Mark Sanchez stabbed in Indianapolis, currently in critical condition at hospital

Former quarterback Mark Sanchez was reportedly stabbed Friday night and is currently in the hospital with critical injuries, per TMZ Sports. Police received a phone call a little after midnight to a street in downtown Indy for two injured people, one of which was Sanchez.

According to the report, Sanchez was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition. It was unclear what led to the violent incident and his status is still up in the air. Sanchez was in town preparing to broadcast Sunday’s Indianapolis Colts game vs. the Las Vegas Raiders for FOX.

Sanchez works alongside play-by-play man Chris Myers and sideline reporter Kristina Pink. If his injuries are as described, it is unknown if he’ll be on the call Sunday.

A FOX 59 report provided additional details of the stabbing in downtown Indianapolis. However, they did not confirm and identify Sanchez as one of the involved victims.

“According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, just after 12:30 a.m., officers responded to the 300 block of W. Washington Street on the report of a person shot,” Justin Powell wrote. “When officers arrived on scene, they located two victims, one with injuries consistent with stab wounds and another who was injured during a physical altercation. One was reported to be in critical condition, while the other was ‘awake and breathing,’ according to police. It is believed that this was an isolated incident that began as an argument between two individuals, according to IMPD.”

Fox Sports later released a statement, confirming Sanchez’s injuries. They said he was in stable condition.

“Mark Sanchez was injured in Indianapolis on Saturday and is currently recovering in the hospital in stable condition,” the statement read. “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.”

The incident remains under investigation at this time. Police told FOX 59 that a person was detained at the scene, but not further details were provided.

Sanchez played 10 years in the NFL as a quarterback, notably for the New York Jets from 2009-13. He was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft out of USC.

Sanchez, Rex Ryan and a stout New York Jets’ defense led the way to back-to-back AFC Championship Game appearances during his first two years. However, they didn’t see the same success over the next few seasons and Sanchez and the Jets were mocked for the infamous “butt fumble” play in 2012.

Sanchez did not play in 2013 due to injury and was eventually released. However, he saw a brief career resurgence with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2014 and ’15 under Chip Kelly, although the latter season he was primarily a backup before moving onto other franchies.

In 2014, taking over for an injured Nick Foles halfway through the year, Sanchez went 4-4 as a starter and played in nine games. He threw for 2,418 yards, 14 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 64.1% completion percentage. However, the Eagles narrowly missed the playoffs at 10-6.

Following his tenure in Philadelphia, Sanchez had stints with the Dallas Cowboys (2016), Chicago Bears (2017) and Washington Redskins (2018). He would retire after the ’18 season and transitioned to television, initially for ESPN covering college football. Sanchez signed with FOX in 2021 and began calling action in the NFL.

At USC during his college career, Sanchez was a star, especially in 2008 when he was the full-time starter. Sanchez threw for 3,207 yards, 34 touchdowns, 10 interceptions and a 65.8% completion percentage.