Mark Sanchez sustained what seemed to be a knee injury in the second half against Carolina which forced him to miss a few snaps. When he came back in during the next series, he had a bulky knee brace that couldn't help but limit his mobility. Obviously we all hope Sanchez is all right. At the same time, I'm not convinced that if he needs the brace it's the worst thing in the world.
I think back to when I was in college at BC. Early in Matt Ryan's career, he didn't have a lot of patience in the pocket. He wouldn't let things develop in front of him if something wasn't open immediately. He would just take off and run. Ryan certainly has good mobility within the pocket, but he's not much of a threat running the ball. During his breakout season in 2006, he played most of the year with a broken foot. Breaking his foot eliminated any ideas he ever had about running the ball. He couldn't scramble. As a result, he had to hang in the pocket and give his receivers a chance to get open when something wasn't there right away. He became much more thorough with his progressions and began to lay the groundwork to become a top five pick.
The same thing applies to Sanchez. I love how tough he is. I love his mobility, but there are times I feel he'd be better off giving his receivers extra time instead of running himself. There are bigger plays to be made on the field. At the very least, he can minimize some of the licks he's taking when he runs it (and not leave his head exposed).
Sanchez's knee brace: blessing in disguise or obstruction? Your thoughts?