New Browns G.M. Tom Heckert spent last week at the Senior Bowl to observe Florida quarterback alum Tim Tebow, among others.
Unlike ESPN’s Todd McShay, Heckert isn’t bashing Tebow for practicing and playing in the game. In fact, Heckert believes Tebow will avoid a position change.
“I think he’s going to be a quarterback first of all,” Heckert said. “He’s got it all. He’s everything you want, the greatest kid in the world. People can knock him all they want, but he won a ton of games [at Florida]. He threw the ball and threw the ball well. I think somebody’s going to get a good player.”
Heckert admits he doesn’t know when Tebow will be drafted, and that the 2007 Heisman winner’s delivery could afford to be “shorten(ed)...up a little bit.”
The Browns need a quarterback.
While Heckert’s feelings seem to indicate plenty of interest in Tebow as a developmental prospect at least, club president Mike Holmgren would likely prefer a quarterback with a skill set befitting the West Coast offense. West Coast quarterbacks are accurate and release the football quickly. Tebow appears to be lacking in both areas.
We can expect similar statements from front-office people in positions similar to Heckert’s over the next three months. Ultimately, though, much of it will be posturing. And an organization run by an offensive mind with as much history using one system as Holmgren is very unlikely to use a second-, let alone first-day draft pick on Tim Tebow.