Mark Sanchez Once Gave Nick Foles Sage Advice [WATCH]

Mark Sanchez

Getty Mark Sanchez spent two seasons in Philadelphia and backed up Nick Foles.

Nick Foles and Mark Sanchez spent one epic season together in Philadelphia. The year was 2014 and Chip Kelly was slowly dismantling one of the most potent offenses in Eagles history. It was around this time when Sanchez suggested Foles add a new wrinkle to his game.

Sanchez, the Eagles backup quarterback at the time, strolled by Foles on the sideline and whispered eight unforgettable words into the young quarterback’s ear: “You should try the chicken tenders. They’re good.” Foles laughed at Sanchez, but maybe he should have listened to the sage advice. Instead, Foles got hurt and the Eagles missed the playoffs in what would turn out to be Kelly’s penultimate season coaching the team. Sanchez spent two uneventful seasons in Philadelphia.

Sanchez took over the starting job in Week 9 and led the Eagles to a 4-4 mark down the stretch in 2014. It wasn’t enough to sneak into the playoffs. Sanchez threw for 2,418 yards that season and threw 14 touchdowns against 11 interceptions. He held down a 64.1 completion percentage, too. Of course, everyone knows what happens after Sanchez left.

While the former USC signal-caller didn’t inspire with his play on the field, he certainly left a mark with his comments off it. In addition to the famed “chicken tenders” discussion, Sanchez also threw shade at New York when he admitted that Eagles fans were “a lot nicer” than Jets fans. Predictably, he later backtracked and clarified those polarizing comments.


Mark Sanchez Retires from the NFL for ESPN Job

On Tuesday, Mark Sanchez formally announced his retirement from the NFL after taking a new job to be the lead college football analyst for ABC and ESPN. According to the New York Post, the former Jets and Eagles quarterback will join Kevin Negandhi and Jon Vilma on the Saturday broadcast where he replaces Mack Brown. Sanchez also interviewed for a similar position with FOX Sports, but didn’t get that gig.

During his playing days, the 32-year-old was also embroiled in a scandal in New York after unnamed Jets teammates and coaches told the New York Daily News that Sanchez wasn’t giving it his all. They went so far as to call him a bad teammate.

“So many games, he looked defeated before he ever took the field,” a team source told the newspaper in 2012. “He didn’t have much confidence in what he was about to go do. You could tell throughout the week in practice. He never felt comfortable with some of the things we were doing. It was too much for him.”

The Jets drafted Sanchez with the fifth overall pick of the 2009 NFL Draft and the quarterback came to the NFL with much hype. He was a good-looking kid from Long Beach, California and immediately fell victim to the bright lights of New York City. Despite taking the Jets to back-to-back AFC Championship Games — he lost to the Colts in 2009 and then lost to the Steelers in 2010 — he’ll mostly be remembered for not meeting intense expectations. Sanchez’s biggest claim to fame, fair or not, will be the infamous “butt fumble” when he hilariously ran into the backside of offensive lineman Brandon Moore.

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