Monday Night Football: Five Reasons Mark Sanchez Isn't the Jets' Answer

A lot of hope and hype surrounds the New York Jets. A lot of that hope and hype centers, naturally, on starting quarterback Mark Sanchez.

Sanchez is entering his second year as the starting quarterback of the Jets, and his profile from Day One included the phrase, "Super Bowl Bound."

While the Jets probably are a better team with Sanchez than Brett Ratliff, that doesn't mean Sanchez is the answer to Jets fans prayers.

Here are a couple of reasons why elevating Sanchez right now may not be the best idea.

His Rookie Season Was Nothing To Write Home About

Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

INDIANAPOLIS - JANUARY 24: Quarterback Mark Sanchez #6 of the New York Jets looks to pass during warm-ups before playing against the Indianapolis Colts during the AFC Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium on January 24, 2010 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (

Sanchez didn't exactly light it up his rookie year, and the Jets backed into the playoffs.

Sanchez went 196-364 for 2,444 yards and 12 touchdowns. That's not bad, but that's not "Savior-type" stats.

His rookie season can best be deemed as "OK."

Anyone Remember Matt Leinart?

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

GLENDALE, AZ - SEPTEMBER 02: Quarterback Matt Leinart #7 of the Arizona Cardinals warms up before the preseason NFL game against the Washington Redskins at the University of Phoenix Stadium on September 2, 2010 in Glendale, Arizona. The Cardinals defeate

Prior to Mark Sanchez leading the team, the last hyped QB to come out of USC was Matt Leinart.

That didn't work out so well for the Arizona Cardinals. Like Sanchez, Leinart had a pretty decent rookie season before rapidly falling down the depth chart to be a backup in Houston.

Braylon Edwards Will Bring Him Down

Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

PHILADELPHIA - SEPTEMBER 02: Braylon Edwards #17 of the New York Jets sits on the bench during a preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on September 2, 2010 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Gett

Braylon Edwards in no where near as good as he thinks he is, or anywhere near as good as Jets fans hope he will be.

Sanchez has Santonio Holmes and Jericho Cotchery as reliable receivers, but that doesn't mean they'll always be open.

Sanchez hasn't shown the flair for thinking outside the box to date to overcome a lack of depth at the wide receiver position.

Sanchez Has To Show He Wants To Be More Than A Coverboy

Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

NEW YORK - MARCH 10: Mark Sanchez of the NY Jets attends the Samsung 3D LED TV launch party with THE BLACK EYED PEAS at Time Warner Center on March 10, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Samsung)

The league is littered with the corpses of former starting quarterbacks who started leading the superstar lifestyle before they actually won anything.

Sanchez lives like a rock star, but there aren't any Lombardi trophies on his mantle.

You might want to be careful of a quarterback who has his priorities out of whack.

Preseason Performance Isn't Something To Rely On

Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

PHILADELPHIA - SEPTEMBER 02: Mark Sanchez #6 greets David Clowney #87 of the New York Jets on the sidelines during a preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on September 2, 2010 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Je

Anyone who watches preseason gets one notion in their heads about how things are going to go.

The Jets came out of their preseason already talking about the Super Bowl.

You know what they say about pride...

Sanchez is riding high on his horse at the moment, but that doesn't mean he's going to stay on it as the season progresses.

Until he shows the ability to get knocked down and get back up again, Sanchez can't really be trusted to lead any team to the Super Bowl.