GOOD START: Mark Sanchez celebrates the Jets first touchdown last Friday against the St. Louis Rams. (Nick Laham/Getty Images)
That’s all it took for rookie QB Mark Sanchez to all but secure the starting spot for the New York Jets when they travel to face the Houston Texans for their season opener on September 13.
On his first NFL snap, Sanchez dropped back from his own seven-yard line, looked to his left, and gave a little pump-fake to move the safety over before firing a strike down the right side line to wide receiver David Clowney for 48 yards.
But Sanchez’s rookie moment came right before the snap when he lost his mouthpiece barking out the cadence.
“As soon as he caught it, I was really excited…and then I was looking for my mouthpiece because I dropped it, mid-cadence,” said Sanchez following the game.
“I said ‘Green-30’ and boom, my mouthpiece came out and the defense was laughing. I thought, ‘What an idiot.’”
Sanchez is far from an idiot now, as head coach Rex Ryan named him the starter for the Jets next preseason game against Ryan’s former team, the Baltimore Ravens.
And if Sanchez looks as calm and cool and plays as well as he did against the Rams when facing one of the league’s best defenses, defenses won’t be laughing. And the starting job will surely be his for the season.
I believe Sanchez had pretty much won the starting job prior to the Rams game last Friday even though the battle for the position was about even with veteran Kellen Clemens.
Sanchez struggled in the last couple of practices since the preseason game, but it is no cause for concern. It’s just the usual inconsistency that comes with being a rookie quarterback in the NFL.
And even if the quarterback competition remains even the rest of the preseason, the rookie should get the starting job.
Sanchez is the Jets quarterback of the future, but if Clemens cannot distinguish himself in the position battle, New York’s future will start week one.
Run Game and Defense
Rookie running back Shonn Greene looked like he could be one of the steals from this year’s draft with his performance against the Rams.
Greene had nine carries for 45 yards, though 34 of those yards came on one run.
The performance may have further convinced the Jets coaching staff to use a three-headed monster in the backfield between Greene, Leon Washington, and the AFC’s leading rusher from last season, Thomas Jones.
Despite giving up a couple of big plays, the defense played well overall and the blueprint of head coach Rex Ryan’s defense could be seen throughout the game.
Ryan, one of the best defensive minds in the game today, uses a defensive scheme that relies on disguising the blitzes so the offense never really knows what’s coming.
On several plays, the Jets looked like they were bringing the house on a blitz, but only ended up rushing four players and were able to create pressure that way.
The always outspoken Ryan has been raving about linebacker Vernon Gholston all camp long.
The head coach already said the sixth overall pick from the 2008 draft will start in place of linebacker Calvin Pace who was suspended for violating the league’s performance enhancing substance policy.
But talk is cheap.
When in the game Gholston did, well, just about nothing.
Gholston recorded only two tackles and his lone impressive play came when he rushed QB Kyle Boller out of the pocket forcing him to throw an incompletion.
It’s time for Gholston to step up and prove he’s worthy of all the hype he received coming out of Ohio State. Personally, I don’t think he ever will. And if he does not begin to make plays and have an impact in the first four games, he’d better get comfortable on with a spot on the bench.
Matt Sugam also writes for The Daily Targum at Rutgers University.
