Rex on Peyton talk: Mark is our guy
Mark Sanchez (left) of the Jets and Peyton Manning of the Colts. Credit: Newsday.com composite
FLORHAM PARK, N.J.
The last time the Jets had a chance to trade for a future Hall of Fame quarterback, they were all in. On Aug. 6, 2008, the Jets pulled off a stunning deal with the Packers for Brett Favre and dumped Chad Pennington in the process.
Now that another future Hall of Fame quarterback might be available in the offseason, would the Jets consider acquiring Peyton Manning?
It's an intriguing question, especially in light of their move this week to bring in Manning's longtime offensive coordinator in Indianapolis, Tom Moore, as a full-time consultant for the remainder of the season. And there have been more than a few suggestions, most recently from ESPN analyst and former NFL receiver Cris Carter, that if Manning is fully recovered from neck surgery last May, the Jets should seriously consider trading for him -- or signing him as a free agent if the Colts decide to release him in the offseason. That could occur because they're set to use their first-round pick -- which likely will be the first overall selection -- on a quarterback.
Eli and Peyton in the same city, same stadium? Hmmm.
But for those Jets fans who would like to see the team gamble on Manning and either trade Mark Sanchez or keep him as a backup, Rex Ryan says don't count on it.
"We've got our quarterback," Ryan told me Thursday at the team's training facility. "And you know what? Peyton's under contract, so if I say anything, it can be considered tampering. So I'm not going to say anything about it, I really can't. I'll just say this: We've got our quarterback. That's it. [Sanchez] is our quarterback. There's no doubt about that."
Is Sanchez his quarterback moving into the future?
"Yeah, absolutely," Ryan said. "Sanchez is not going anywhere, and that's it. Mark Sanchez is our quarterback. I hope I coach here 15 years, and I hope Sanchez is our quarterback for 15 years."
Then again, we've seen people change their minds when circumstances change. Remember, the Jets were publicly supportive of Pennington shortly before trading for Favre.
Ryan said it would be wrong to connect any dots because of Moore's hiring on a full-time basis. "Tom Moore is a consultant," he said. "We wanted him around the whole year all along. But I recognized the man is retired, and asking him to stay the entire season was not going to be fair to him and his wife."
Manning's situation is complicated because there's no timetable for his return. The team issued a statement last week from Manning's surgeon, Robert Watkins, who said the fusion surgery in his neck had healed enough for him to increase the intensity of his workouts. But Colts owner Jim Irsay said in a television interview Thursday that he doesn't expect Manning to resume playing -- or even practicing -- for the remainder of the season.
Manning turns 36 on March 24. As part of a new contract he signed earlier this year, the Colts owe him a $28-million bonus in March. It's uncertain whether they'll pay the money and retain his rights or decide to release him, given his uncertain status.
Bringing Manning to the Jets certainly would be a risky move, mostly because of his physical condition. There's simply no telling if and when he'll be ready to play again. Would the Jets really throw away three years of investment in Sanchez, especially after he has shown such promise, even given his well-chronicled issues with consistency? I would say no.
The upside to a Manning deal, however, is theoretically immense. With a healthy Manning operating the offense, the Jets almost certainly would be near the top of the list of Super Bowl contenders in the AFC. Of course, Ryan likes to believe they're already on that list, even if they're struggling to qualify for the playoffs with a 7-5 record heading into Sunday's game against the Chiefs.
Ryan's players agree with him that Sanchez is the quarterback, now and well into the future, and are quick to shoot down the idea of a Manning trade.
"Peyton's awesome, and he's a great guy and a heck of a player, but Mark's my guy," Nick Mangold said. "We've spent three years together, we have a good rapport and his threshold is only going up."
LaDainian Tomlinson echoed that sentiment. "Peyton's going to go to the best situation for him," he said. "Mark is a franchise quarterback here and Rex has made that very clear. That's all that needs to be said about that. Can Mark win championships? Absolutely he can."
