He's a lightening rod for opinion, debate and media.

It sure didn't help that Mark Sanchez was pretty awful for most of last year. I suspect that at some point if Tebow wasn't here, we'd hear a 'is Greg McElroy going to take Mark's Job?' headline somewhere in July or August.

The pressure was already on Sanchez. The stories were going to be written and the question asked.

Tebow coming along just pumped it up from a 10 to an 11.

That's why I was surprised the Jets really traded for Tebow. I didn't think they really wanted to push Sanchez that hard. It seemed like they were content to go all in on Sanchize, sink or swim.

Another good question becomes, does the media drive the story or the story drive the media? With Tim Tebow I have a hard time telling.

Erik: Absolutely a bit of both, Andrew. The media drives the story because the story draws page clicks, sells newspapers and otherwise attracts readers. At the same time, the story drives the media because, as a result of the lightning-rod nature of the story, writers are forced to write about it.

As Fat Bastard would say, "It's a vicious cycle."

And Mark Sanchez is simply caught in the eye of the storm. There are two ways out: He can either ride a float through the Canyon of Heroes, or or he can ride the bench and watch Tebow get the glory.

I see where you're going with the McElroy argument, and I fully agree that the pressure was on Sanchez to perform and deliver wins for the jets in 2012 even before trading for Tebow.

While we would likely have seen some sort of headline at some point this offseason even without Tebow, but that time likely wouldn't have come until July or August. With Tebow, that headline was prevalent as early as mid-March.

And with the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately nature of New York media, it's only likely to get worse during the regular season. That is, if Mark Sanchez doesn't play at the level at which everyone in New York wants him to play at.

If he doesn't, don't be surprised if the New York media takes off and runs with it faster than Usain Bolt to the finish line.

Andrew: Ah, Fat Bastard. He's right; it's a vicious cycle. It just keeps going around and around. Which is what makes it a cycle. And vicious.

But enough Sports Night quotes.

The simple fact is that Tebow amplifies it—or his presence does, really. The root issues are still here, though. Sanchez continues to struggle to see the field in ways that, frankly, baffle me. While some interceptions aren't his fault, enough of the ones which are tend to be of the double-take, head-scratching variety.

The more he struggles, the worse it will get.

I'll share a dirty little secret with you. Last season, I was on the radio in Denver talking NFL, Broncos and football. Of course, Tebow came up, but so did Sanchez, since I'm a Jets fan.

When asked which player I'd rather have at that moment, the answer was Tebow.

This is not to say he's a perfect quarterback. Not even close. Having watched a ton of both him and Sanchez at this point, though, I have to say that his issues look more correctable than Sanchez's. Tebow simply takes better care of the ball. He makes less mental errors, and he doesn't panic the way Sanchez did last year.

Now, several months removed, would I anoint Tebow as the starter today? No. Partly because Sanchez has earned a shot to defend his spot in camp and partly because Tebow isn't ready. I don't know where he's at developmentally right now—we're not seeing him throw. He was progressing last season, though, and made some nice throws down the stretch.

It starts to become sticky. When you are allegedly going "ground-and-pound" in the coming year, would you rather have a guy prone to panicked check downs thrown directly at defenders or a guy who protects the ball, is a load to run in his own right and can hit some passes? On the other hand, do you want a guy with horrific mechanics who can't easily throw to one side of the field, or a guy who has proven he can spray the ball around effectively?

Those are the questions the team faces, and it's not an easy answer to either, made worse by the fact that both guys are and aren't the answer. The Jets have two transitional quarterbacks right now, which just equals one big mess.

All this discussion, by the way, is exactly why Woody Johnson wanted this move, in my opinion. It's all we can talk about; not even the Giants Super Bowl has outlasted it in many ways. Which begs the question—how much, if any, will public and media pressure force the Jets into moving to Tebow?

Because while I'm told, very reliably, that it didn't factor in Denver, it's very easy to believe it did.

Erik: Absolutely, Andrew. Most of Sanchez's biggest issues are not correctable, as they are mostly to do with his mental makeup. Sanchez is too average to get on a roll for a long period of time, and when he's not rolling, he's rolling in the turf and sulking.

The two quarterbacks come with their own sets of baggage in terms of mechanical and fundamental issues, but with Tebow, at least you know what you're getting from a mental toughness standpoint: You're getting a guy who, for four quarters, is going to give you everything he has whether the team is winning or losing and won't let negative thoughts or emotions take over.

Inconsistency reigned supreme for the Jets in 2011; a pair of three-game losing streaks aside, Sanchez earned a passer rating of over 89 in back-to-back games just one time. It's that inconsistency which has so many fans worried about whether he can ever be "the guy" for the Jets at quarterback.

And it's that very inconsistency which plays right into your final point. Let's say Sanchez struggles this season, as he did last year, and fails to string together quality performances. The obvious consequence is that the media and fans will begin calling for Tebow. But if Sanchez struggles for multiple consecutive weeks, at least the Jets have a viable backup to put in in his place.

That being said, if Tebow sees more time than Mark Sanchez, that means the Jets' season probably isn't going very well.

In that sense, having Tebow is both a gift and a curse.

But getting back to the media aspect. While the Denver media and fans are what they are, New York sports media and fans are an unquestionable juggernaut and have the power to influence change, especially in a team that so readily listens to the media and fans. Chances are pretty strong that they won't be patient with Sanchez, so he'll have to play well from the get-go and try his best not to look back.

The best case scenario for the Jets remains that Mark Sanchez pours water on the media firestorm by playing well, but a couple of weeks worth of struggle for Sanchez and the ensuing backlash may be all it takes for the Jets to thrust Tebow onto the field.

Then we'll get to see whether your snap judgment last year was the right one.

Andrew: In some ways, the media is almost irrelevant if Sanchez plays well. When Kyle Orton was playing well, the murmurs for Tebow were minimal in both the press and among the fans. When he started being Kyle Orton, well, people took billboards out, and Skip Bayless had a song put together.

It comes down to Sanchez because if he plays well, this isn't the distraction it is right now. When asked questions about Tebow, players and coaching staff just point to the scoreboard.

If he plays badly, well, it gets interesting.

Here's the thing—the scrutiny in NYC is always harsh, and Sanchez has been criticized many times. If he can't take the competition from Tebow of all people, is he the guy for the Jets? I like Tebow, but he's not Peyton Manning (as Denver will tell you). He's not even Jay Cutler or Andy Dalton. Tebow has much further to go as a quarterback.

If he's the guy who spooks you, then guess what? The media had you pegged.

Ultimately, as with all good stories, there is an element of truth to this. There is a quarterback controversy, and it started the moment the Jets traded for Tebow. A guy like that doesn't arrive and not cause a controversy. That part isn't media fire-starting. It's fact.

The constant questions about it, the focusing on it, the parsing of random bits of conversation and guarded looks between assistants—that's the media created aspect of it. Once upon a time, this would have played out away from prying eyes and we'd know who started sometime mid-summer.

In today's 24-hour news cycle, they need something to talk about every second of the day. And this is the most compelling thing (in their minds) about the Jets right now.

Erik: Orton had his time in 2010 where he was playing well, and kept the Tebowmaniacs at bay. However, by Week 1 of the 2011 season, the chants were raining down, the "Tebow" chants trace back to Week 1 of the 2011 season, but the hysteria that generated a billboard took a bit to build.

In any case, the Jets had to have known they were signing up for a quarterback controversy when they brought in Tim Tebow (unless they didn't read the fine print).

The name itself is enough to cause a controversy, much less the success and coverage he enjoyed in 2011.

Which brings me to my final point.

There is a large media-generated element to Tebowmania. But he has generated a great deal of his own hype by being the dominant player that he was in college and winning games in dramatic fashion at the NFL level.

You're absolutely right, Sanchez has to rise above this to disprove the perception that he is mentally soft. But the competition from Tebow has less to do with his talents on the field than it does with the inherent media "mania" of Tebowmania. In that sense, the controversy is more about the media than the players.

What's interesting is, we haven't even begun to see the worst of it.

And on that glorious note, I think our debate has drawn to a close.

Thanks to Andrew once again for joining me.

As usual, check back for more debates about the Jets and around the rest of the AFC East everyday on the AFC East blog.

Follow @ErikFrenz.