Henne Vs Sanchez AGAIN?

Hopefully the on-the-field drama will match or exceed the off-season hype, for it seems this Chad Henne vs Mark Sanchez duel is picking up serious steam.  

The latest comes directly from the mouth of former Dolphins great and current Jets has-been, Jason Taylor, in the latest AFC East blog from Tim Graham/ESPN. Taylor rightly puts his support behind Sanchez, but it's hard to miss all the things he says about Sanchez are also traits of Chad Henne's work ethic, something Taylor may have seen the previous year had he bothered to ever be in a football uniform in the spring before.  

Let's face it, JT, you haven't been practicing in OTAs for a long time before this season, and you're only doing it now because the Jets fans hate you and you need to make a good impression.

JT said, "At this level, when you get a guy like a Sanchez or a Chad Henne that has all the physical tools, it's the other things that separate you."

That's true, like the all-hot dog diet and bratty 6 year old attitude and distraction of a modeling career and a mega-million dollar contract and being from SoCal and on your own and single in New York City versus the down-to-earth Midwesterner who's married and making minimum wage (for an NFL QB) and knows he has to be focused and mature (not that he isn't already, but he knows he needs to in order to achieve the team goals) and doesn't engage in flashy hobbies.

Which recipe for success do you think will work?

The inexperienced, bratty surfer boy who's always been handed everything he needs, moved into a wild concrete jungle with nothing but the biggest egos in the NFL and coached by the mentally ill cheerleader with a penchant for high-priced players and low-priced junk food?

-or-

The seasoned (4 year starter in College, 3rd season NFL student) student of the game who's only concern is executing the gameplan delivered by the coaches and getting better and helping his team get better?

Bottom line, when you ask Henne what his goals are, he will say he wants to keep getting better and lead the team to its ultimate goal of winning the Super Bowl.  When you ask Sanchez the same question, he'll say, oh boy, we have loads of great players and high expectations, I just don't want to screw this up.

I think the difference is confidence, and as Jason Taylor pointed out, preparation.  Ultimately, while Sanchez was sitting on the sideline playing cheerleader or doing a photo shoot, Chad Henne was actually working out, throwing the ball, and sticking his head in the playbook.  Come September we'll see who's really prepared and who's not.