Rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez put together one heck of a career playing for the USC Trojans. While he was unable to fashion himself a nation title, he did play well enough to become one of the top picks in last spring’s NFL draft. After getting drafted by the new Jets administration he played his way into the starting lineup. Of course it could be argued that his mother could have played her way into the starting lineup at quarterback with what the Jets had as alternatives.

Sanchez won the starting job by impressing the coaches with his pre-season performance and poise. Sanchez completed 24 of 37 yards for 347 yards, three touchdowns and just two interceptions. In his most extensive playing time of the summer, Sanchez completed 13 of 20 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown. It was that game that largely cemented him into the starting spot.

In his first regular season game for the Jets Sanchez was just shy of spectacular. He threw for 272 yards and a touchdown (also an interception) on 18 completions in 31 attempts in his team’s 24-7 throttling of the Houston Texans. It was the perfect way for the Jets’ season and Sanchez’s career to start. After the disastrous end to the Mangini era, a win delivered by a rookie quarterback for a first year head coach was exactly what the doctor ordered.

His second game saw Sanchez look effectively mediocre against the vaunted (and hated) New England Patriots. Sanchez completed 14 of 22 passes for just 163 yards. Sanchez did also throw what was essentially the game winning touchdown pass, and managed to avoid throwing an interception. More because of who they beat, then how he played, Sanchez added to his already impressive legend among Jets fans.

His third game and the Jets third win of the season was more of the good but not great performance that reminded outside observers quite a bit of a certain Atlanta Falcons quarterback’s rookie season one year ago. He was doing enough to help the team win, without trying to do too much. He wasn’t putting up spectacular numbers, but they weren’t bad. Through three games, he had completed 49 of 83 pass attempts for a 59 percent completion percentage. Throwing for 606 yards, Sanchez tallied four touchdown passes to just two interceptions, and most importantly the Jets were alone in first in the AFC East. Since their third victory, a 24-17 squeaker over a still winless Tennessee Titans, it’s been all downhill.

In three straight losses Sanchez has looked like a completely different person. In fact, he’s looked a lot the other sub-par quarterbacks that have come through the organization lately. In his last three games Sanchez has completed just 45 percent of his passes. (36 of 80) Sanchez has also thrown for just 429 yards, and most damning, he’s thrown just one touchdown compared to a whopping eight interceptions.

One touchdown and eight interceptions over a three game stretch would get most quarterbacks benched so fast their heads would spin. There are just two reasons that Sanchez is still cemented in his position. The first is that Sanchez is indeed a much ballyhooed rookie. If the franchise were to bench him just six games into his career it could be both damaging to his career, and appear to be panic by the club. The second reason is that the backup quarterback is Kellen Clemons. Clemons is the reason Sanchez was drafted.

Those are both fantastic reasons to keep Sanchez the starter for the Jets. Here’s the only reason you need to have for why he should be benched. He’s getting worse, and the Jets’ season is going down the drain with him. After starting off 3-0, the Jets currently sit at 3-3. Instead of alone in first, New York is mired in the middle of the division thanks in large part to losses to the teams that were chasing them just a month ago.

If the Jets want to right the ship in time to actually challenge for a playoff spot, it’s time to realize that the rookie isn’t getting it done. The team has the talent on defense and in the running game to compete in every game they play, but at this point Sanchez is holding them back. In their latest game, a 16-13 overtime loss, Sanchez had five interceptions. It’s not hard to see how damaging five turnovers in a three point loss can be. Clemons will never be what Sanchez could be at one time, but Clemons is a placeholder. He could be good enough to keep the Jets season on track while Sanchez learns how to be an NFL quarterback from the sidelines. Right now, he’s barely an NFL backup.