The Jacksonville Jaguars made headlines on Monday when a joint report from NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero indicated the team plans to sign former Florida and NFL quarterback Tim Tebow as a tight end. Tebow has spent the last few years playing baseball in the New York Mets organization, but he announced his retirement from baseball earlier this year.
As someone who grew up a fan of both the Gators and the Jaguars, my feelings upon hearing the news were mixed. I remember when Tebow was traded by the Broncos in 2012, and the Jags were one of the finalists to land him. I remember how disappointed I was when he ended up with the Jets instead of coming home to Jacksonville.
But Tebow was 25 then. Now, he’s 33. He hasn’t been on an NFL roster in any capacity in six years (and not on a 53-man in nine years), and he is looking to play professional football at a position he hasn’t played since his freshman year of high school.
And I’d be lying if I said I’m as excited for Tebow to join the Jags as I would’ve been when I was a teenager.
Tebow’s one of the greatest athletes to play the collegiate game, and he’s rightly considered an all-time college football quarterback (if not the best ever). That makes it all the more painful to accept the fact that one of my childhood heroes has been reduced to little more than a sideshow at the professional level.
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Did Tebow get a fair shot as an NFL quarterback? Probably not. After leading the Broncos to a playoff win in 2011, Denver decided to take advantage of the opportunity to land an aging superstar, Peyton Manning (a decision that paid off in the form of a Super Bowl), and shipped Tebow to New York. He started two games for the Jets in 2012, and he never made a 53-man roster again.
Considering the abysmal quarterbacks currently occupying roster spots in the league, it’s hard to imagine Tebow was really worse than all of them back then. But with that said, his football career didn’t have to end the way it did.
The idea to switch to tight end wasn’t originally Tebow’s. When he struggled to make a roster as a quarterback, multiple teams expressed interest in trying him out at tight end, but his stubbornness won out, and he made the switch to professional baseball instead.
Tebow wasn’t exactly bad for someone who hadn’t played the game since high school, but it’s hard to believe he would’ve reached AAA or the Mets’ spring training roster were he an unknown late-round prospect instead of a household name.
To Tebow’s credit, he stuck to baseball for a while and was content with the minor league grind. That’s why it’s puzzling that Tebow chose to retire after being named to New York’s spring training roster again this year, and even more so that he immediately made an attempt to return to football, at a new position, no less.
I understand why people are starting to tire of Tebow. If I were, for example, a minor league prospect with the Mets working on my game for my entire life or an undrafted free agent tight end desperate for just one opportunity to prove myself, I probably wouldn’t think too highly of him using his platform to continue to take up roster spots that he may not deserve, either.
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But I think that’s a little unfair to Tebow. I can’t tell you with a straight face that I wouldn’t keep trying to make it at the highest level of sports as long as my body allowed if I were in his position.
More than anything, I just find it sad. Tebow was one of my first sports heroes, and no matter your opinions on his athletic career, it’s hard to dislike a guy who personally devotes so much of his time to philanthropy and good works.
But Tebow is more than just a swell guy who helps a lot of people — he’s one of the unique and most talented athletes of all time. And if he had been willing to make the switch to tight end when he was still in his prime, he could still be playing football to this day.
But he didn’t. And now, most of the media speaks of Tebow as if he’s a sideshow, an event to watch like a Jake Paul boxing match rather than the world-class athlete he is. Tebow may not have been to blame for it back in 2011, but he’s certainly not doing himself any favors now.
I sincerely hope Tebow works out for the Jags, because I grew up a hardcore fan of both. I’d like nothing more than to see the two succeed in tandem. But as a realist, it’s hard for me to take what feels like a desperation move from both sides seriously.
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