INDIANAPOLIS — Good as the rookie played, Mark Sanchez couldn’t halt the rookie skid.
Sanchez became the fourth rookie quarterback to start in a conference championship game Sunday. All lost. At least unlike Shaun King (1999 season), Ben Roethlisberger (2004) and Joe Flacco (2008) before him, Sanchez had led his New York Jets to a 17-6 lead against Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC championship game.
At that point, Sanchez had thrown two impressive touchdown passes — an 80-yard bomb to Braylon Edwards and a 9-yard strike to Dustin Keller as he was getting clobbered by pass rusher Raheem Brock — and a 153.3 quarterback rating.
But Manning wound up throwing for 377 yards and three touchdowns, the Jets lost running Shonn Greene and cornerback Donald Strickland to injuries, and the Colts prevailed 30-17.
“That left us in a hole a little bit and Peyton was on,” said Sanchez, who finished his three-game playoff run with a 92.7 rating. “I was focused on the defense, but it’s hard not to notice when somebody is on like that. Peyton was Peyton. I was honored to play against him, and I wish him the best in the Super Bowl.”
Mike Klis, The Denver Post
