Transcript of Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez's news conference following Wednesday's midday practice:
On how he got the hot dog in Oakland…
I don't want to give up my hot dog connect [laughing]. The last thing I will say about the whole deal is that I did not mean it as a form of disrespect. I wasn't trying to take away from anything the team had going on. People have gotten some laughs out of it and we've all kind of joked about it, but it is one of those things that I definitely need to learn from and it was a mistake. It won't happen again and that's all there is to say about that.
On the hot dog donation to the Community Soup Kitchen of Morristown…
Something happened here and I wanted to turn it into a positive. We tried to figure out something we could do and through A&P, we bought the hot dogs and donated them to the Morristown Soup Kitchen. They really appreciated it and expressed their gratitude. It was great.
On Jerricho Cotchery's expected return this week…
It's a great comfort level, as a quarterback, to have two big-time players and to have [David] Clowney play the way he did last week just adds more confidence. Brad [Smith] is coming back, hopefully. This is great. We are almost back to full strength in the passing game. It's going to help everyone out.
On if his struggles were due to the coming and going of receivers…
I don't ever want to blame anything on something like that. We do want to get our chemistry down. I think it is only getting better as the practices wear on, as we go through these reps together. I would never attribute a game like that to not having chemistry. The ball has to be there on time and that is my job. I didn't do it that day. This is great, though. On the positive side, having all of these guys back is huge. To drop back and go through a progression where you are reading to J-Co, to Dustin [Keller] to Braylon [Edwards] to Danny Woodhead is pretty good.
On playing the Dolphins for a second time…
A lot of it is just looking at last game and going over looks and adjustments that they made at halftime, things like that. The real advice that I've gotten from a lot of veterans on this team and from Rob Johnson back home is "Whatever you do, don't overlook a team that you've already played. Don't feel like I know what their Cover-3 looks like." I got them. He said don't change. Now get into the nuances of how exactly does this guy play his technique, one foot up, one foot back, what does that mean? Does that give anything away? Did I notice something from the last game that will help me in this game? It is continuous study and I definitely don't want to take this team lightly.
On what having Shonn Greene at RB is like...
A different kind of runner, but Shonn did a phenomenal job. It was great to see because he had an awesome training camp, he did really well during the summer and he battled that hamstring injury over the summer. Leon [Washington] or T.J. [Thomas Jones] took all of the reps, which kind of was expected and you don't know what is going to happen. You never want to see a guy go down, but the way Shonn picked up the slack was great. He is going to be a great addition for our team and we have a lot of confidence in him.
On the importance of this game going into the bye week…
That is huge for us. It's a division game. You never want to build up a game, but if there is a game to build up, we have to do well. They're thinking the same thing, especially going into a bye week. You don't want a sour taste in your mouth. You don't want to be off a whole week. It is hard enough waiting a whole week to play. If you have to wait two weeks, that's going to be terrible. We just need to play well and prepare. Everybody has the right mindset and we're getting ready for a good Miami game.
On his performance almost halfway through his rookie year…
When you think of it, in the almost eight games, just two stinkers. Two bad ones. Two really bad ones. Whether it is a lack of focus or just a poor day, whatever you want to attribute it to, I have definitely gotten better from them. I have learned from them. I've bounced back from both tough losses. I just want to eliminate those.
There is nothing I can do to go back, so you've just got to move forward and not make the same mistakes and really grow from them. Personally, that's what I think. It's not even worth saying we should be this record — we can't be. All we can be is 5-3 at the break. That is where my head is at. During that off week I want to look back at a lot of self-scout stuff. Just looking at myself, watching play fakes, watching my boots and my footwork stuff. Overall, not bad for a rookie. A lot of improvements to make.
On what a win this weekend means to the team…
It's important. It's important for me, too. All these games are big. Perfect example: My parents are at home asking, "What's going on during the bye week?" I was like, "I don't know. That depends." [laughter] I want to see a lot of people, but I might just be in a cave [laughter]. I don't know if I'm coming home. We joked about it, but it's important. These guys know how important it is to win going into a bye. We just need to trust our preparation, have another practice like we did today tomorrow, and that's our goal. Win the game today. You've got to win it on Wednesday, watch Wednesday's film, go win it on Thursday and just keep rolling.
On the offensive line's consistency…
It's been huge just to know that they're solid upfront. To have the kind of protection they've had all year, to have the running lanes the running backs have had all year and to know as soon as I look in the huddle where everybody's at, that's important for me that they're trying to bring a young guy along with them while they're switching out lineman. They're all helping me together and they've been great. We've got a great chemistry. I'm thankful for those guys up front.
On the importance of the previous game against Miami…
It was important because that was the game where we were going back and forth scoring. Every time we got the ball, it was important to put points on the board and I think we did a good job on the offensive side. Defensively, that was a tough game for them. They've admitted it. They felt bad about it enough already. We told them, too, I said, "We missed some third down opportunities." We could have scored even more points, we felt like.
It was an important game for us. It was almost a who-had-the-ball-last kind of game. I know the defense doesn't like hearing stuff like that. They took that personally and they came out these couple of weeks and played really well. We'll be ready to play, but that was important for all of our confidence, really.
On if he's surprised that a big deal was made about him eating a hot dog on the sideline against the Raiders…
It's just another reminder of how my actions, the things I say and do are under the utmost scrutiny. One, you're an NFL quarterback, and two, you're in New York. It's important for me to act accordingly. That wasn't acting accordingly and I'm seeing the results of that. You talk about it coming into a situation like this: "Whatever you do, people are going to know."
It's one of those things that if you lose focus for a second and this isn't in the big scheme of things, even Coach Ryan admitted it's not the worst thing in the world. I understand that, too. I'm not beating myself up about it. I just can't do it again. It's a great reminder of how you need to walk the straight and narrow in this position because it's not worth jeopardizing what we have going as a team or representing my family, my high school, my college in a negative light.
On how much more he is in the spotlight in New York as opposed to Southern Cal…
It's New York. It's awesome. It's great. You just need to act the right way and know that people are watching. It's important to set the right example.
On the USC vs. Oregon game…
I was already talking a little smack to Kellen [Clemens]. Hopefully, my boys do it, but we'll see. We haven't won up there in a while in that whole state. I'm sure they'll be ready to go. We'll have the right game plan. Whether they'll be ready or not is usually the name of the game up there, so we'll see.
On if there is a side bet with Kellen Clemens on the game…
I don't know. We'll figure something out.
