Now that the Broncos are negotiating to sign Peyton Manning, they are likely to trade Tim Tebow. Though Tebow is set to earn a reasonable $1.1 million in the upcoming season, the combined $13.2 million he will earn in the two seasons after that could be a deterrent for teams. However, Tebow is a huge ticket draw, so there are owners who will want to capitalize on his selling power. The question is which teams will be interested.
The Jaguars and Dolphins are being mentioned as the early favorites to acquire Tebow in a trade. The Patriots and Eagles could also be interested because of system fits.
The Jags are Tebow’s hometown team and there was a big push from fans to draft him. The team passed on him, but new owner Shah Khan said last month he would have taken Timmy instead of defensive lineman Tyson Alualu. Reporter Mark Long reminds us that GM Gene Smith, who passed on Tebow in the draft, would not want the Denver quarterback. Khan could override (or fire) Smith and make Tebow the team’s quarterback in a crowd-pleasing move.
Miami is considered another possible home for Tebow. They need a quarterback and saw the magic of Tebow first-hand in the Week 7 overtime loss to Denver. Plus, owner Stephen Ross is so desperate to sell tickets he held a Florida Gators national championship team reunion even though it was disrespectful to the local Miami Hurricanes and celebrated the opposing team’s quarterback. Yeah, he’ll do anything for publicity and tickets.
The Patriots are another possibility for Tebow for a few reasons. One, their new offensive coordinator is Josh McDaniels, the same coach who traded up to select Tim 25th overall in the draft for the Broncos. He clearly believes Tim has the ability to become a good NFL quarterback. Additionally, Bill Belichick is tight with Urban Meyer and likes drafting the former Florida coach’s players (think Aaron Hernandez, Brandon Spikes). He might believe in Tebow as well. Tebow would be an effective weapon for the team and could develop while Tom Brady ages. Tebow might not be receptive to going to the Pats because that would mean he’d become a backup. The Pats would also be unlikely to pay that kind of money to Tebow as a backup.
The Eagles, like the Pats, already have a quarterback in place, but given Mike Vick’s tendency to miss games, they could use a high quality backup. They could view Tebow as an effective wildcat-type backup the way Vick was when he was signed out of prison. Again, Tebow’s contract would likely be an issue for Philadelphia, but given Andy Reid’s offensive creativity, he could be interested.
The Dolphins and Jags have to be considered the favorites, though a surprise team could emerge.
Thanks to Rotoworld for some of this information
