The Stupidity Of Drafting Mark Sanchez

With less than a week before the NFL Draft, there are some rumors that the Cleveland Browns are interested in taking Mark Sanchez with the fifth pick. That is such a bad idea that I don't even know where to begin.

For starters, Brady Quinn can still be a really good quarterback. He really hasn't been given enough of a chance to show what he has. He has, however, shown that there is something to work with.

Let's look at the games in which he played last year. He really was only healthy for two so it really isn't fair to hold the Houston game against him. Denver and Buffalo were the Browns highest offensive output all year over a two game span. After that, the offense literally produced nothing the rest of the year.

Quinn really earned the respect of his teammates with his leadership in those games. Do you remember what Kellen Winslow said?

There are so many intangibles that should make Quinn the easy choice. His work ethic is awesome. He has an incredible football IQ. I could go on and on.

Drafting another QB without even fully seeing what Quinn can be is crazy.

Now looking at Mark Sanchez, he certainly has the physical tools. Because of that I hear some people automatically assuming that Sanchez is better than Quinn. 

However, when it comes to quarterbacks having the physical tools, that does not always translate into success. It is the intangibles that make or break a quarterback. Therefore, claiming Sanchez is better is really an uneducated claim.

Since there isn't enough to go on in the NFL, let's compare Quinn and Sanchez in college. Quinn was the unquestioned leader of Notre Dame in which he carried them to two BCS bowls. They had no defense. After he graduated, the team went 3-9.

Sanchez only was the starter for one season. It was the defense that led the team. The great linebackers were the faces of the team, not Sanchez. I didn't see much in the sense of leadership at all. In fact, if you take him off last year's team they still make the Rose Bowl.

Also, remember that his coach Pete Carroll recommended that he come back for another year before going to the draft. Based on his record, Carroll is a pretty credible resource.

Many felt that the reason Sanchez came out is because he knows that he isn't as good as the quarterbacks coming out next year. Therefore he will be a higher pick this year. What does that say about him?

The last point I will make is an emotional one. Brady Quinn loves the Cleveland Browns. He would rather play for the Browns than any other team in the league. Can anybody honestly say that Sanchez is even close to being as passionate about the Browns as Quinn?

Realizing that it is a business, let's say you were running a company and you had two young promising applicants.

If you sensed that one was more passionate than the other about your company and the other was just looking for where he can make the most money, who would you choose?