Reports: Fox takes Mark Sanchez off air permanently

Fox Sports has severed ties with game analyst Mark Sanchez as he faces criminal charges, multiple outlets reported Friday.

"We can confirm that Mark Sanchez is no longer with the network," a Fox spokesperson told The Athletic. "There will be no further comment at this time."

Stepping into an analyst role will be another former NFL quarterback, Drew Brees, per the report. He is expected to partner with play-by-play voice Adam Amin and is signed to call games through the 2026 season, at least.

Sanchez, 38, had been sidelined since he was stabbed, and subsequently arrested, following a fight in an Indianapolis alley with a 69-year-old truck driver. He was in town to call the Oct. 5 game between the Colts and Las Vegas Raiders but was hospitalized and replaced that week by Brady Quinn.

Brees, 46, retired from the NFL after the 2020 season and spent the 2021 season with NBC Sports, working as a color analyst for the network's Notre Dame broadcasts and appearing on "Football Night in America."

Brees has done studio work with Fox and ESPN and served as an analyst for Netflix's international game last Christmas.

Brees led the New Orleans Saints to a Super Bowl XLIV championship in the 2009 season and was a two-time NFL Offensive Player of the Year. He ranks second behind Tom Brady in NFL history in passing yards (80,358) and touchdown passes (571).

Sanchez has been charged with felony battery as well as at least three misdemeanors. The felony charge carries a sentence of one to six years in prison, if convicted, and he has pleaded not guilty in Marion County, Ind.

--Field Level Media