NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez will have surgery on his left knee in the coming weeks but is expected to be ready for the start of training camp in July, the team said Tuesday.
A Jets spokesman said Sanchez, who led the Jets on a surprising playoff run that ended with a loss in the American Football Conference championship game, said surgery will repair the ligament that holds the quarterback's kneecap in place.
The Jets said team doctors will perform the surgery on Sanchez, a rookie quarterback who skipped his senior season at the University of Southern California to enter last year's NFL draft where he was selected fifth overall.
According to the Jets, Sanchez first injured his left knee while at USC and then aggravated it last November against the Carolina Panthers.
The following week he suffered an injury to his right knee against Buffalo that forced him to miss New York's next game versus Tampa Bay.
Sanchez returned in time for the team's final three regular season games and helped the Jets clinch their first playoff berth in three seasons.
He finished his rookie season with 2,444 passing yards and 12 touchdowns. In three post-season games, Sanchez threw for 539 yards and four touchdowns and was win away from being the first rookie quarterback to start in a Super Bowl.
(Writing by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Justin Palmer)
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