Where The Poise Aren't

Poiserback Mark Sanchez tossed five interceptions in the Jets' 16-13 loss to the Bills yesterday and, more importantly, recorded just one "poise" in the next day's papers — and that in reference to his team's overall lack of the stuff.

The Jets' loss was so demoralizing that today's Daily News referred to it variously as a "slap in the face," a "kick in the gut" and a "kick in the pants," an anatomically improbable combination of blows generally not seen outside of Street Fighter II. Sanchez called his performance "embarrassing." He completed 10 of 29 passes and finished with a quarterback rating of 8.3, and now, for the season, he has 10 interceptions against five touchdowns. The Bills buried Mark Sanchez's poise on a cold and gusty day at the Meadowlands as if it were the corpse of a corrupt trade unionist.

Rich Cimini, New York Daily News:

The Jets have become an undisciplined team, losing their poise at all the wrong times.

What's more, I counted a single "poise" in the run-up to the game, this one in the Canadian press, courtesy of Jets coach Rex Ryan. And even he sounded sick of the word:

David Naylor, The Globe and Mail, quoting Ryan:

We knew he had the poise and all that stuff ...

Is this the end, then? Is the poise gone? Was it even there to begin with? These are deeply unsettling questions, and surely Ryan asked himself some variation on them yesterday when he turned to the bench and briefly considered replacing Captain Poise with his backup, Kellen Clemens. He didn't, but that doesn't mean he won't at some point this season. And who is this Kellen Clemens, you ask? Just to remind you, here is how one newspaper characterized Clemens' NFL debut in 2007:

New York Post headline:

QB SHOWS POISE IN FIRST START