Tannenbaum stands behind Sanchez as Jets QB

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- Dreaming of Peyton Manning in a Jets uniform next season? The Jets say Mark Sanchez remains their quarterback of the present -- and the future.

General manager Mike Tannenbaum, speaking at his end-of-season news conference, said Monday that Sanchez's status as the Jets' starting quarterback will not change this offseason in the wake of an inconsistent season by the third-year pro.

"You can't ignore the fact that he's won four road playoff games and he's beat some pretty darned good quarterbacks along the way," Tannenbaum said. "Is he perfect? No. But his characteristics are any GM's dream. The guy really wants to be good, has the talent to make all the throws and he'll be the first to tell you he needs to get better."

Sanchez improved in several statistical categories this season, including touchdown passes (26), passing yards (3,474) and quarterback rating (78.2). But he also seemed hesitant to attempt deep passes, a trend that aggressive defenses took advantage of, especially later in the season.

Sanchez completed only two passes of more than 40 yards this season and threw seven interceptions in the Jets' final three games, all losses. He called his struggles another step in the maturation process.

"I know I'm steadily improving," Sanchez said. "I'm not a stat guy, but to have the wins that we've had together as an organization, 30-whatever in our first [three] years together, that's a great accomplishment, but . . . I still feel like I have a long way to go."

Sanchez's reluctance to throw deep, combined with his recent accuracy problems sparked speculation that he was playing injured, but he said he dealt with nothing more than typical soreness. Not throwing downfield was a product of the Jets' sputtering offense more than anything else, he said.

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"For those big plays to happen down the field, for deep balls to happen, we need to be more consistent," he said. "You don't get opportunities to throw the balls down the field, you don't get opportunities to take shots when you're first-and-15, first-and-25, when you throw an interception."

Having fallen short of the postseason after reaching the AFC Championship Game in his first two seasons, Sanchez said he's looking to "get away" from everything for a few weeks, to decompress. He said he plans to head home to Southern California, catch up with family and friends and not think about what went wrong.

At least not for a few weeks.

"Just to get back into the real world for a little bit, it'll be different, but it'll be nice for a few weeks or something," he said, "and then I'll start thinking about how I'm going to be better."