Mark Sanchez, Vince Young, LeSean McCoy: Three NFLers Destined To Fail in 2010

Mark Sanchez

The 2009 New York Jets were a Cinderella story the entire season.

A new, fiery head coach with defensive bloodlines second to none. A pretty boy quarterback fresh out of USC and the California lifestyle, with an arm to match his smile. An early season victory over the hated Patriots where Rex Ryan proved he was not around to “kiss his[Bill Belichick’s] rings.”

A surprising playoff berth. Two unexpected playoff victories.

Then the clock struck midnight. The AFC Champion Colts proved too much for the Little Engine that Could and the Jets were sent packing.

This year, many Jets fans have taken a "Super Bowl or bust" attitude, and with newly acquired Santonio Holmes, Jason Taylor, and Antonio Cromartie, the talent level has never been higher.

Except at the one position it matters most: quarterback.

With all the success attained by the Jets as a team last year, many fans are conveniently overlooking the struggles of their brash, young quarterback. Have Jets fans forgotten they were a 9-7 wild-card team that might have snuck in on the good graces of the Colts resting their starters? Or that their offense was powered by a ground game that has lost two centerpieces (Thomas Jones and Alan Faneca)?

One could look beyond that and stare right at the numbers that left them in that position, the statistics of Mark Sanchez.

Sanchez threw only 12 touchdowns last year. That number, coupled with his 20 interceptions, left him with a passer rating of 63, good for 28th in the league behind such power-houses as Brady Quinn and Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Looking for improvement as the season progressed? You won’t find it with Sanchez.

If you break the season down into quarters, his average passer ratings went from 73.45 to 75.78 (his high mark), to 66.9 to 62.6. Over the last half of the season he threw four TDs to 10 interceptions.

Looking for signs of brilliance? Won’t find many.

Sanchez didn’t throw for 300 yards in a single game, and threw for under 200 in a whopping 11 games.

Bear in mind that all of this was “accomplished” with an elite offensive line sporting a trio of Pro Bowlers, a ground game that ranked first in the league, and very competent targets in Braylon Edwards, Dustin Keller, and Jericho Cotchery.

With increased expectations and sub-par production with the unrelenting spotlight of Gotham upon him, Sanchez is ripe for disaster this year.

Vince Young

The 2009 Titans were a tale of two teams.

One team was led by the aging Kerry Collins, who promptly fell out of favor after starting 0-6, in a season following a gaudy 13-3 record.

The second team saw the mercurial Vince Young regain his starting position and tally off five straight wins before splitting the last four games.

In a case similar to the Jets, Titans fans are focusing on all the wrong statistics. They believe (and are justified in doing so) that they have the best RB in the league in Chris Johnson. They believe they have a veteran head coach who knows how to harness talent. They believe Vince Young is “simply a winner.”

None of their “beliefs” will be enough to garner a playoff spot in 2010. Offensive firepower in the form of an RB and a solid head coach is rarely enough to overcome the ineptitude of a starting quarterback who has benefited from stellar team play.

Make no mistake that Vince Young has provided plenty of ineptitude. Last year, Young threw 10 TDs in his 10 starts and seven interceptions. His completion percentage was below 60 percent. He threw for 300 yards on just one occasion.

If Young were a rookie quarterback, his struggles might be understandable, but Young is entering his fifth year in the league and his career numbers are dismal: 32 TDs to 39 interceptions; a career rating (72.3) hovering somewhere between Alex Smith (69.2) and David Carr (75.2).

Let the reactionist fans enjoy the Vince Young circus show, which is admittedly interesting and filled with excitement.

But winning championships in the NFL is more about steak and less about sizzle. Let’s see him win a playoff game before we get the hype machine started.

LeSean McCoy

The 2010 Philadelphia Eagles are a team in flux, but most, including yours truly, believe they have the coaching and talent required to continue to succeed, despite the departure of team leader and quarterback Donovan McNabb.

There’s plenty to like about the Eagles. They have a quarterback who sat for several seasons and is just now ready to take the reins of a powerful offense led by the electric DeSean Jackson. The offensive line is starting to gel after a year that saw some ineffectiveness out of the starters. The defense maintained their status under first year coordinator Sean McDermott. The Eagles even notched a playoff berth despite a weak secondary.

Another new starter joins Kolb in the Philly backfield, and that’s second year pro LeSean McCoy.

McCoy was drafted last year to replace the aging and injury prone Brian Westbrook. When Westbrook went down, the Eagles looked like geniuses as McCoy stepped in and carried the load. Most fans simply pencil him in as a key component to the Philly offense that will debut in 2010.

There are many key factors they are forgetting that will give McCoy tough sledding.

For all the hope there is surrounding Kolb, he is a bit of an enigma, an unknown. We can’t simply assume he will meet or exceed the production brought by McNabb. In fact, it’s probably safe to assume he will struggle some as he gets acclimated to the speed of the NFL.

Kolb’s struggles will allow opposing defenses to focus on stopping McCoy and the ground game. McCoy’s numbers last year were far from eye-popping. He totaled 155 carries for 637 yards, good for a 4.1 average. A 4.1 yard average puts him in the company of a number of running backs that didn’t have stellar years. Tim Hightower, Clinton Portis, and Laurence Maroney had nearly identical averages and yards.

Compounding his barely effective average is the fact that he doesn’t break long runs. He had ONE carry go for more than 20 yards last year, a 66-yard TD scamper. He notched a respectable 40 receptions, but this pales in comparison to the numbers Brian Westbrook used to put up in this offense. Westbrook caught 54, 77 and 90 balls from 2007-2009.

All of this evidence against McCoy’s success is exacerbated by the fact that he is replacing a fan favorite and Philly legend in Westbrook and the comparisons to a superior RB like Westbrook won’t end in the City of Brotherly Love until he becomes a playmaker himself.