For the first month of his time in New York, Mark Sanchez was a Golden Boy, the natural heir to Joe Namath and Derek Jeter, hanging out with models, filming commercials, charming the media. He was, as you might have noticed, Mr. Poise. That lasted a month. That’s more than most people get.
Now? Well, now Mark Sanchez is being called a “baby” because he was “mad as a hornet” that coach Rex Ryan benched him for Sunday’s game.
“I’m pretty upset about it,” he said.
Sanchez said there’s “no doubt at all” he will be ready for the next game, home against the Falcons, but he’s learning you don’t always get what you want. He asked Ryan if he could at least practice today, and the response was, “No way.” Ryan refused to look ahead to Atlanta.
Kellen Clemens will be starting in his place. No one remembers this now, but there was a time when Clemens was considered a legitimate prospect around these parts. He has thrown one pass all year. He’s not considered that legitimate prospect anymore.
The back page in the Daily News says “BABYSITTING,” though it’s of note that neither story about the injury-related benching is all that critical of Sanchez. Sanchez is pretty much in an impossible situation: If he says he’s too hurt to play, he’s a wimp. If he wants to play and the coach won’t let him, he’s a crybaby. Makes you want to be an anonymous offensive lineman.