For Sale: #15 NFL Tim Tebow jersey.

For Sale...anyone??

It was only a year ago that Tim Tebow set the NFL world on fire when the Broncos won a dramatic overtime playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on an 80 yard touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas on the first play of overtime.  Backing into the playoffs from a three game losing streak, it seemed the Broncos and Tim Tebow were going to get housed by the Steelers.  They had managed just three points the prior week at home against the lowly Chiefs and fourteen the week before in a blow-out loss at Buffalo.  Going into the playoff game, the six game winning streak of crazy come-back wins and the 16-7 early lead against New England in week 15 was long forgotten. 

We all know the rest of the story. The next week New England and their two big tight ends ran over the Denver defense with Tom Brady throwing five first-half touchdowns.  Broncos fans took a deep breath and began to look back fondly on the season that was.  A season that looked lost at 1-4, following a 6-10 record the season before, had unexpectedly turned into one of the most memorable ever.  Tim Tebow was promising to work hard in the off-season to improve his passing skills and fans were cautiously optimistic about the future.  Then, before anyone knew what happened, Peyton Manning flew into town and Tebow was quickly forgotten amidst the Manning euphoria and shipped off to the New York Jets.

Who would have imagined, that when the Jets landed Tebow—and sports commentators were wondering if NYC was big enough for Tebowmania and Linsanity—that neither Tebow or Jeremy Lin would be there a year later. Oh, well technically Tebow is still a member of the New York Jets, but that seems just a formality.  Having officially tanked Tim Tebow’s career, inexplicably Rex Ryan and Mark Sanchez seem likely to live to fight another day despite a debacle of a season that will be remembered by Sanchez’s Thanksgiving night “butt-fumble.”   

It seemed for certain that Tim Tebow would end up playing next year for the Jacksonville Jaguars, nearby where he starred in high school and college. After all, the Jags have low attendance and declining popularity, so much so that there’s talk of the franchise being moved to L.A. Surely the team could use the publicity boost that hometown favorite Tim Tebow could provide. Yet, new General Manager David Caldwell has completely slammed the door on that, saying he “can’t imagine a scenario” where Tebow would be playing for them next season.  The Jaguars have won seven games in the last two seasons combined, the same amount Tebow won as a starting quarterback in eleven games last season.

Now Tebow finds himself apparently out of options in the NFL and folks suggesting he take his talents to the Canadian Football League. Frankly I find my head spinning, wondering what the heck just happened?  From taking the league by storm and going 7-4 as a starter, leading his team to a division title, winning a playoff game, and seeing “Tebowing” becoming a national craze he now finds himself on the edge of the unemployment line. Who saw that coming a year ago? I sure didn't. 

Yes, his passing accuracy is horrific at times, but if winning really is the only thing that matters in the NFL, teams should be lining up to hire him.  Yes, he has a limited sample size, but that didn’t stop teams from throwing ungodly sums of money at Matt Flynn.  Yes, he’s a conservative Christian, but in a league full of selfish, immature guys who only care about themselves, a guy who truly cares about others and isn’t “me-first” truly is refreshing.  That’s what I’m hoping Tim Tebow gets another shot in the NFL.