Trouble in New York

After having their playoff hopes crushed by Miami,

the Jets look forward, sit Sanchez

Jonathan Thompson

     The New York Jets watched their playoff chances slide away Monday in a 14-10 loss to Miami. The Jets (6-8) needed to win out to even have a shot of making the playoffs.
    
     New York faced lots of controversy this season after acquiring Tim Tebow in the off-season, but then not playing him much at the quarterback position.

     Now, with the season pretty much over for the Jets, Sanchez has been benched, but not for Tebow. Second-year quarterback from Alabama Greg McElroy will start his first NFL game when New York plays the San Diego Chargers this Sunday.

     This move brings lots of questions for Jet fans and Tim Tebow fans. Why even sign Tebow if the Jets aren't going to use him? Overall, I'd say yes, this was a bad acquisition by the Jets. Rex Ryan had his quarterback in Mark Sanchez, and in Ryan's defense, Sanchez probably was the better quarterback.

      So why not start Tebow now? There are three main things to take into consideration when thinking about this.

      First, the season is over. For the first time in five years, week-16 doesn't matter for the Jets, and not in the good, let's rest our players because we're in, type of matter. They're out. They are 6-8 and their record reflects their team this year.

      Next, Sanchez has proven he's not a quarterback capable of leading the Jets to where they want to go. His turnovers are too costly and he's not consistently good enough to be a top-caliber quarterback in the NFL. It's time for the Jets and Sanchez to part ways and that's probably what will happen.
 
      Finally, with Sanchez most likely out of the picture, the Jets face the decision of who to replace him. This is easy, right? Tebow's a winner and you signed this guy for a reason. Wrong. Tebow isn't a franchise quarterback. He's a guy you have to plan your whole offense around and if he's injured, consider your season over. That's why Denver didn't want him, and that's why the Jets have already given the reigns to McElroy.

     It will be seen if the Jets made the right choice in McElroy, but Tebow just isn't the guy for the job. He's a great competitor and he is a winner, but the Jets need more than that.

     That being said, don't expect McElroy to light it up Sunday, or the week after that. It's going to be  a process. The Jets are a long way away from being elite, but they just might be moving in the right direction.