Mark Sanchez got a monkey off his back -- er, butt -- on Thanksgiving, leading the Eagles to a convincing 33-10 win over division rival Dallas on the two-year anniversary of the play that made him the laughing stock of the league. And what daring, innovative game plan did Chip Kelly implement to allow his blossoming backup quarterback to post a 102.2 passer rating?
Mark Sanchez says Eagles’ game plan was not to buttfumble
That’s a bold strategy, Cotton.
Don’t buttfumble.
“I mean, it sucked,” Sanchez told Philly.com while reminiscing on the infamous play from Thanksgiving 2012. “I ran into some guy’s butt and dropped the ball on the turf, and they scored. It’s like my favorite holiday. It’s not cool. That was really a bummer. But the game plan was ‘Try not to do that,’ and we accomplished it.”
So simple, yet so effective. Why didn’t Rex Ryan think of that?
The result was an efficient 20-of-29, 217-yard day for Sanchez, who threw for one touchdown and ran for another. He allowed the Eagles’ run game do the heavy lifting and didn’t force things himself. Sanchez did have one fumble, but it was recovered by a teammate and, more importantly, it wasn’t off of anybody’s butt.
“It’s just been an incredible journey,” Sanchez said. “The whole thing -- playing in this league, wearing a Jets logo, wearing an Eagles logo. This is an absolute dream come true. The best of times, the worst of times, still a lot of people would love to be in this position, no matter what. I’m very thankful. I’m very blessed.”
Congrats, Mark. We’ll always be thankful for buttfumble, though.
★★★
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