HOT GALLERY: Get to Know These NFL Power Players Before They Were Stars
The past 2012 NFL season got off to a shaky start when the replacement referees (brought in while the NFL negotiated with the usual starters) made some highly controversial (read: wrong) calls. And in 2013, two brothers go head to head, coaching the two playoff winners: The Ravens and 49ers. And both have their eyes on that coveted Superbowl title—what are the odds of that? Check out some of these NFL big shots—and a few future Hall of Famers—before they were stars... By Nina Hämmerling SmithIt definitely takes a certain kind of guy to embrace being a New York quarterback. While the Giants’ Eli Manning may be infuriatingly lackadaisical, his counterpart on the Jets is anything but: Mark Sanchez is outspoken, charismatic, and loves the cameras. “There’s a lot of attention; it’s a white-hot spotlight,” Sanchez has said of being the Jets QB. “But the most important thing you need to know is, it’s a 24/7 job.” The theater aficionado was a presenter at the 2010 Tony Awards (he cleans up nice!) and is a natural for commercials and other spots. As a starter at USC, Sanchez led his team to a Rose Bowl victory against Penn State and was picked fifth overall in the 2009 draft a year later. Though he was signed to a whopping $50 million contract and is the face of the franchise, a significant distraction was introduced this year in the form of fellow QB (and mega media favorite) Tim Tebow.