Mike Vick will be a Jet in 2014. (Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports)
The New York Jets made a change at quarterback on Friday, signing free-agent Michael Vick and releasing Mark Sanchez after five seasons.
Vick and the Jets reached agreement on a one-year contract, according to reports. He leaves the Philadelphia Eagles after being replaced as the starter last season by Nick Foles.
Sanchez was selected by the Jets with the fifth overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft and started 62 games, posting a 33-29 record and passing for 68 touchdowns and 69 interceptions.
Releasing Sanchez, who was due a $2 million bonus on March 25, saved the Jets $8.3 million against the salary cap.
“I’d like to thank Mark for everything he’s done for this team and me personally,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “We were rookies together and had some early success, becoming the first rookie head coach and quarterback to go to back-to-back championship games. We experienced a lot together and I really appreciate Mark. He’s a great player, a great teammate, and I wish him nothing but the best.”
Sanchez, who becomes a free agent, lost the starting job to Geno Smith, a rookie last season, when he suffered a shoulder injury in the Jets’ third presason game against the New York Giants. He sat out the 2013 season after undergoing shoulder surgery and also an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee.
Sanchez’s best years came early in his career with the Jets. He established franchise rookie records for passing yards with 2,444 and completions with 196 as the team’s first rookie quarterback to start the opening game of the season. In the 2009 postseason, Sanchez led the Jets to the AFC Championship game.
In Sanchez’s second year, the Jets won 11 regular-season games and he passed for 3,291 yards and 17 touchdowns. New York made it to the AFC Championship game again, this time losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Jets have not returned to the playoffs since then and Sanchez had 52 turnovers in the 2011 and 2012 seasons.
Vick joined the Eagles in 2009 after six years with the Atlanta Falcons and serving time in prison on federal gambling and dogfighting charges.
