Tight End Tebow?

Known as a bruiser. A rugged, gritty, player filled with more passion than a newlyweds honeymoon.

Tebow spent so much time rewriting record books in the collegiate level, you may mistake him for the Apostle Paul.

What gave opposing defenders motivation to wake up early to train for the moment of beating him? What troubled opposing coaches the nights before they faced the Florida Gators? What was it, that separated Tebow from every other player in the country? His speed, agility, leadership, and courage. Defenders had trouble sacking him, let alone tackling him in open field.

His glory days are over.

He’ll never run out in front of 100,000 fans cheering his name. He’ll never raise another MVP trophy. He’ll most likely never feel the incredible weight ascend off of his shoulders, as he hears that he’s a starting quarterback.

You can be damn sure he won’t give up though.

After a wasted season in New York with the abysmal Jets organization. And a coach with more interest in Sonic commercials, trash talking, and bare feet, than he does winning football games.

Tebow never captured the success he had in college. The Broncos parted ways with him two seasons ago, the Jets released him earlier this offseason, and now he is on the Patriots roster.

Tebow was saved from the hellish-like atmosphere from an unlikely savior, Bill Belichick.

Belichick was recently ranked 7th on ESPN’s list of Greatest NFL Coaches of All-Time. Sounds like an upgrade from the loud mouth up north, huh?

The coaching wizard has his work cut out for him. The upcoming season looks shady for the organization used to winning.

The Patriots are in uncharted territory ladies and gentlemen. Every team deals with their departing players and incoming talent. However the Pats will be without their top five receivers from the 2012-2013 season!

Welker is catching passes from Peyton Manning 5280 feet high. Danny Woodhead is trying to re-ignite his career with new offensive minded coach Mike McCoy in San Diego.  Brandon Lloyd is looking for work as a free agent. Rob Gronkowski will be sidelined for all of training camp and if all goes better than expected he will be ready by their first game.

And Aaron Hernandez, if you haven’t been keeping up with his drama you are missing out. Hernandez has had gang trouble in his past. He was arrested twice during his tenure at the University of Florida. Recently he is tied to a murder. His past won’t help him, especially with the amount of evidence against him.

I could type about this incident for paragraphs but I’ll just mention the noteworthy evidence. The victim, Odin Lloyd, was dating the sister of the mother of Aaron’s child. (Sister of the mother, not as complicated as it seems). He was with Lloyd the night he died, Aaron was seen partying at a bar with Odin and two others.

Early monday morning neighbors heard gunshots in the area. Hernandez hired a cleaning company to scrub down his mansion. (Not suspicious at all right?) He destroyed his security footage and his cell phone. (I wonder what his reasoning was to the police) And the body of Odin was found in a park, near a rental car in Aaron’s name. Reportedly there is a warrant out for the arrest of Hernandez, although I’d be surprised if Robert Kraft doesn’t cut him tomorrow.

In the past Tebow has refused to play any position other than quarterback. This dates back to his high school and collegiate playing days. The difference between then and now? Although his throwing technique was poor, he was still extremely talented in those lower levels.

Could it be that Tebow finally experienced a revelation while reading the sacred Bible verse: Philistinians 1:15,

“Tebow shall not embarrass his God-given abilities any longer as a quarterback.” This is an opportunity for him to start fresh, while he is relatively still young in the NFL.”

On the pro side for him, he is back with quarterback guru Josh McDaniels. Training under him may improve his skills somewhat. He’s also behind some elite quarterback named Tom Brady. Could the offensive mind of McDaniels mold Tebow into an ideal prototype quarterback after a few seasons? Would he be ready to take over the reigns of the Pats after Tom Brady retires in the next two or three seasons? You know Timmy will be praying about this tonight.

I don’t think he will switch over to tight end.

Just for fun, if he did, I think he’d be used in short-medium packages. His catching ability remains to be seen. Although he has great ball carrier vision with a few fumbles on his record.

He would attract coverage. Since his blocking ability is unknown (to me at least) I bet as soon as he would enter a game, it would be obvious that it’s a passing play. Linebackers would call an audible. The defensive line may shift from a 4-3 to a 3-4, adding a defensive end to cover the elusive #15.

What if the Patriots started using Tebow as a decoy?  Imagine the possibilities the Patriots could think of. 4th and 3, Tebow’s on the field, short pass or a screen? Halfback pitch or a play action pass with a fake to Tebow. Imagine the endless opportunities.

Is there any real harm to trying Tebow out for tight end during training camp? Unless they are serious about him being a backup quarterback, I don’t see any concern. Tebow hasn’t suffered any major injuries. He wouldn’t be a concern to tear an ACL or strain his back.  He has brute strength. He has courage. He has heart. He won’t back down from a defender, he’ll fight for every yard. That’s what you want. A coaches dream. I think they’d give him an opportunity if he was interested.

Does he have a real chance at becoming a starter for the Patriots? Unless he converts to tight end and presses his work ethic and prayers into this new role, I doubt it. He could become a second string tight end, (demoted to third string once Gronk returns) used for receiving purposes.

While tight ends aren’t usually known for blocking, I don’t see Tebow as a blocker at all. Pro Bowl defensive players such as Von Miller, Terrell Suggs, and Aldon Smith would say a blessing before every snap, thanking The Lord for the upcoming delicious meal, before they devour all 6’3 of him.

The Patriots will most likely give him a chance. But management will also be frantically gandering at the remaining unsigned free agents.  The market includes former Pro Bowl tight ends Dallas Clark (2009) and Chris Cooley (2007-2008).

#TightEndTimmy doesn’t look likely. Tebow will have to stick with leading the team’s Bible study on the bench, not leading the team’s receptions.

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