Wel,l the New York Jets quarterback picture just got even more messy on Friday night. In the second round of the NFL Draft, the Jets selected quarterback Geno Smith, making things even more interesting. It was rumored that the Jets wanted to bring in another quarterback to challenge Mark Sanchez for the starting role, but no one knew if they would actually pull trigger and do it. While the Jets are denying any reports that with Smith comes the release of Sanchez, they did call him prior to drafting Smith to warn him that another quarterback would be in the mix.
Sanchez's agent, his brother Nick Sanchez, told ESPN that the Jets were in contact with the quarterback all day Friday and wanted to let him know that they would be selecting a quarterback in the second round. Of course the second Smith put on the Jets baseball hat, rumors swirled that Sanchez would be gone. He is owed money soon so a release or pay cut could be in his future. When asked about a pay cut, his agent responded that Mark had not been asked that question yet and would comment on it later.
Head coach Rex Ryan is insisting that Sanchez will be the starter and will take snaps with the first-team offense once workouts get under way. General manager John Idzik said the idea of drafting Smith was so that everyone can have a chance to compete, including Sanchez.
"What this means for Mark Sanchez is competition and Mark is open to that. We've had discussions about that. I think he buys into the fact that this helps him. It helps any player on our team and, as a result, it helps our team. So what it means for Mark is that we've added competition. Just as when we signed David Garrard, we added competition," Idzik said.
Anyone that can read between the lines knows that Sanchez's future with the team is seriously muddy. The quarterback roster is crowded and someone will not see the field once the season begins. Whether it is Tim Tebow, Sanchez or someone else, a cut will be made.
