Tim Tebow, who could have been traded to the Jaguars in 2012 but chose the Jets instead, could finally be signing with Jacksonville. Coach Urban Meyer, in explaining the overall reasoning to Cris Collinsworth, strongly suggested that Tebow will inevitably be a Jaguar.
“We have not signed Tim,” Meyer told Collinsworth. “There’s a thought going around. He was in the best shape of his life, asked to see if he could work out with a couple of our coaches. I wasn’t even there. And they came back to me and said, ‘Wow, this guy’s in incredible shape.’ Then I went another time and watched them try him out. And they said, ‘Go work on these things.’ He comes back later. They try him out again, I’m not there. They came in and they said, ‘Wow. This guy’s ball skills. He’s a great athlete. He looks like he’s 18 years old not whatever he is, 33. And I said, ‘Guys, you don’t understand, now. This guy is, he’s the most competitive maniac you’re ever gonna talk to. And let’s give it a shot. And I have not decided if we’re gonna do that or not yet. Getting close. I gotta make a decision here pretty soon.”
So it looks like Tebow was worked out not once but three times by the Jaguars. It also looks like Meyer, by using the phrase “let’s give it a shot,” plans to sign Tebow, who last played in a regular-season game nine years ago.
As mentioned earlier, Meyer is the only coach who would sign Tebow. And Meyer can say whatever he wants about Tebow being in the “best shape of his life” and having great ball skills despite never playing tight end, but here’s the simple reality: No one has even remotely considered the prospect of signing Tebow.
If he truly had the chops to play tight end, someone else would have at least have given him a workout by now. Thus, like his foray into baseball, this isn’t about finding the best available player but about finding the best available gimmick.
As Meyer tells it, Tebow initiated the process. Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t. Regardless, the inevitable signing of Tebow by the Jaguars isn’t about football but the business of football.
The question then becomes whether he’s good enough in practice to keep teammates from rolling their eyes even more than they already will be inclined to do based on his lone snap playing NFL tight end.