Tuesday

The Daily Mark Sanchez to Canton Watch: No guarantees

Mark Sanchez will only let the Joe Namath comparisons go so far. The only thing the Jets’ quarterback is guaranteeing is he’ll show up for Sunday’s AFC Championship Game.

The Sanchise has played it safe for the past month on the field and off it, and that hasn’t changed so far this week as the Jets prepare for the Indianapolis Colts with a berth in Super Bowl XLIV at stake.

In fact, Sanchez has been all but mum since the Jets beat the Chargers 17-14 in the divisional playoff game last weekend. Everyone else is chiming in, however, as gametime approaches (3 p.m. ET, Colts by 7.5).

Phil Simms, who will be the analyst calling the AFC title game for CBS, says he expects the rookie to have success against the Colts. ” The Colts are not complicated, that helps him out and it’s always hard to be complicated on defense when you’ve got to dig in there and stop the run game. So I think the opportunities for Sanchez to be more a part of it and get involved earlier might be there for him this weekend.”

Trent Dilfer, who was the beneficiary of a great defense when the Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl 10 years ago, said he feels for Sanchez and added that he knows what kind of stat line the kid needs if the Jets are to be successful. “If he completes 10 for 150 yards, they’ll be in good shape,” Dilfer said. “But if it’s 10 for 82, on 28 attempts, that will be trouble. The biggest thing in playoff football is to maximize each throw, especially on a defensive-oriented team.”

Elsewhere on the Sanchez Watch, Mark’s father, Nick, will not be going to Haiti on relief efforts, according to TMZ. The fire department he runs in Irvine, California was one of the rescue teams that was told to be on alert for a dispatch call to the earthquake-ravaged Caribbean nation. But the elder Sanchez has learned his unit will not be deployed, the website said.

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*The DMSTCW forecasts Mark Sanchez will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2030 after an 18-year career during which he will accumulate: 111,186 passing yards (he was born on November 11, 1986); 6 Super Bowl championships (to go along with his uniform number); $1 billion in endorsements (including several deals involving teeth-whitening products); 11,550 panties (same numbers as the zip code of the Jets’ headquarters in Hempstead, New York, which incidentally, will be renamed Sanchezstead upon his retirement); enough pats on the behind from Fireman Ed to make him feel uncomfortable; and 1 kiss from Suzy Kolber (willingly given).