The Butt Fumble. It’s one of the most
memorable, bad, iconic plays of the last decade. We’ve all seen it, and when we
think of Mark Sanchez, that’s the thing that comes to our mind before anything
else. And in fairness, it was a bad play. It looked terrible. It was the “Worst
of the Worst” on Sportscenter for so long that they eventually retired it
because they thought nothing would ever be worse than that. However, I thought
that play was less about Sanchez, and more about just how far the Jets had
fallen under head coach Rex Ryan, and just how inept they had become. That play
sent a message, or at least it did to me, that if they were ever going to be
contenders in New York , they were
going to have to fire Ryan and move on to someone else. You know what’s really
sad? The date of “The Butt Fumble” was November
22, 2012 . You mean to tell me that Ryan is still the head coach,
even two years after that organization-wide embarrassment of a play? Sheesh. If
you want to know why the Jets are now one of the worst teams in the NFL, you’ve
got your answer.
But back to Sanchez. Mark had three huge obstacles early in
his Jets’ career, two self-imposed, and one completely out of his control:
- He
threw his name into the NFL hat too early
Sanchez only really started one
full season at USC (2008), and pieces of the 2007 season while John David Booty
was injured, for a total of 16 career starts. For comparison, Andrew Luck
started 38 games over 3 years (but spent 4 years in college), Matt Ryan started
36 games over 3 years (but spent 4 years at Boston College), and Joe Flacco
started 26 games over 2 years at Delaware (but spent 5 years in college). You
know, only three of the most successful quarterbacks to come into the league
since 2008. At the press conference to announce that he was going pro, in a
curious and never seen before or again move, his OWN HEAD COACH Pete Carroll
was unhappy that Sanchez was leaving, saying things like
“He’s going against the grain with this decision” and talking about how
previous Trojan quarterbacks had spent as much time as possible in the program.
A lot of media pundits at the time thought Carroll was just unhappy because he
was losing his starting quarterback, someone that he wouldn’t be able to easily
replace. I went a different way. Carroll, by all accounts, is an extremely nice
and caring guy, someone who is legitimately interested and concerned for the
well-being of everyone he encounters. I think he had spent a ton of time around
Sanchez, and he’d seen his habits, and was concerned that he wasn’t ready to be
an NFL quarterback. Should he have expressed those concerns at the press
conference? No, probably not, but the point still remains that Carroll, who had
coached this guy for FOUR YEARS, thought he needed some more experience under his
belt.
2. The Jets traded up to get him
To acquire Sanchez, the Jets
traded their own first and second round pick, as well as three players, to the
Browns for the right to move up to the fifth pick of the draft. This made Jets’
fans view him as the savior, and the one the quarterback that would return them
to prominence after so many whiffs at that position over the years. And when
things started to sour for Sanchez and the Jets in his third year (2011), they
turned on him. Never mind that he had the worst weapons in the league, and an
extremely reliable defense that suddenly got a little shaky.
3. The Infamous GQ Spread
I don’t really feel great about
showing the pictures, because it’s a bunch of pictures of a shirtless man, but
I’ll go ahead and link it here if you’re interested. While
I don’t necessarily think it’s a big deal that Sanchez posed for any magazine,
I think it was just further ammunition for Jets’ fans, as the team started
slipping in 2011, almost immediately after that issue hit newsstands. It
reminded them that Sanchez wasn’t really like them; he wasn’t a true “New
Yorker”, an everyday grinder like them. He was just a pretty boy from Hollywood ,
and they hated him because of it.
Honestly, I think it’s a shame that “The Butt Fumble” and some
GQ pictures are the defining moments of Mark Sanchez’s career to most people. Granted,
he never lit it up in New York ,
and in many ways, he failed there. I don’t think he got any better at the
quarterback position from 2009-2012 (his last year with the Jets), and in many
ways, I’d say he regressed. Then again, the Jets never really put any solid,
consistent weapons around him, and he introduced Rex Ryan as his head coach for
the first four years of his career. I think he just got warn down by all the beatings,
both from opposing teams and the media, that football probably stopped becoming
fun for him, and maybe he didn’t put in as much time as he should have. But it
wasn’t like his entire time with in New York
was just “The Butt Fumble”. Let’s not forget that he won four road playoff
games in his first two NFL seasons (which tied him for the second most in NFL
history), and that he appeared in back-to-back AFC Championship Games. And as
mediocre as his regular season stats are (68 TDs, 69 picks, 55.06 completion
percentage), his postseason stats are actually pretty impressive (9 TDs, 3
picks, 60.5 completion percentage). And two of those road playoff victories
were in Indianapolis and New
England , against Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, only the two of the
best quarterbacks of all time.
I don’t think Sanchez is a great quarterback, and I don’t
think he’s even close to being one of the most naturally talented quarterbacks
in the NFL. He doesn’t have an extremely strong arm, and he doesn’t move all
that well outside the pocket. But if you put him in the right system, with the
right head coach, I think he can be extremely successful. In Sanchez’s lone
season starting at USC (2008), the Trojans played one of the toughest schedules
in the last 15 years, as every single one of their games was against a team
from a BCS conference. Sanchez and the Trojans beat all of them, except for a
still confusing loss at Oregon State
on a Thursday night. But that was still a really good team, and Sanchez was
surrounded by pretty good talent on both sides of the ball. There was never a
time where he could say that during his Jets’ tenure. You couldn’t even say
that he had competent offensive personnel around him in New
York .
I have no idea how long Nick Foles will be out in Philadelphia ,
but even if it’s for the rest of the season, I think the Eagles will be fine.
They’ve been able to score points almost at will with Sanchez playing (just
like they did with Foles), and they have a ton of talent at the skill
positions, a pretty good defense (even with the loss of linebacker DeMeco
Ryans), and one of the best coaches in the NFL, the offensive genius Chip
Kelly. For the first time in his NFL career, Sanchez is in a stable
environment, with the right head coach and the right front office. I can’t
believe I’m saying this, but I’m buying some stock in Mark Sanchez.
-
Now, onto my Week 11 NFL picks (Home Team in Caps)……
SAINTS over Bengals
CARDINALS over Lions
I badly wanted to pick the Lions to win this game because of
the Drew Stanton factor, but I decided to stick with the Cards. Arizona
is undefeated at home this season, and their defense turns into the ’85 Bears
in the 4th quarter. I have no idea what gets into these guys during
that period, but they’ve forced 12 turnovers in that quarter this season, good
for a turnover margin of plus 11. After Carson Palmer tore his ACL last week,
that defense started mauling the Rams, and had two defensive touchdowns,
including a miracle pick six by Patrick Peterson. Detroit ’s
defense has been ferocious all season as well, and I could easily see this
contest being an old fashioned, gut it out, 10-7 or 13-10 type of game. I’ll
give the Cards the edge because they’re at home.
PACKERS over Eagles
Patriots over COLTS
The dirty little secret of Indy’s season is that their wins
haven’t really been all that impressive, especially when you compare it to
their losses.
At Jacksonville ,
home against Tennessee , home
against Baltimore , at Houston ,
home against Cincinnati , at the
Giants
At Denver , home
against Philadelphia , at Pittsburgh
Meanwhile, New England has been
extremely impressive since their embarrassing loss to Kansas
City on Monday Night Football (except for the Thursday
Night Game against the Jets)
As you can see, they’ve been blowing everyone out just about
every week. The Pats are also 10-4 off their bye week under Belichick,
something they have the benefit of this week. New England
is playing better than anyone right now, and I expect that to continue on
Sunday night.
Other NFL Picks
DOLPHINS over Bills
I swear I had Miami
over Buffalo in the first true
playoff elimination game of the NFL season. I’m sorry Buffalo ,
it’s been a nice run, but it’s over now. Good luck digging your way out of a
5-5 hole. Like always, never trust a team that starts Kyle Orton at
quarterback.
BROWNS over Texans
Falcons over PANTHERS
The “How the BLEEP are we still alive for a playoff spot,
despite the fact that we actually suck?” bowl. Congratulations, NFC South.
Vikings over BEARS
Jared Allen told the Chicago
media this week that the Bears aren’t out of it yet. I’m sorry, but did you
watch what happened to you guys on Sunday night?
Broncos over RAMS
Seahawks over CHIEFS
49ers over GIANTS
The G-Men, at some point last week, decided they didn’t want to tackle Marshawn Lynch anymore (he had 4 rushing TDs). There only hope on Sunday is
often ignored rule that it’s extremely hard for a team from the West Coast to
play well in a game at 1 o’clock Eastern time, but I'm not even sure that will save them.
REDSKINS over Buccaneers
CHARGERS over Raiders
If San Diego
loses this week to the hapless Raiders, then it is over for my AFC Super Bowl
team. They can’t lose to Oakland
can they? CAN THEY?
Steelers over TITANS
College Football
No, I haven’t forgot about the college game. It is
disappointing that this week doesn’t quite have the same sense of importance
that last week did. There were SIX legitimately huge games last week, and it
was a great Saturday. At least Tennessee
is back on the schedule again. Speaking of the Vols…..
A few weeks ago, I was really worried about this game, until
Butch Jones finally decided it was a good idea to stop trotting out Nathan
Peterman, and instead send out the best quarterback on scholarship, Josh Dobbs.
Plus, the Wildcats actually started playing like the Kentucky
team we all know and love, not the one that was competing in almost every game.
They got beat down 41-3 by LSU, and didn’t show up until the second quarter
(when it was too late) last week against Georgia .
Dobbs changes everything for that offense and for that team, and I don’t expect
that to be any different this week.
#20 WISCONSIN
over #16 Nebraska
The most important game early in the history of the Big 10
West, as the winner would have the inside track at advancing to the Big 10
Championship Game. Minnesota is
also a “contender” in that division, but they travel to both Wisconsin
and Nebraska in their last two
games, and they also have an extremely tough game this week in Minneapolis
against Ohio State .
Good luck. I don’t really have a solid reason for picking Wisconsin
other than that I just haven’t been all that impressed with Nebraska
this year. Granted, Wisconsin
hasn’t been world beaters this season either, but they are at home, in one of
the best home field advantages in the country, Camp
Randall . Plus, the visiting team’s
locker room, which used to be painted pink, was eventually repainted “prison
blue” because they thought that the pink color was irritating their opponents.
The new color is supposed to elicit a calming response, and is the same one
used in the Wisconsin prison system. I have no idea if
it works or not, but since the change, the Badgers are 43-4 at home.
#9 Auburn over #15 GEORGIA
The Bulldogs get their best player, Todd Gurley, back this
week, and while I’m sure he’ll make a huge impact on the field this Saturday, I’m
still sticking with the Tigers. I just don’t know what Georgia
team is going to show up. Two weeks ago, against Florida ,
they played one of the worst games I’ve ever seen a ranked team play. They then
followed it up last week with a dominating performance, from start to finish,
against Kentucky . I know that Auburn ’s
defense has more holes than Swiss Cheese, but at least Nick Marshall and that
offense are always going to show up. That’s really the only thing I’m assured
of from week-to-week in this matchup. Plus, I just can’t see Auburn ,
with as much talent they as they have, getting their 3rd loss of the
season at this point in the year. And as much grief as I’ve given Clemson for
blowing games, Georgia
kind of does the same thing all the time. Last year’s Auburn game
is a perfect example of this, as well as this year’s South Carolina game, where
the Bulldogs had a first and goal late in the game, trailing by 3, only they ended
up having to settle for a field goal (because they stupidly decided it was a
good idea to not hand the ball to Todd Gurley three straight times) which they
missed. I could easily see something like that happening again this week, and that’s
why I can’t pick Georgia .
#5 ALABAMA
over #1 Mississippi State
I’m siding with the Crimson Tide, mostly because I can’t
bring myself to pick Mississippi State ,
a program that’s done mostly nothing but produce bad football year after year
my entire life, to go into Tuscaloosa
and win. The Bulldogs have really impressed me this year though, as they’ve got
a really good defense, a Heisman-contender in Dak Prescott at QB, and a really
smart head coach in Dan Mullen. The Tide have just been such a good team at
home. Their most impressive victory of the season, the 59-0 blasting of Texas
A&M, happened at home, as well as their 42-21 dismantling of Florida .
I think, like last week in Baton Rouge ,
that this game will be a physical, hard fought, slugfest. But ‘Bama, on the
strength of their defense and home crowd, will find a way to squeak this one
out.
Personally, particularly if it’s close, I don’t think Miss
St should drop out of the playoff if they lose
this game. They’ve still got some really good wins (at LSU, home against Auburn ,
home against Texas A&M). Plus, they’re in the best conference in the
country, and they never blew a 21 point 4th quarter lead (I’m
looking at you TCU). If I was on the committee, and Alabama
wins this game, I’d move the Tide up to number 1, keep Oregon
at number 2, leave FSU at number 3, and drop MSU to number 4. Regardless of the
what happens next Tuesday though, I still expect this to be the best college
football game of the week.
Other college picks
#8 Ohio State
over #25 MINNESOTA
#22 GEORGIA
TECH over #19 Clemson
#24 TEXAS
A&M over Missouri
#17 Lsu over ARKANSAS
#3 Florida State
over MIAMI
As badly as I wanted to pick the Hurricanes, I just couldn’t.
They haven’t done anything (besides beating Duke) that really impressed me this
season. Unfortunately, I think the Seminoles are going undefeated, which means
they’ll steal a playoff spot from someone who is way more deserving and better
than them.
So, like always, enjoy football this weekend. You deserve it.
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