Amidst all the hoopla surrounding the Peyton Manning sweepstakes, the Jets left little doubt that they believe that Mark Sanchez is their quarterback of the future.
Green stripe Sanchez signed a three-year extension for $ 40.5 million on Friday night and now has five years remaining on his deal for a total of 58.25 million dollars. Sanchez, who had two years remaining on his rookie deal, will earn $ 20.5 million fully guaranteed in the coming two seasons, according to the source.
The jets are also expected to free up salary cap space in 2012. Sanchez was going to count 14.25 million against the CAP before signing the extension.
General Manager Mike Tannenbaum has admitted that the jets were negotiating for "several weeks" on an extension to Sanchez as they explored the possibility of landing Manning, who came out for the Colts on Wednesday after 14 years.
"When a quarterback first ballot Hall of Fame becomes available, look inside," Tannenbaum said. "Did look into it. We discussed internally. We have kept the process of negotiation with (Sanchez's agents) in progress. "
Manning visited the Denver Broncos on Friday to kick off his tour of recruitment. According to the Denver Post, Manning left his condominium in South Beach and flew to Denver to meet Broncos vice President of football operations John Elway, head coach John Fox and General Manager Brian Xanders, who were in Stillwater, Oklahoma, earlier in the day to watch Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Tony Weeden working out.
He reportedly will visit the Arizona Cardinals and Miami Dolphins with the hope of making a decision for the start of free agency on Tuesday.
PHOTO: MANN-HUNT PEYTON IN PHOTOS
Sanchez had an irregular season which included career highs in touchdown passes (26) and turnovers (26), but Tannenbaum said he never lost faith in him.
"He is a young player, and just like any other young player, there are some inconsistencies that have to get better," Tannenbaum said. "We've won a lot of matches of football with mark as a starting quarterback for the New York Jets. This is really what got Rex (Ryan), Woody (Johnson) and me. It is not a projection. Not a hope. It is not an incremental leap of faith. Ha, here is a body of three years ' work. That said, we do not have blinders on. It did get better. And we think it will get better. We think it will become more coherence into the fourth year of s. Marco. We are excited and encouraged by the trajectory of the career of Mark. "
MARK SANCHEZ'S STATISTICS
Sanchez, who spoke for the first time since the Gang Green missed the playoffs in his career, he maintained that he was insulted by the interest of castings in Manning.
"This team has an obligation to consider all its options," said Sanchez. "I am thrilled that the Jets believed in me and that I was the guy who want to pursue for the future".
"The best part is that he chose to stay with me," added Sanchez. "I'm going to be the starting quarterback for the next few years here. That is exciting. The team gives just a reminder that I am the leader of this team. And I'm happy to return. I'm going to work my tail off these coming months to return as the best possible starting quarterback that can get this franchise. "
Sanchez called criticism from unnamed players and members of the organization in a daily news report in January "non-issues."
"If you're an anonymous source, you don't speak for yourself and therefore not really speak to the team," said Sanchez. "So really didn't pay any mind. I didn't really worry about it. "
He challenged the notion of different players like LaDainian Tomlinson and Damien Woody that he coddled by the organization. He also admitted that he has patched up differences perceived with Santonio Holmes, who was visibly upset at the loss of the end of the season, jets of dolphins, for not being more involved in the game. "We have been in touch really this offseason," said Sanchez. "To think that a bigger deal was made out of what was supposed to be. But okay. With none of us commenting on it, I think it's gotten bigger. So we kind of laughed it off at this point. "
The Jets made it clear that they are willing to go along with Sanchez, with a steep investment. Sanchez, who spent some time this offseason in Florida working with former jets quarterback Chad Pennington, admitted that he was eager to learn from its failures in 2011. "This past year, I have learned more than anything in my first two years combined on how to manage adversity," said Sanchez. "There is a lot more to achieve together for us. I'm excited to be able to do so. "
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