What did Charissa Thompson say? Fox Sports slammed over Mark Sanchez supportive remarks following arrest

It had been an ordinary football weekend until word spread from Indianapolis that Mark Sanchez, the former quarterback turned Fox Sports analyst, had been stabbed and later arrested. Reports from Us Weekly stated that the incident happened late October 4, and police confirmed he was taken into custody while being treated in the hospital. By Sunday, prosecutors in Marion County had filed three misdemeanor charges: battery with injury, public intoxication, and unlawful entry of a vehicle. The court set a $300 bond and an October 7 hearing date.

On FOX NFL Kickoff that morning, Charissa Thompson tried to acknowledge the unfolding situation. Sanchez had been slated to provide color commentary for the Colts–Raiders matchup.

She expressed,

“Friday night in Indianapolis, one of our team members, Mark Sanchez, was involved in an incident that we are still trying to wrap our heads around, at this time, our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family, and all of those involved.”

What came across as compassion to some felt misplaced to others. Social-media users quickly weighed in and shared a different perspective, one writing,

“How about some ‘thoughts and prayers’ for the 69 yo delivery driver he attacked for no good reason?”

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Mark Sanchez stabbed during downtown scuffle with 69-year-old worker:

According to Fox59 and court filings released later, officers were sent to West Washington Street at about 12:35 a.m. and found Mark Sanchez, the former NFL quarterback, bleeding from several stab wounds in his upper body.

Not far off, in a narrow alley, another man was hurt as well. He’s 69 and works nights hauling used cooking oil between the Westin Hotel and the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown. Cuts had marked his face.

Video from the hotel’s cameras, investigators wrote, showed Mark Sanchez jogging into the alley and heading straight for the man’s box truck. The two seemed to talk for a moment before things went bad. The affidavit says Mark Sanchez allegedly opened the driver’s door, climbed inside, even though the man told him to leave. That worker told detectives Sanchez reportedly reeked of alcohol and claimed a hotel manager had said the truck shouldn’t be there. When the worker tried calling his supervisor, Mark Sanchez had allegedly blocked him.

The footage shows them circling the truck, then wrestling by a large dumpster. Detectives said Mark Sanchez shoved the older man toward the dumpster, and the fight spilled into the narrow space between the truck and the wall. The worker pepper-sprayed him, but when Sanchez kept coming, he thought “this guy is trying to kill me,” and he pulled a knife, stabbing Sanchez several times.

The court documents, according to Fox59, cite that the video from the nearby Marriott “closely matches” the worker’s account. A driver parked nearby claimed to the police that he’d seen the two men holding up their phones, as if recording, before the scuffle began. He said one tumbled to the curb while the other ran north through the alley.

Police later recovered a knife from the truck’s seat and got warrants to search Sanchez’s clothes and phone. The victim’s family, who asked not to be named because of the attention, shared photos showing how badly he was cut; one slash went through his cheek and into his tongue.

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Fox Sports addresses Mark Sanchez stabbing, requests privacy for analyst:

Deadline reported that Fox Sports addressed the stabbing of Sanchez over the weekend. The former NFL quarterback had been injured in Indianapolis and later arrested. Fox had also issued a statement on Saturday updating the public on Sanchez’s condition:

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

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Mark Sanchez sidelined from the FOX Sports Broadcast following the Indianapolis incident:

It was supposed to be a normal broadcast for FOX Sports; Sanchez, part of the network since 2021, was slated to cover the Colts-Raiders matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium. Instead, Brady Quinn took his place.

Before the game started, Chris Myers acknowledged the unusual circumstances.

Myers shared, as per US Weekly,

“I’m Chris Myers, along with Brady Quinn, who is stepping in for Mark Sanchez, and obviously we all want to send out our thoughts and prayers to Mark and those involved in Friday’s incident, as we get ready for today’s game.”

Sanchez’s NFL career has been memorable: drafted fifth overall in 2009, he took the Jets to back-to-back AFC Championship Games, then went on to play with the Eagles, Cowboys, and Commanders before retiring in 2019.