Making fun of Mark "McButtFumble" Sanchez has almost become an American pastime. His shoulder injury following an inept episode of Rex Ryan's preseason coaching denied NFL fans like myself the sheer thrill of watching his horrendous interceptions every week on SportsCenter. Sanchez won't be coming back in the near future, and Geno Smith's adequate yet wildly inconsistent play is more than likely enough to boot Sanchez from his job.
Now that he is no longer playing, I feel bad for Sanchez. When Sanchez came into the league, he just wasn't that bad. He was nothing special, but he could do enough not to throw the game away. Following surprising 2009 and 2010 postseason campaigns, the New York media and Rex Ryan put all the spotlight on the new guy. Mark Sanchez became the new face of the upcoming Jets, and from that day on, the franchise was doomed to suffer. Why? Because the NFL is trying to force the tag of "franchise QB" on each QB every week in and week out, without giving a QB the ability to fail, and running through a rotisserie of QBs expecting immediate results. The league wants it both ways, and it's killing the NFL.
The point of the term "franchise quarterback" is that not every team gets to have one. Only once in a blue moon will truly special players like Tom Brady and Peyton Manning come to define a team and single-handedly keep the team relevant when the supporting cast can't screw in a lightbulb. The loss of Peyton Manning for a single season in Indy saw a 10-6 Colts team from 2010 spiral into the laughingstock of the 2011 season. Not every team in the NFL has the luxury of their QB bailing out the entire team, but unlike what the NFL is shifting towards, the QB is not the only way to measure if your team is good or not.
The modern problem in the NFL is that each team's newfound obsession is to make their QB the face of the franchise. The most recent and infuriating instance of this lies with the Baltimore Ravens and their decision to venerate Joe Flacco following last year's Super Bowl victory. Flacco lead a great drive to beat the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game on their quest to the Super Bowl. The Ravens played hard throughout the playoffs behind a strong O-line, legendary D, a great supporting cast on offense, and the leadership of Ray Lewis. Joe Flacco didn't have to be anything else but average in order for the team to win, but he showed great poise and stepped up when he was needed in the postseason. The Ravens finally proved that a team built on foundations other than an elite QB can win, especially after recent postseasons have been dominated by elite QBs. When Flacco was eligible for free agency, the Ravens offered him the biggest contract ever for a QB, worth $120.6 million dollars over 6 years, and it was the worst possible thing that the Ravens could have done for their franchise.
Joe Flacco is just an average Joe. He's okay in the pocket, can throw deep if necessary, can run on occasion, and is decent in the playoffs. He has all the makings of a 6/10 quarterback. But this wasn't Flacco's team. This was Ray's team. Offering Flacco the contract makes him the focal point of the team, the center of attention, that dude in the bad McDonald's commercial, the man that is supposed to carry on the franchise following the departure of Ed Reed and retirement of Ray Lewis. But Flacco was never meant to be that guy. The Ravens are a team spiritually led by their D, not the man behind the center. The Ravens accidentally shifted their identity from "Ray Lewis's Formidable D" to "That Team With The Handlebar Mustache Guy". And, not surprisingly, the Raven's have faltered to a 3-5 record this season and look poised to miss the playoffs. Maybe the Ravens are overcompensating for mistakenly dumping 6/10 QB Trent Dilfer after Super Bowl XXXV, but either way making Flacco the franchise was a big mistake.
The art of the 6/10 QB plays dividends to those who choose to employ it, and this season it has been the 9-0 Chiefs and Alex Smith. After Smith finally set into a system (having 7 seasons in SF with 7 different offensive coordinators), he proved to be one of the most efficient passers in the NFL over the last 3 years, leading the league in completion percentage and throwing virtually little to no interceptions over that span. The Chiefs have been uninspiring but good nonetheless, much like the Ravens of last year. It's the same formula of pound the ball, no turnovers, and impenetrable D. The best part is that no one is making Alex Smith the focal point of the Chiefs success, and that's why the Chiefs are 9-0.
Alex Smith just needed a season of the same offense under his belt to prove his worth as a starter in the NFL. Andrew Luck needed to suck in his first couple of starts in order to make Indy relevant again. Andy Dalton needed an okay season in Cincy to emerge as a real passing threat this year. Unfortunately, the 2013 NFL season has displayed that teams around the league try who are trying build Rome in a day. Since both analysts and coaches create a Shakespearean drama every time a QB goes down or underperforms, no one's job seems either safe or stable. If I had a dollar for every time a NFL analyst talked about whether Nick Foles or Michael Vick deserves the starting job, I would have enough money to pay Greg Schiano to quit his job and still have enough to pay Robinson Cano's upcoming contract. Following each QB injury this season, talks spring up about who's going to sign Matt Flynn (again), why Tim Tebow deserves another chance (again), and whether Brett Favre should come back (again). No one has faith in their backups, and no instance is more frustrating than the Vikings lack of faith this season.
The drama behind Josh Freeman's move to Minnesota hurts with a passion. A team that should be built around Adrian Peterson, the most talented running back in the league, is too busy with its QB circus. Signing Josh Freeman saddled the Vikes with 3 mediocre QBs all vying for a job. Ponder was bad. Cassel turned out 2 solid performances. But it wasn't enough, and the Vikes signed the disenfranchised Josh Freeman. Frazier clearly expected Freeman to immediately excel and fix the team, as Freeman threw 50+ in his awful debut, only running 13 snaps to AP during that game, and was so bad the Vikes just went back to Ponder.
Collectively, coaches, analysts, and execs around the league need to realize that the man behind the center isn't the only man of value on the field. The QB drives the offense and has to come through in the clutch, but Tony Romo and RGIII can't solve their teams' weak pass defense, Jake Locker can't score touchdowns for Chris Johnson, and Terrelle Pryor can't block for himself. Teams aren't giving their QBs room to breathe, and if the trend continues, the overall quality of the game will suffer with each coming year.
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