QB Mark Sanchez, New York Jets

HT: 6-2, WT: 227, Born: 11-11-1986, College: USC, Drafted: Round 1, Pick 5

2013 Projections

Outlook

It's hard to know what the immediate future holds for Mark Sanchez—save that he could be fighting for a roster spot, not to mention his job. Sanchez has spent the last two years sliding backwards after leading the Jets to two straight AFC Championship games (admittedly with a lot of help from the defense). Yes, he's lacked a real run game and yes, his receivers have not been the most reliable, but most of the issues with Sanchez come FROM Sanchez. He seems to be unable to read the field, not recognize defenses and throws some head-scratchingly awful interceptions. It got so bad that he was benched at the end of last season for Greg McElroy and rumor has it if it wasn't for the ridiculous contract extension the Jets saddled themselves with, he could be gone. Sanchez might end up starting this year—David Garrard hasn't played in two years and Geno Smith is a quarterback who would benefit from red-shirting his first year—but really all you can do is expect more of the same from him. He's shown is no indication he will get better anytime soon and he may need a complete change of scenery in order to reach his potential.

Latest News

Jets | Mark Sanchez does not have edge in competition (Fri May 24, 02:20 PM) - New York Jets owner Woody Johnson said QB Mark Sanchez does not have an edge over QB Geno Smith for the starting quarterback job this season.

Our View: Sanchez has been struggling in minicamp and seems to have fallen out of favor. Smith wants to prove critics wrong after falling to the second-round of the 2013 NFL draft. We feel Smith should win the starting job in training camp.
link to story   

Jets | Players not backing Mark Sanchez? (Thu May 23, 01:33 PM) - An anonymous New York Jets player said that the team is skeptical about QB Mark Sanchez and his ability to be successful. 'Everyone on the team likes Mark personally, but there's a general feeling among some of the players that maybe it's time to give someone else a chance.' The player said 80 to 90 percent of the roster agrees with that statement. Sanchez is still trying to figure out the team's new West Coast offense.

Our View: This if far from a vote of confidence for Sanchez. He's struggled in minicamp and may not be able to hold off rookie Geno Smith (West Virginia) for the starting job.
link to story   

Jets | Coach unhappy with Mark Sanchez's OTA performance (Wed May 22, 06:02 PM) - New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan said he was disappointed with QB Mark Sanchez after he threw three interceptions during organized team activities Wednesday, May 22. 'Yeah, it is. Absolutely. It's a good thing defense makes the plays, but no, I'd rather him not turn the ball over once,' Ryan said. 'He did a lot of great things, and then those negative things, at the end of the day, that's what gets you beat. And so we got to do a better job of eliminating those turnovers.'

Our View: We've been down the road with Sanchez before. He's the Stuart Smalley of NFL QBs and the Jets are spinning their wheels dealing with him. We'll see if he can beat out rookie Geno Smith for the starting job in training camp. Early reports don't show him making the most of his opportunity.
link to story   

Jets | Mark Sanchez, Geno Smith struggle (Wed May 22, 03:25 PM) - New York Jets QBs Mark Sanchez and Geno Smith both struggled during organized team activities Wednesday, May 22, with Sanchez completing only six of his 11 passes, including three interceptions. Sanchez worked with the first-team unit, although he and Smith received basically the same number of snaps. Smith completed only three of 10 passes with an interception.

Our View: This is not a good sign. The two are competing for the starting QB spot in a battle that should last through training camp.
link to story   

Jets | Could name starting QB soon (Tue May 21, 02:03 PM) - New York Jets QBs Mark Sanchez and Geno Smith are expected to compete for the starting quarterback job this offseason, but the quarterback competition could be settled well before the team even heads to training camp in July. Offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg wants one of the two QBs to separate himself from the other, and if that happens this week, the team isn't against naming their starter early. 'Common sense tells you that you hope it's quick, but this is going to be a full blown competition. Period,' Mornhinweg said.

Our View: There will be a starter entering training camp but that doesn't mean that will stay the same once the regular season starts. Rookie Geno Smith is looking to prove doubters wrong and it wouldn't surprise us if he beats out Mark Sanchez for the starting job.
link to story   

More News

2013 Schedule

2012 Game Summaries

Week 1 - Although the Jets offense did not enter the season with high expectations, Sanchez looked great against the Bills this week and put the Tebow talk to rest for a little while. Although he was victimized with an interception early in the game, he quickly recovered and led the Jets on a couple of touchdown drives to pull out to an early lead in the game. Mario Williams and the Bills improved pass rush could not get any pressure on him, and Sanchez generally made good decisions and got rid of the ball quickly while spreading the ball around to several different targets. He hooked up with Jeremy Kerley early on and the rookie Stephen Hill came down with a pair of touchdowns in the game to give Sanchez 3 total. Tebow only saw a limited number of snaps from under center and did not attempt any passes in the game.

Week 2 - This game was all about rhythm for Sanchez. Early on, he had great rhythm and was on point with his throws. His first came on a 3rd-and-9 after New York committed an illegal substitution penalty to force them into a longer 3rd down. Sanchez showed poise, though, and hit Santonio Holmes on a curl route for the first down. Two plays later, Sanchez hit Jeremy Kerley down the seam for a 45-yard gain – New York’s longest of the day. Three plays after that, New York lined up in a run formation, but Sanchez threw a quick slant to Holmes for an easy TD. He looked to be carrying over the momentum from his great Week 1. New York started a drive with 7:47 left in the first half and went three-and-out. They didn’t get the ball back until there was just over a minute left. That break – combined with halftime – completely took away Sanchez’s rhythm. The team tried to get him back into a rhythm after halftime with a quick pass to his tight end. That drive stalled because of penalties though. After Sanchez’s TD to Holmes, he only completed two passes to wide receivers for the rest of the game – one each to Holmes and Kerley, but both came on the final drive when the team was down by 17 points with under a minute left.

Week 3 - The word ‘erratic’ is the best way to describe Sanchez’s afternoon. On the Jets’ first drive, Sanchez’s pass to Clyde Gates was underthrown and intercepted by cornerback, Richard Marshall. On his next two drives, Sanchez kept checking down to his running backs and tight ends. When Miami applied pressure up the middle, Sanchez continued throwing off his back foot into double and triple coverage. In fact, Sanchez did not complete a pass to a wide receiver until he found Santonio Holmes on a key 3rd-and-15 pick-up mid-way through the team’s fourth drive. For the entire first half, Sanchez’s receivers had a difficult time beating press, man-to-man coverage.

Sanchez was able to make some plays in the second half, but he kept trying to force the ball to his receivers. Early in the second half, the Jet defense created a turnover and gave Sanchez the ball on the Miami 26-yard line. However, Sanchez was once against victimized by Miami’s pressure and threw an interception into double coverage in the end zone. Two drives later, Sanchez redeemed himself, looking off the safety, Reshad Jones, and hooking up with Jeremy Kerley for a 66-yard gain. This completion put the Jets in the red zone, but the Jets once again failed to hit pay dirt. On 2nd-and-goal from the Miami one-yard line, Sanchez avoided the rush, but overthrew a wide open Jeff Cumberland in the back of the end zone. After a penalty and an unsuccessful rush, the Jets settled for a field goal.

Sanchez saved his best play for the fourth quarter and overtime period. With 3:20 left in the fourth quarter, Sanchez hit Kerley on a quick slant route for a seven-yard touchdown. Sanchez and Holmes made big plays late in the game, hooking up four times for 89 yards, including a key 38-yard gain down the left sideline to set-up the game winning field goal. If Sanchez wants to keep opposing defenses from loading the box, he must continue feeding the ball to Holmes.

Week 4 - Sanchez delivered another stinker. This was Sanchez’s third straight game under the 50-percent completion mark. To make matters worse, his offense has generated just one touchdown in its last 34 possessions. Sanchez routinely overthrew wide open receivers and was only able to pick up two first downs in 13 opportunities. Sanchez no longer demonstrates the elusiveness he once showed to avoid oncoming rushers. For most of the game, Sanchez’s protection was pretty sound. However, Sanchez was routinely victimized by Aldon Smith for hanging onto the ball for too long. When Sanchez felt pressure, he did not set his feet and deliver the ball. Instead, Sanchez had a bad case of ‘happy feet’ which resulted in underthrown balls. Alike last week, Sanchez continued to turn the ball over the in red zone. During the second quarter, Sanchez fumbled away a possession that would have resulted in a field goal attempt. Sanchez’s success is predicated by developing rhythm, but was unable to do this against the 49er defense.

In his defense, Sanchez did not have Stephen Hill or Dustin Keller. Santonio Holmes was lost in the fourth quarter with an apparent foot injury. However, Sanchez must set his feet and complete passes to his open receivers if he wants to keep his job. It’s worth noting that the Jets did not pull Sanchez in favor of Tim Tebow. Chants of ‘Tebow’ began to resonate through Metlife Stadium, but even with the lopsided score, the Jets do not want to create a media firestorm. For now, it appears that the Jets will stick with Sanchez, but chants of ‘Geno’ (Geno Smith) may start if this offense remains stagnant.

Week 5 - Every week feels like a job audition for Sanchez. After this performance, he barely did enough to warrant another start. Facing one of the league’s toughest defenses, Sanchez had his share of big plays and big blunders. On several occasions, Sanchez was able to avoid Houston’s ferocious pass rush, step up in the pocket, and deliver the ball to his receivers. On a key 3rd-and-7 during his third drive, Sanchez found Jeff Cumberland in the end zone for 27-yard touchdown. Sanchez was able to sidestep the oncoming behemoth known as J.J. Watt and deliver a sharp pass that only Cumberland could catch. This play tied the score at seven and gave the Jet offense a much-needed boost.

While Sanchez was able to successfully lead his first red zone trip, his second trip would not be as rewarding. After completing three straight passes, two to Chaz Schillens and one to Jeremy Kerley, Sanchez once again found himself in the red zone. With the Texans holding a 14-7 advantage right before halftime, Jet fans were hoping for at least a field goal. Instead, J.J. Watt used his massive wing span to tip a Sanchez pass that resulted in an interception. Watt made several huge game altering plays against Sanchez, but this one was the most pivotal. Red zone turnovers have plagued the Jets and subsequently taken points off the board. Sanchez has to take the points when he can get them.

Sanchez’s second interception occurred during his team’s final drive. Jeff Cumberland ran a crossing route in the middle of the field, but was unable to come down with the catch. The ball was tipped up and intercepted, effectively ending the game. With such a slim margin for error, Sanchez cannot afford to make these mistakes.

During the game, the Jets spent so much time alternating personnel packages. During the second half, the Jets had to burn two timeouts because they couldn’t get the right personnel on the field. Given their issues on offense and revolving door of offensive personnel, establishing any sort of offensive rhythm has been impossible. While it’s easy to blame the players for lackluster results, the coaches must be held accountable.

It’s also worth noting that Sanchez was once again below the 50-percent completion mark.

Week 6 - After four weeks of ugly football, Sanchez was able to orchestrate an efficient offensive attack. Sanchez established ‘Ground & Pound’ early on, feeding the ball to Shonn Greene and allowing the offensive line to take care of their assignments. The ground game’s success paved the way for Sanchez to find open receivers. On his second drive, Sanchez mixed intermediate passes and running plays before finding Stephen Hill on a five-yard in-route in the back of the end zone. The window was small, but Sanchez stepped up and powered the ball to Hill. Two drives later, Sanchez once again led the Jets into the red zone and found Jason Hill in the back of the end zone for another five-yard touchdown pass. Once again, the window was small and Sanchez powered the ball to his receiver. The Jet play calling was much better this week. All of Sanchez’s pass attempts were within 15 yards of the line of scrimmage. This allowed Sanchez to develop rhythm and feel comfortable with the game’s speed. Also, the Jets offense didn’t commit a turnover for the first time in 17 games.

For all of the talk about job security and the looming presence of Tim Tebow, Sanchez didn’t let it affect him. For now, Sanchez won’t hear too many fans clamoring for Tebow. However, he must build upon this performance next week in New England.

Week 7 - Considering the circumstances and the opponent, Sanchez had his best game of the season. Sanchez posted season highs in both completions and yards, but also had his share of miscues. Sanchez and the Jet offense rallied from a ten point, fourth quarter deficit to score 13 unanswered points. Sanchez’s best drive occurred during his team’s ninth drive and first fourth quarter possession. Sanchez methodically orchestrated a 14-play, 92-yard touchdown drive that ended with a Dustin Keller six-yard touchdown reception. Sanchez powered the touchdown pass into an extremely tight window in the middle of the end zone. Sanchez was 3-for-3 on third downs during this drive and routinely stepped up into the pocket to avoid the Patriot pass rush. Sanchez’s stat line was bolstered by the return of a healthy Dustin Keller and the explosive play of Jeremy Kerley. When the Patriots shifted to zone coverage, Keller found the soft spots and Sanchez didn’t hesitate to throw him the ball. Sanchez also showed a lot of faith in slot receiver, Jeremy Kerley. Kerley caught five passes for first downs and showed the willingness to go over the middle of the field.

While Sanchez’s stat line was impressive, he also made his share of miscues. Sanchez committed three horrible turnovers that stymied his offense. During his team’s fourth drive, Sanchez and Greene botched a handoff, fumbled the ball, and Sanchez kicked the ball out his endzone for a safety. During his next drive, Sanchez had a wide open Stephen Hill streaking down the right sideline, but the pass was horribly underthrown and intercepted. During overtime, Sanchez was sacked and fumbled the ball away, ending the game. Turnovers have plagued Sanchez this season so he must do a better job at hanging onto the ball.

Overall, Sanchez mixed the Jets’ ‘Ground & Pound’ style with some short, intermediate throws. The Patriots secondary has been decimated by injuries, but Sanchez found a lot of success checking down to his running backs and hitting his receivers on slants and crossing routes. Turnovers are an obvious concern, but Sanchez was able to rally his offense and keep the Jets in the game.

Week 8 - Heading into the bye week, Sanchez’s job security will be a hot topic. On paper, Sanchez’s stat line appears serviceable; however, he was routinely victimized by Miami’s pressure and generated the majority of his stats when the game was out of reach. During the first half, Sanchez’s offense was only able to generate 107 passing yards. During their seven first half drives, the Jets had four, three-and-outs and Sanchez lost one fumble that led to a Miami touchdown. Facing an early 10-0 deficit, Sanchez attempted to develop some rhythm during his team’s third drive. After completing two short passes to Jeremy Kerley and Dustin Keller, Sanchez was waiting for Stephen Hill to get open down the right sideline. However, Sanchez held onto the ball for too long, took a sack and fumbled the possession away. During his next two drives, Sanchez overthrew all three of his intermediate targets and even reverted back to throwing off his back foot. During his sixth drive, Sanchez was sacked and appeared to fumble again, but the referee saved him and blew the play dead.

Facing a 20-0 deficit, Sanchez’s seventh and final first half drive was his best of the game. On this play, Sanchez completed a short slant route to Stephen Hill for a 15-yard gain. Sanchez completed his next pass to Chaz Schillens for a 14-yard gain. After an incompletion, Sanchez completed three straight passes to Clyde Gates and Shonn Greene over the middle to lead his team into the red zone. On his next play, Sanchez had Hill wide open over the middle of the field on a post-route, but the ball was thrown behind him. The Jets settled for a field goal attempt, but it was blocked.

After halftime, Sanchez had an opportunity to capitalize on great field position after a Reggie Bush fumble. However, Sanchez was intercepted on the fifth play of this drive by Chris Clemons. Once again, Sanchez threw the pass behind his target, Dustin Keller, and Miami capitalized on the mistake. To make matters worse, Sanchez should have been intercepted on the second play of this drive, but Nolan Carroll dropped the ball.

Going into the fourth quarter, the Jets faced a 27-3 deficit. Sanchez completed 14 of his 28 passes during the fourth quarter by taking advantage of Miami’s relaxed, zone coverage. Sanchez ‘nickel-and-dimed’ his way down the field, finding different receivers for a modest 10-15 yard gains. Sanchez’s lone scoring toss went to Chaz Schillens on a five-yard slant route. Two of Miami’s corners were confused during the play, so the touchdown was converted rather easily.

Overall, it was forgettable day for Sanchez. He took four sacks and was lucky he didn’t commit four turnovers. With Jet fans routinely chanting for Tim Tebow, his job security will be debated as the Jets enter their bye week.

Week 10 - Sanchez turned in another lousy performance. Coming off a bye week, Sanchez completed just 40 percent of his passes, failed to score any points, and committed two turnovers that led to seven Seattle points. Even though three of the five first half drives were three-and-outs, the Jets had an opportunity to score after a costly Marshawn Lynch fumble. During his team’s fourth drive, Sanchez completed a 43-yard pass down the left side to Jeremy Kerley to put his team in the red zone. After two Shonn Greene runs, the Jets brought Tim Tebow into the game. However, a Dustin Keller false start pushed the Jets back to the six-yard line. Sanchez came back in and made the game’s biggest mistake. Sanchez starred down Stephen Hill in the middle of the end zone, but held onto the ball for too long and threw it across the field to Dustin Keller. Richard Sherman baited Sanchez into the throw, jumped the route, and intercepted the pass. Given the short field, this was a terrible read by Sanchez. This was his fourth red zone interception of the season.

As the game progressed, things did not get much better for Sanchez. During the fourth quarter, Sherman blitzed Sanchez, sacked him, and he fumbled the possession away. Sanchez converted just two of his eleven third down opportunities and took three sacks. The weather conditions were far from ideal, but Sanchez is out of excuses for his lousy play. While some may blame Tony Sparano’s quarterback rotation for Sanchez’s lack of rhythm and success, Sanchez has clearly regressed as a passer. His reads are not timely, his footwork is a mess, and his confidence is waning. A quarterback change may be imminent.

Week 11 - After looking utterly helpless for the last month, with the Jets losing all of their games in the past month, Mark Sanchez looked shockingly competent yesterday against an underrated Rams defense. Although it was a rocky start for him, getting sacked twice early in the game by Chris Long, Sanchez picked himself up, made the throws he needed to make and helped his team pick up a much needed victory. He can thank the Jets defense and Sam Bradford for setting the offense with very good field position all day, as the Jets forced three turnovers of the Rams, each resulting with field position in Rams territory. With Jeremy Kerley not quite back to full strength, Sanchez still has a noticeable lack of weapons, but he did make a few nice throws on the day. He dropped a ball right into Joe McKnight on a wheel route in the first half that helped set up a field goal. Likewise, his touchdown pass was a very nice throw to Chaz Schilens as he beat his man and was running toward the pylon. Additionally, he made a good toss down the middle of the field for a big gainer to Kerley. Even though the yards weren’t there, he only attempted 20 passes, as the Jets were in clock killing mode by the early fourth quarter. While he cannot be trusted whatsoever, with his accuracy this year looking terrible, he will occasionally flash this ability every once in a while when he has all day to throw, briefly raising the hopes of Jets fans and fantasy players alike, only to disappoint as he has so often in his career.

Week 12 - It was a downright embarrassing performance for Sanchez. During his team’s second drive, Sanchez led a balanced offensive attack into Patriot territory. On a 2nd-and-6 play from New England’s 23-yard line, the Patriots disguised their zone coverage and baited Sanchez into throwing to Bilal Powell. Safety Steve Gregory jumped the route and intercepted the pass. This turnover led to seven points for New England. During his team’s next drive, Tony Sparano took the ball out of Sanchez’s hands by calling seven run plays and only two pass plays. On a 4th-and-1 play from New England’s 31-yard line, Shonn Greene was stuffed and fumbled the ball away, but the play call on offense and defense tells us all we need to know about Sanchez. The Jets clearly didn’t trust Sanchez to make a play and the Patriots completely sold out to stop the run. This turnover led to seven more points for New England. While the first two Jet turnovers were pretty pitiful, their third turnover was the arguably the ugliest turnover we’ve seen this season. On a 1st-and-10 carry, Sanchez ran up the middle, but ran directly into Brandon Moore’s rear end and fumbled the ball away. Moore is a very large man, so it’s perplexing that Sanchez claims he didn’t see him. Gregory picked up the loose ball and returned it for a touchdown. This miscue gave the Patriots a 28-0 second quarter advantage. Right before halftime, Sanchez led a 14-play, 63-yard field goal drive, but the damage had already been done as New England took a 35-3 advantage into halftime.

With the game firmly in hand, the Patriots played soft zone coverage the majority of the second half. Sanchez completed 16 of his 22 pass attempts for 201 yards and one touchdown. During the Jets final drive, Sanchez completed five of his six pass attempts for 79 yards and a touchdown. To finish off the drive, Dustin Keller ran a drag route in the back of the end zone and Sanchez delivered the one-yard score. It’s worth noting that Tim Tebow, who is suffering from two cracked ribs, did not take a single snap on offense.

While Sanchez’s final stat line appears acceptable, his play during the second quarter was deplorable. The Jets have such a small margin for error and they can’t keep giving the ball away. Rex Ryan and Tony Sparano seem hopelessly devoted to Sanchez, so expect to see him next week against the Cardinals.

Week 13 - Mark Sanchez’s career has reached an all-time low. After throwing three, first half interceptions and failing to generate any points, the Jets benched Sanchez in favor of Greg McElroy mid-way through the third quarter. Each of Sanchez’s three interceptions was pretty ugly. On his first pass attempt, Arizona deployed pressure up the middle and Sanchez threw a floating pass off his back foot. Ex-Jet Kerry Rhodes jumped the pass and intercepted the ball. Two drives later, Rhodes once against picked off Sanchez to close out the first quarter. Sanchez was targeting Jeff Cumberland on a deep drag route, but the ball was underthrown and undercut by Rhodes. To close out the first half, Sanchez threw a deep post route to Chaz Schillens, but Patrick Peterson wrestled the ball away from Schillens and came away with the interception. After three unsuccessful second half drives, Sanchez was benched and McElroy led the Jets to the victory.

Sanchez’s decision making was very poor and he continued to revert back to the same mistakes. Sanchez refuses to throw the ball away when there’s no play and opts to throw off his back foot when he’s in trouble. It’s baffling how much Sanchez has regressed as a passer.

Week 14 - Mark Sanchez’s job is safe for at least another week. Greg McElroy did not dress after last week’s impressive showing, confirming the Jets’ decision to stick with Sanchez. Sanchez’s afternoon got off to a shaky start after Jason Babin sacked Sanchez and stripped the ball. Afterwards, the Jets’ play calling became ultraconservative. Tony Sparano didn’t give Sanchez too many opportunities to make plays. Sanchez looked tentative in the pocket and had trouble completing passes in excess of 15 yards. During the fourth quarter, Sanchez completed his longest pass play of the game. Sanchez completed a 37-yard pass down the seam to a wide open Jeff Cumberland for a first down. Overall, Sanchez effectively managed the game and spent most of the afternoon handing the ball off to his running backs. Dustin Keller was inactive and Stephen Hill left with an injury, so Sanchez is clearly lacking weapons.

Week 15 - Sanchez committed five ugly turnovers, four of which were interceptions, as the Jets’ playoff chances vanished. Sanchez looked skittish in the pocket, failed to look off opposing defenders, and did not properly read coverage. Sanchez forced throws to covered receivers which led to his season high four interceptions. During the first half, Sanchez led two uneventful drives before he was lifted in favor of Tim Tebow. Tebow was unable to spark the offense and Sanchez was put back in. On his next pass attempt, Sanchez forced a throw to Jeremy Kerley and Jason McCourty jumped the route and intercepted the pass. This miscue was the beginning of Sanchez’s turnover plagued game.

It was fitting that Sanchez’s last two fourth quarter turnovers, an interception thrown into triple coverage and a botched snap, effectively ended the season for a quarterback that has committed 51 turnovers in his last 30 games. Sanchez threw his lone touchdown pass to Jeff Cumberland, but his overall play and decision making was downright pathetic. Mark Sanchez is not a starting quarterback.

Week 17 - If Sunday’s game against the Bills was Mark Sanchez’s final game as Jet, what a parting song it was. Clearly lacking any semblance of confidence in their QB, the Jets opened with nine consecutive runs, refusing to let Sanchez throw until they absolutely had to. After an incompletion to TE Jeff Cumberland on 2nd down, Sanchez dropped back again the following play but sent the intended pass at Braylon Edwards’ feet. The 2nd drive for Sanchez saw his first completion, a short dump to Shonn Greene over the middle for three yards. Sanchez completed his next throw too, but unfortunately it went George Wilson of the Bills and he promptly returned the INT 20 yards for the TD. The following drive looked a lot like the first, with a clear emphasis on the run. Sanchez converted the initial 3rd down with a short toss to TE Konrad Reuland for four yards and then another with a seven-yard completion on a dump to Lex Hilliard. Six consecutive runs had the Jets into the red zone, but Sanchez was unable to convert another 3rd down as his throw to Jeremy Kerley in the end zone wasn’t even close. Sanchez converted the following drive’s opening 3rd down, this time on 3rd and 16 with a screen to Kerley for 40 yards. Four plays later, they tried to go back to the screen, but the pass was broken up. Sanchez threw again on 3rd down, but another meager dump off for six yards to Edwards had the Jets settling for their 3rd FG of the half in three red zone trips. Still not working downfield, Sanchez’s first completion on the next drive went for six yards to TE Jeff Cumberland. The following play, Sanchez threw again and Edwards made a great catch on the back shoulder throw to pick up 14 yards. Sanchez nearly got WR Clyde Gates killed two plays later, throwing inside and back into the coverage. Gates initially made the tough catch, but was made vulnerable by the awful throw and CB Aaron Williams drove the WR into the ground, jarring the ball loose. Getting a gift from Buffalo to open the 2nd half, the Jets and Sanchez (whose lone throw was a throwaway) were unable to do anything despite taking over at the Buffalo 15-yard line. Finally a chance to throw downfield, Sanchez connected with Kerley for 40 yards. Both a nice throw and a great catch, it ultimately meant nothing as Sanchez badly missed Jordan White on 3rd down resulting in another punt. The Jets tried to go downfield to open the next drive, but the pressure got to Sanchez this time as Spencer Johnson stripped him as he was winding up. The following drive wasn’t much better, going three and out, with his lone completion on another dump off for minimal gain before badly overthrowing Edwards on 3rd down. Despite the Bills doing their best to keep the Jets in the game, Sanchez never could take advantage. Finally able to complete a couple passes the following drive for two first downs early, the offense again sputtered. Sanchez was nearly picked off again before badly missing on his next two throws and forcing a punt. Almost as embarrassing as the Monday night game versus the Titans, but without the national spotlight; Sanchez and the offense went down softly, only picking up two 1st downs on their final two drives. A rubbish circus to begin with, the Jets and Sanchez ended 2012 without a TD and just barely eclipsed 200 yards passing (needing a last second completion for 18 yards to do so) against arguably the league’s worst defense.