Written by Daniel Krieg | 24 November 2009

I waited until today to write my recap not because I'm lazy, well maybe a little, but mainly because I had mixed feelings about yesterday's loss.

For the first 29 minutes of the game I was indifferent and apathetic towards the way the Jets were playing. The team came out flat and the quarterback was making his usual rookie mistakes.

Then the blocked punt return for a touchdown happened. (I cannot believe that was the Jets first BPRFAT in my life time. Actually, I can.)

The Jets were re-energized by the superb special teams play and appeared ready to make a valiant comeback effort. That feeling was further enforced when the offense opened the second half with a breathtaking 11-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that was capped off by a beautiful pass from Sanchez to Cotchery in the back corner of the end zone.

They pulled me back in.

You started getting that tense feeling in your stomach, started creeping up on the edge of your seat, and finally, started punching the couch after each of Sanchez's three second half turnovers.

There is no way to sugarcoat it. Sanchez lost the Jets the game. Again.

That's not to say they would have won with an experienced NFL quarterback, but the game would have been damn close.

The defense played well enough.* The special teams made a big play. And Thomas Jones quietly churned out another 100-yard performance.

(*The defense really did play well. BUT, how do you continuously leave Wes Welker so wide open? If Darrelle Revis can all but shutdown Randy Moss by himself, how can the other three members of the Jets secondary, not cover Welker? I guess the answer is simple though. Kerry Rhodes forgot how to play football, Drew Coleman is Drew Coleman/Lito Sheppard is Lito Sheppard, and Jim Leonhard was playing with three screws in his thumb. Are any of these legitimate excuses? Maybe Leonhard's. But 15 catches for 192 yards? That's disgraceful.)

But it all comes back to No. 6.

You can look at it two ways. The first being the natural post-game reaction...

They need to bench him. He's single-handedly cost them four victories, he's getting worse each game, and he isn't ready to play quarterback in the NFL.

All extremely valid points. But they're also all extremely shortsighted.

And then there's the day-after reaction...

(Once upon a time...)
Before the season started, did you expect the Jets to win the Super Bowl let alone make the playoffs? I would say, No. The worst thing that Sanchez has done, which in reality is the best thing he's done, was playing well and winning his first three games. Both he and his defense created impossible expectations for a 16-game schedule. The Jets were not a better team than the Patriots then or now. Yes, they won in a somewhat dominant fashion in Week Two, but that didn't mean diddly-poo in terms of forecasting how they'd play the rest of the season.

If the Mets sweep the Phillies in a series in April, does that mean they have turned the corner and are a better team than the back-to-back National League champions? No.

It's not any different with the Jets.

The reality is Sanchez is a struggling rookie quarterback. He has shown how well he can play and how miserably, terribly, makes you want to vomit everywhere he can play. The bad has outweighed the good, hence the 4-6 record, but to call for the benching of Sanchez or the firing of Schottenheimer is not fair.

The worst thing that ever happened to rookie quarterbacks was Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco. They skewed everything that was ever expected of someone in their respective position.

Maybe now, with the Jets all but eliminated from the playoffs, and their post-Week Three Super Bowl expectations washed away in a sea of interceptions, Sanchez will finally relax and return to his early season form.

The obvious conclusion drawn from that assumption is that Sanchez does not play well under pressure---a distinct possibility---but how many 23-year old rookie quarterbacks do?

I may be speaking like an overprotective parent. I may look back on this post in five years and say: "Shit, I was way off. He just sucked." But for right now, you cannot think that way. The Jets have too much invested in him. He is the franchise's future. There is no way around it.

And please don't let Mike Francesa's death crusade against Sanchez change your mind. I love the big, fat, pompous a-hole, but he's way off base in crucifying the kid quarterback after ten games. He mocked everything about Sanchez today, saying he likes to live "fancy," he's delusional, and that Sanchez has no respect for the game of football. Calm down, big fella.

Take a deep breath. Sleep on it.

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