Pundits and analysts have relatively safe positions. They are in charge of simply offering their insights and opinions on the events that happened on their respective sport expertise. Before or after they do their job, there's no telling what can happen in their private lives. Anything can happen.
Unfortunately, one aspect is going to bars and drinking. As we all know, when one drinks, anything can happen. In most cases, intoxicated people can't control what happens. A terrible consequence has just arisen as a NFL analyst got stabbed and is facing criminal charges.
Former NFL quarterback and current Fox Sports analyst, Mark Sanchez, was arrested on Saturday after he was apparently stabbed in an overnight altercation in downtown Indianapolis. Sanchez, who was in Indianapolis to call Sunday’s Raiders-Colts game, was charged with battery with injury, unlawful entry of a motor vehicle and public intoxication — all misdemeanors.
Indianapolis police said Sanchez was in a hospital and hadn't been booked into a detention center. He was in stable condition, according to Fox Sports.
Indianapolis police said earlier in the day that they were investigating a confrontation that occurred around 00:30 on Saturday between two men, one of whom was hospitalised with stab wounds. The other man received treatment for lacerations, police said.
Detectives had reviewed video footage of the confrontation, which police said occurred in the popular downtown nightlife Wholesale District next to the Indiana statehouse. Police said neither man was a local resident and called it an, "isolated incident between the two men and not a random act of violence."
"We are deeply grateful to the medical team for their exceptional care and support. Our thoughts and prayers are with Mark, and we ask that everyone please respect his and his family’s privacy during this time," Fox Sports said.
Nick Sanchez, the brother of Mark Sanchez, issued a statement Monday on behalf of the Sanchez family.
"This has been a deeply distressing time for everyone involved. Mark and our family are incredibly grateful for the concern, love and support we’ve received over the past few days," the statement read.
"Mark remains under medical care for the serious injuries he sustained and is focused on his recovery as the legal process continues. We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the first responders and medical staff."
The charge is in addition to three others he was handed on Sunday after a violent confrontation earlier in the weekend. Those charges were for battery with injury, public intoxication and unlawful entry of a vehicle during the incident early on Saturday morning that left Sanchez, who has worked as a Fox Sports analyst since his retirement from playing, hospitalised with stab wounds.
Monday’s charge is for level-five felony battery involving, "serious bodily injury," which can result in a jail sentence of up to six years and a $10 000 fine.
"One of the challenges you have in a case like this is that you are dealing with individuals who are receiving medical care and that’s, obviously, the most important thing, that individuals are treated appropriately," Marion county prosecutor, Ryan Mears, said on Monday. “But once we were provided with additional information about the victim’s current medical condition, it became clear to us that additional charges needed to be filed."
Sanchez was stabbed and pepper sprayed by a 69-year-old truck driver during the incident in Indianapolis, where the former New York Jets star was due to cover an NFL game between the Colts and Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. Sanchez allegedly confronted the driver, known only as "PT" in the police affidavit, at a loading bay outside a hotel. PT says he was picking up used cooking oil from the hotel when Sanchez, who he claims smelled of alcohol, attempted to enter the truck. PT says Sanchez told him the manager of the hotel said he did not want the oil picked up.
PT said he believed Sanchez was, "trying to kill me" and used pepper spray to protect himself. When the spray didn't stop Sanchez advancing on him, PT said he stabbed the former quarterback "two or three times." Sanchez then allegedly threw PT against a dumpster before "a look of shock" came across his face and he "took off." Detectives have reviewed video footage of the incident. Witnesses said Sanchez and PT filmed each other with the cellphones during the incident.
According to the affidavit, Sanchez told police "all he could remember was grabbing for a window." He didn't remember who stabbed him or where the incident occurred.
Court documents indicate the 69-year-old man, who suffered a laceration to his left cheek, was defending himself. He was treated and released from Methodist Hospital. Photos of the man show him on a hospital bed, bloodied, with a neck brace and a large gash on the left side of his face.
The incident left Sanchez with stab wounds to his torso while PT suffered deep cuts to his face. On Monday, Mears described PT’s injuries as, "very severe." Sanchez’s injuries were not life-threatening. He was due to appear in court on Tuesday but the hearing has been moved until 4 November as he is still being treated in hospital, where he is listed as in a stable condition.
"We’re literally talking about people fighting over a parking space," said Mears. He added that a number of witnesses as well as security cameras had given police a clear picture of the incident.
It is unclear whether PT faces charges but Mears said that Indiana, "has some of the most robust self-defense laws in the nation."
Another former NFL quarterback, Brady Quinn, replaced Sanchez in the Fox booth for Sunday’s game.
At the scene, Detective Joshua Slayton was advised that the two hotels on either side of the alley where the stabbing took place, the Westin and the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown, had surveillance video. The Westin's video quality was poor.
As Slayton began walking over to the Marriott, a witness who was parked in the alley just north of the stabbing scene told him he saw a larger man, believed to be Sanchez, who stands 6-feet-2-inches tall and the 69-year-old box truck driver interacting.
The witness first thought they were friends and didn't pay much attention to their interaction but then he noticed they were using their cellphones to record each other.
According to court records, the witness then saw both men go to the other side of a truck out of his view; before seeing the truck driver tumble over on the opposite side of the curb and the man believed to be Sanchez standing over him before he ran northbound in the alley.
Video from the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown shows Sanchez approaching the driver's door of a large box truck in the alley, according to a probable cause affidavit. He opened the door and began a conversation with a man, who was struggling to understand because he wasn't wearing his hearing aids, he told police.
Video shows the two appear to have an interaction back at the driver's side door after Sanchez follows the man, who is seen walking backwards away from him.
"Sanchez is seen running after (the man) and the video shows Mr. Sanchez grabbing and throwing (the man) towards the wall of the Westin," police wrote in the affidavit. The fight continues in the alley between a large dumpster and the truck before moving toward the middle of the alley.
"Mr. Sanchez is then seen throwing (the man) to the ground on the west side of the alley," investigators wrote. The man told police he reached into his pocket and pulled out pepper spray and sprayed Sanchez, but the former NFL quarterback just wiped it away.
The man thought, “This guy is trying to kill me,” so he pulled out his knife, and when Sanchez came at him, the man struck him two or three times with the knife, he told police.
The man said Sanchez looked at him "with a look of shock," slowly turned around and took off northbound in the alley.
PT, the 69-year-old man involved in the incident, filed a lawsuit against Sanchez and Fox Corporation in Marion County on Monday. Tole and his attorneys allege civil counts of assault/battery and negligent hiring, retention and supervision. The lawsuit doesn't seek a specific amount of damages rather it asks for the amount awarded to be determined at trial.
The lawsuit states that the truck driver was, "bleeding profusely and severely injured" after the incident. The suit adds that PT suffered "permanent disfigurement, loss of function, other physical injuries, emotional distress and other damages."
The lawsuit accuses Fox Corporation of not supervising Sanchez’s behaviour and that it should have known about his "propensity for drinking and/or harmful conduct."
Prosecutors have lots of video evidence regarding the incident, Mears said on Monday. That evidence could lead to more charges down the line.
"Where this incident took place was an area of the city which was very well covered by surveillance footage," Mears said. "There are multiple angles of surveillance footage which capture the events that occurred. And in addition, we had a number of civilian witnesses who came forward with provided information about what took place for us, though we need additional information, and chief’s team is working on that."
"And once we receive that additional information, additional charges might be appropriate to file in a case like this."
Among the initial misdemeanor charges filed against Sanchez was public intoxication. Bailey declined to answer a reporter’s question about the former quarterback’s blood alcohol level, but said the investigation is ongoing.
Sanchez had a 10-year NFL career before retiring in 2019. He appeared on ABC and ESPN for two years before joining Fox Sports as a game analyst in 2021. The Long Beach, California, native starred at Southern California before he was selected by the New York Jets with the fifth pick in the 2009 NFL draft.
He passed for 3 207 yards and 34 touchdowns while leading the Trojans to a 12-1 record during his junior year, which included a victory over Penn State in the 2009 Rose Bowl.
He spent four seasons with the Jets, starting each of his 62 games while throwing for 12 092 yards and 68 touchdowns with 69 interceptions. The Jets lost in the AFC championship in each of Sanchez’s first two years in the league.
Sanchez also appeared in games with Philadelphia, Dallas and Washington. He finished his playing career with 15 357 yards passing, 86 TD passes and 89 interceptions.
The Jets and several of Sanchez's former team-mates posted message of support on social media on Saturday. "Sending our thoughts and love to Mark Sanchez and his family. Hoping for a speedy recovery, 6," the Jets said, using Sanchez's former jersey number.
"Send prayers up for my former teammate mark.. sucks so much to see this," Kerry Rhodes wrote. "So sad. Pray for his recovery," Nick Mangold wrote.
Sanchez joined Fox in 2021 and also contributes to FS1 studio programming. Before his broadcasting career, Sanchez played 10 seasons in the NFL with several teams, including the New York Jets, who took him with the fifth overall pick of the 2009 draft. He later played for the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. He retired in July 2019 and soon after began working with ESPN’s college football coverage before transitioning to Fox.
To be honest, I'm glad that Sanchez is facing potential charges. If this story proves anything, it's that both former and current athletes aren't immune from getting into trouble. They are human just like you and I.
Fox Sports should introduce strict rules for pundits and analysts. These can include the prohibition of "dangerous" actions. Such actions can set a bad reputation for them. I applaud PT for the actions he has pursued.