The New York Jets finished 2011 with an 8-8 record and a host of issues, including a highly-publicized feud between Mark Sanchez and Santonio Holmes. Darelle Revis said the locker room was in disarray. A number of players voiced their displeasure with the culture in New York, and some questioned whether Sanchez was the right quarterback for the future.
The Jets responded by rewarding Sanchez with a long-term contract extension, later undermining whatever good vibrations came from that move by acquiring Tim Tebow from the Denver Broncos. Tebow Mania looms as a threat to Sanchez' psyche and the already-volatile Jets locker room, but general manager Mike Tannenbaum told 1050 ESPN New York that he believes the Jets are strong enough to keep Tebow from becoming a distraction.
"It's going to be up to us to make it work. We didn't make this decision of action. We know that Tim has a unique following. We did not ignore that. We think we have the infrastructure to manage it and we are excited to have him," Tannenbaum said as quoted by Sports Radio Interviews. "He's going to be additional weapon for us. We think as our backup quarterback he could do a lot of things for us on the field and it's one thing for us to talk about in April as we get ready, but I think as it plays out during the season you'll see what we had in mind and again we don't want to tip our hand completely to our opponents here, so over the 16 game season I think you will see that Mark is our guy and having Tim here makes a lot of sense."
Tannenbaum said the Jets will have just one offense for their two quarterbacks, but did repeat his expectation that Tebow will play during Wildcat sets. The Jets' GM also noted that he is comfortable with New York's current crop of wide receivers, but could look to add another wideout if "the price is reasonable."
See Gang Green Nation for more discussion and analysis of the Jets.