The New York Jets announced that quarterback Mark Sanchez would be starting the team’s preseason opener against the Detroit Lions on Friday night and the veteran signal-caller is heading in to the game taking it seriously and believing that he earned the gig. Sanchez learned of the move just after reporters had caught wind of it and he is now ready to take the field and prove he should be the regular season starter.
“I think I earned the right to start this first game, and we’ll see how it goes from there,” Sanchez said. “I got to keep playing well to stay on the field and that’s the plan.”
Many players and fans don’t take the preseason seriously and discount the warm up games, but Sanchez is heading in to Friday night’s game eager to show that he belongs and that the Jets best move would be to roll with him over rookie Geno Smith.
“Oh, I like to take them as serious as possible,” Sanchez said. “Any time you’re keeping score, even when you’re not keeping score, you want to win as a competitor. So I think it’s important for us to be sharp, and this is our first real scrimmage after the green and white. So the live hitting, you know you’re live, no more red jerseys. So, head on a swivel, make sure you’re doing the right thing, get rid of the ball especially against this defense. They’re a tough defense and a great front. So it’s pretty serious, it’s not like we’re taking this lightly.”
There isn’t much of a gap between Sanchez and Smith, so the veteran will need to be impressive throughout the preseason and show that he can take the field without being plagued by turnovers.
If he is unable to protect the ball, then Geno Smith could be starting from day one.