It appears Rex Ryan and Mark Sanchez are on two different pages as to where the New York Jets quarterback stood with the team in the preseason. While an injury to the veteran ended the quarterback competition before a winner could be decided, Sanchez declared himself the winner over rookie Geno Smith. Ryan did not see things the same way.
In an interview with NFL Network's Rich Eisen, Sanchez cleared the air about a few lingering issues. He and Smith had been in a very publicized quarterback competition throughout the preseason. After suffering a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder, Smith was named the starter over Sanchez. The competition ended by default. However, Sanchez plans on returning in 2013 and believes he should be the starter because he rightfully won the contest.
"What I'm really disappointed about is that I got hurt because I won the competition," Sanchez said. "There's no doubt. It was a done deal."
Ryan is backtracking a bit on Sanchez's declaration that he was going to be the starting quarterback.
"I never said he won the competition," Ryan said, via NFL.com. "That's his opinion. It's not about a company line. Apparently, if that's what he said then that's his opinion. Again there is that ongoing competition."
It is simply another indication that Sanchez's time with the New York Jets is coming to an end sooner rather than later. Some Jets' beat writers had Sanchez as the winner while others predicted Smith was the better option for the team. Could Sanchez produce better results? Some fans might be crying for another change at the quarterback position after the rookie tossed three interceptions in the fourth quarterback against the New England Patriots, resulting in a meltdown and loss for the Jets.
For now the only thing Sanchez can worry about is getting healthy. Initial reports were that Sanchez would need surgery and would likely miss the entire season with the shoulder injury. The quarterback disputed that report saying that surgery was not in the plans right now, instead he will aggressively rehab the injury in an effort to be back on the field again.
Ryan said that all reports right now were simply premature regarding the path Sanchez would take right now. He stressed that while the team was hopeful of improvement quickly, they were also being realistic in how long the quarterback could take to recover. If Smith continues to show growing pains and Sanchez has a ray of health in his shoulder, there could be a switch of who is under center.
