Few people have led a more charmed life than Mark Sanchez. He was the star quarterback at USC, living it up in sunny California. Then he became the fifth overall pick for the New York Jets and made back-to-back AFC Championship appearances. He’d make millions of dollars in his career and eventually settle into life as a commentator for NFL games. Unfortunately, life can spiral out of control fast if you’re not careful. Sanchez found that out the hard way with news coming out of Indianapolis. Initial reports said the former Chicago Bears quarterback had been stabbed in an altercation.
Many thought he’d been either mugged or assaulted. However, details began filtering out that painted things in a far darker light. Sanchez, apparently drunk, got into a scuffle with a 69-year-old delivery truck driver. As the much younger former athlete continued the attack, the driver pulled a knife and stabbed Sanchez multiple times. Police soon arrived on the scene. Even by then, the former QB was still unruly and had to be pepper-sprayed. It still isn’t clear what set him off, but the evidence against him appears to be damning.
Current charges suggest he could face anywhere from one to six years in prison.
Chicago Bears fans must wonder how Sanchez went this long without incidents.
Typically, people don’t go their entire lives without something like this coming to light. There are patterns. Yet Sanchez had stayed out of trouble for years. Most saw him as a typical former athlete who had managed a long career and was enjoying retirement. It makes you wonder if there might be more skeletons in his closet than people realize. Assaulting an elderly man nearly to the point of killing is ugly stuff. Some might try blaming the alcohol, but that is a poor excuse. Booze tends only to reveal the person you already are, just with no filters. It is hard to imagine where Sanchez goes from here.
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Staying out of prison is obviously the goal, but it’s a reasonable assumption that he will never work with or near the NFL ever again. Chicago Bears fans can only be grateful he wasn’t their problem for long when he was here.
