Mark Sanchez files guilty plea days before stabbing trial was set to begin in Indianapolis

Attorneys for former Fox Sports analyst Mark Sanchez have filed a guilty plea for charges stemming from a late-night stabbing nearly a year ago.

According to multiple news outlets in Indianapolis, where Sanchez was set to face trial next week, his attorneys filed a motion for a guilty plea with a county superior court on Thursday. It is unknown which charges Sanchez is pleading guilty to; among those he faced were battery causing serious injury, unauthorized entry of a motor vehicle, and public intoxication, per the local Fox affiliate.

Sanchez, who was in Indianapolis to call a Colts game on Oct. 5 last year, was involved in a violent altercation outside his hotel with a 69-year-old truck driver. The former NFL quarterback, who is believed to have been intoxicated, allegedly confronted the man inside the cab of his delivery truck. The truck driver, who is now a plaintiff in the civil suit against Sanchez, claims he believed his life was in danger and pepper-sprayed and stabbed Sanchez in self-defense.

Both men were hospitalized after the incident. Sanchez was suspended and then later fired by Fox Sports.

The trial had been delayed five times, though an end to the proceedings now seems in sight with the reported guilty plea. Sanchez’s attorneys have reportedly requested in the filing that Sanchez be sentenced on Nov. 9 or 16.

“This is a positive development. We are finalizing an agreement with the prosecutor’s office that provides a path toward resolving the state’s case,” Nick Sanchez Jr., a legal advisor to Sanchez, said in a statement. “We’re also encouraged by the constructive conversations taking place regarding the related civil matter. There is real momentum toward bringing this entire chapter to a close.”

“We are pleased with the constructive and professional conversations we’ve had with Mr. Sanchez’s team,” read a statement from the plaintiff’s attorney Matt Golitko. “Our discussions have been productive and we’re on a positive path toward an agreement that will allow the parties to move forward.”

Outside of a social media post around the holiday season last year alluding to the incident and expressing his appreciation for his family, Sanchez has kept a low profile. Fox replaced him with Drew Brees mid-season, cutting short Sanchez’s promising rise to the network’s No. 3 NFL broadcast booth and a weekly television show.