Former New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez announced his retirement from NFL on Tuesday after 10 years of pro football. Sanchez won’t be unemployed, however, as he accepted the position at ESPN as a college football analyst.
Sanchez’s last NFL job was with the Washington Redskins, with whom he played two games in 2018. The 32-year-old ended the year completing 54.3 percent of his passes for 138 yards and zero touchdowns while throwing three interceptions.
Sanchez confirmed his decision to retire and work for ESPN on social media.
“Mark will be making an immediate transition from the field to the studio, allowing him to provide viewers a perspective that is in-concert with the current game,” – said ESPN senior vice president of production Lee Fitting in a statement. “Succeeding within a high-pressure media market at USC, and then in the NFL, provided on-the-job training for the next chapter of Mark’s career, which we are thrilled will be with us at ESPN.”
Mark Sanchez entered the league in 2009 as the fifth overall pick by the Jets. After successful first four seasons in New York, in which he led the Jets to two AFC Championship Games, Sanchez suffered a shoulder injury which sidelined him for the entire 2013 season.
After coming back from injury, Sanchez was released by the Jets and signed with Philadelphia Eagles in 2014. He failed to return to his old form in Philly and ended up only starting 10 games in two years before embarking on short-lived stints with Dallas Cowboys and Redskins.
Sanchez ends his NFL career with 73 games as a starter in the regular season under his belt in which he passed for 15,357 yards and 86 TDs.
