Transcript of Jets chairman/CEO Woody Johnson's news conference Sunday afternoon:
On what stood out when meeting Mark Sanchez…
If you go from the standpoint of evaluating his talent, then that I will leave to the scouts. In terms of evaluating the way he relates to people on his team and relating to the people that were working out that day, you can see that this is somebody special.
On trading up to draft Sanchez…
I was not part of the decision. I tell Mike [Tannenbaum] that I can have my opinion like any fan, but he has to make the ultimate decision. It doesn't matter whether I like a player or not. I want Mike to make the decisions and that's what his function is. He has to make that decision.
On the impact Sanchez's personality had on the team's decision…
It was more than personality from my own personal view, but I'm not the decision-maker on this. He's very impressive when you meet him, and when you see him perform, you'll be impressed.
On trading with the Browns and Eric Mangini…
I wasn't really thinking of the irony at that point when they started negotiating. We left on good terms. Eric is a professional and has his view. He has a view of building the Browns up and trading down is his strategy. He's doing it his own way and I respect that.
On the process before drafting Sanchez…
There were a lot of phonecalls. This is a process where you have to look at every single scenario. So as the board reveals itself, you have to respond to the board and what's left and decide whether you move up or down. That's what we were doing yesterday right before [the trade].
On drafting Sanchez…
I could see us drafting him based on what they had seen, the scouting reports and the personal visits. They thought this young man was a pretty good fit for the New York Jets. I felt that way as well.
On Kellen Clemens…
I think that this is a very competitive league so you constantly have to try to improve. As Mike always talks about, look under every stone for opportunity. Look for every opportunity and try to make the team better every year. That's not diminishing at all to Kellen Clemens. We think a lot of Kellen. He's in his fourth year and he's still in the mix big-time.
