It’s not often that one segment on a program inspires an entire column, but you are about to read an example of this happening. I was tuning into The Herd with Colin Cowherd on FS1 on Thursday, August 8. As usual, it was a very interesting and varied show. A little after 1:00 p.m. EST, Mark Sanchez, the former NFL quarterback and current analyst for FOX, joined Cowherd to talk about the NFL preseason.
What followed was about 25 minutes of some of the best football analysis I’ve heard in a very long time. If you recall, Sanchez was the last quarterback to lead the New York Jets to the playoffs. In fact, in his first two years, 2009 and 2010, he brought the Jets to the AFC Championship game. As it turns out, Sanchez was better known for his Namathesque good looks than his quarterbacking prowess, having played for four teams in his eight season NFL career.
The USC product and 5th overall selection in the 2009 NFL Draft has re-emerged as an up-and-coming analyst. Sanchez really showed some in-depth knowledge and rationality in his exchange with Cowherd. In discussing Brandon Aiyuk, the 49’ers receiver who has dominated preseason with his contract issues and trade rumors, Sanchez offered a unique take from a player’s perspective.
While much of the media and fandom subscribe to the theory that demanding a trade and bickering over a few million dollars is typical of today’s selfish athlete, Sanchez stressed that Aiyuk has watched several of his teammates get paid and/or be re-upped in their contracts before they reached their 5th year options.
He also stated that there is no real guarantee that the $26 million per year offer that the 49ers gave to Aiyuk back in May is still on the table. Sanchez outlined a scenario where Aiyuk could end up playing for a rather paltry $14 million in 2024 and then be franchise tagged for 2025 and be paid in the low $20 million range on a one-year deal. In this situation, the gamble of an injury is very much in play.
You may have little sympathy for an athlete possibly making $14 million a year, and that is understandable, but Sanchez clearly and fully explained the business of the NFL and the current league salary market.
He stated, “In my opinion if it was strictly money, if money was the only factor and Brandon Aiyuk says, ‘I want the most dollars I can get.’ He would’ve gone to New England and been the 5th non-QB in NFL history to sign a $100 million contract if it was money, but I think there’s more to it than that.”
Sanchez went on to defend Aiyuk as a good teammate saying that he has never complained about not getting the ball and wants to win. This was a very unique and thoughtful perspective. He also made a comparison to the movie business in explaining that with the Niners, Aiyuk is surrounded by great players like Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle.
“In an ensemble cast, you don’t get as many monologues,” said Sanchez. “In that movie, you’re going to win Best Picture, not best whatever role. There’s too many supporting characters. There’s too many main characters.” Sanchez walked onto The Herd set with a notebook and a pencil, as if he was about to take the SAT. The man who drew ridicule for his 2012 ‘Butt Fumble’ is now drawing rave reviews busting his butt as a student of broadcasting.
Sanchez has a casual and conversational style. The fact that he played nearly a decade in the NFL, was a top draft pick with high expectations, and had his ups and downs has made him a captivating analyst. He knows how players think. Sanchez is a talent squarely on the rise. He has a soft touch method of explaining the game to viewers. It’s one thing to have knowledge. It’s quite another to clearly, concisely, and effectively share that knowledge. Sanchez has the gift.
I kept watching this interview and was mesmerized because Sanchez continued to present heretofore unheard angles, ideas, and perspectives. When Cowherd asked Sanchez to pick a dark horse team this year, the ex-QB chose the Minnesota Vikings but guarded his words due to the quarterback position with Sam Darnold and rookie J.J. McCarthy still in the realm of doubt.
Sanchez’s words proved prophetic as McCarthy subsequently suffered a torn meniscus further clouding the Vikings situation behind center. In discussing Darnold, Sanchez made a solid reference to Rich Gannon, a so-so QB who ended up having a tremendous second half of his career. Sanchez actually dropped some pretty cool references throughout this interview, including NBA Hall of Famer John Stockton, ex-NFL QB Jon Kitna, and his former Jets teammate receiver Braylon Edwards.
In an interesting moment, Sanchez stated that when a quarterback goes to a team with an offensive head coach and mindset, his career can catapult. Almost immediately after making this point, Sanchez backtracked and said that he meant no disrespect to his former Jets’ head coach and defensive guru Rex Ryan.
He said he has a lot of love and respect for Ryan. This shows me what a decent person Sanchez is because in truth, he wasn’t the focus with the Jets. Ryan was so engrossed with his defense and the ‘ground and pound’ mentality, that he never really gave Sanchez the tutelage and attention he needed. Sanchez showed a lot of class in offering the disclaimer for Ryan.
He also offered some in depth analysis on whether to play starting quarterbacks during the preseason. In doing so Sanchez referenced Andy Reid, an old school coach whose philosophy is to add playing time for his starter over the first three games, then sit him for the fourth.
Sanchez added a warning for those coaches who choose to sit starting QBs for the entire preseason. He said that they have to find some way to get their quarterbacks live reps so that they can feel the grind and be able to process decision making. In another teaching moment, he said that this is the reason why many teams now do week-long joint practices with opponents. I always wondered why these joint practices have become so popular.
Sanchez knows what it’s like to be a rookie quarterback under pressure and he lamented that the expectations put on young quarterbacks are a hindrance. He explained that there has to be a better balance between living up to the hype and truly learning the position.
In all of his comments, Sanchez eschews the typical X’s and O’s regurgitation and really delves into the mental part of the game. I was pleasantly surprised by the gravity of his analysis. In yet another strikingly new angle on rookie quarterbacks, Sanchez pointed to the 2008 draft as a turning point. That year, quarterbacks Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan were top picks of the Ravens and Falcons respectively. Both signal callers became starters immediately.
This was the pivot for Sanchez. Once Flacco and Ryan had quick success, he knew that he and Matt Stafford, the top pick in 2009, were not going to get the luxury of sitting and learning. They were going to start right away as were subsequent highly drafted QBs.
Sanchez pointed to the 2023 rookie success of Houston’s C.J. Stroud as the current impetus for starting first year quarterbacks right away. Ironically, Sanchez will be calling Bears’ top pick Caleb Williams’ first NFL start for FOX on September 8 vs. Tennessee.
At the end of the segment, Cowherd said that his wife, who is not a sports fan at all, was listening to a previous Herd appearance by Sanchez and really liked the stories he told and how he carried himself. Mrs. Cowherd is correct. Sanchez’s easy going, insightful, and reflective style is a winner. The youthful quarterback turned thoughtful commentator has already traveled quite the football road and is thankfully taking us along for this leg of journey.
John Molori is a weekly columnist for Barrett Sports Media. He has previously contributed to ESPNW, Patriots Football Weekly, Golf Content Network, Methuen Life Magazine, and wrote a syndicated Media Blitz column in the New England region, which was published by numerous outlets including The Boston Metro, Providence Journal, Lowell Sun, and the Eagle-Tribune. His career also includes fourteen years in television as a News and Sports Reporter, Host, Producer working for Continental Cablevision, MediaOne, and AT&T. He can be reached on Twitter @MoloriMedia.
