McElroy, Not Tebow, Replaces Sanchez

¶ For nearly four seasons, the Jets have begun each week with one constant in their starting lineup: through thick and thin, Mark Sanchez has been the quarterback.
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¶ That run ended Tuesday, a day after Sanchez’s five turnovers in a loss to the Tennessee Titans that eliminated the Jets from playoff contention. Coach Rex Ryan announced that the third-stringer, Greg McElroy, would make his first career start Sunday against the San Diego Chargers.

¶ Ryan informed Sanchez of his demotion shortly after Monday’s game. It remains unclear when he told Tim Tebow that he would not start. In a conference call Tuesday night, Ryan would not divulge why he chose McElroy ahead of Tebow, who has been listed as the backup since Week 1. Ryan instead used 17 variations of the phrase “it was my decision” in the 17-minute call.

¶ “I can answer this question a million ways — frontwards, backwards, sideways and anything else,” Ryan said when pressed about Tebow. “It’s my decision, and I’m going to base it on my gut feeling or whatever. Everything comes down to: I believe this is the best decision for our team.”

¶ For the first time since 2007, the Jets (6-8) awoke Tuesday to the reality that they will play in meaningless regular-season games. They will finish the season with a nonwinning record in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1994-96. Last season, they were 8-8.

¶ Sanchez threw four interceptions and lost a fumble with less than 50 seconds to play, with the Jets on the Titans’ 25 after Tennessee shanked a punt. Sanchez has committed 24 turnovers this season and 50 since the start of 2011, the most among any quarterback in the N.F.L.

¶ Ryan, who has steadfastly supported Sanchez since the team drafted him fifth over all in 2009, said that his decision was best for the team.

¶ “He had obviously a poor day, but he wasn’t alone with that,” Ryan said. “But obviously we can’t turn the ball over five times and expect to win. Has he had better days than that? Absolutely.”

¶ Sanchez’s benching snaps a streak of 68 starts — including postseason — although Ryan would not rule out the possibility that he could start again, in Week 17 or down the road.

¶ For now, the anemic Jets offense is in the hands of McElroy, a seventh-round draft pick last year out of Alabama, while two first-round picks will be on the sideline.

¶ Ryan’s decision not to go with Tebow, for whom the team traded a fourth-round pick in the off-season, represents another twist in a confounding season that continues to provide more fodder for wonder.

¶ Tebow won eight games as the Denver Broncos’ starter last season, including a first-round playoff overtime victory over Pittsburgh, yet had not played a full series under center for the Jets until Monday. On Tuesday, he was slighted for a quarterback who has thrown seven career passes.

¶ “I have to look at what I think is best for the team and not necessarily the individual,” Ryan said. “I’ll say this about Tim and I’ve always said it, about the type of competitor he is: I know he wants to help this team be successful in the worst way. There’s no doubt about that, and I truly believe that.”

¶ Ryan did not clarify if Tebow would be listed as the backup again, or the third-stringer, or even inactive.

¶ The only certainty is McElroy, who replaced Sanchez in the third quarter of the Dec. 2 game against Arizona and threw the go-ahead touchdown pass in a 7-6 victory. But he was listed as inactive the next two weeks, once Tebow was cleared to return after a rib injury.

¶ At the time, Ryan said he consulted with a variety of people to decide whether to replace Sanchez before the Jacksonville game Dec. 9. The Daily News reported that the owner Woody Johnson preferred McElroy.

¶ But Ryan stuck with Sanchez. On Tuesday, with nothing any longer at stake, he conceded at least that tiny bit of misjudgment.

¶ When asked if Johnson had any say in the matter this time, though, Ryan stayed with his script.

¶ “This decision is my decision,” Ryan said, “and I’m choosing to go with Greg.”