Tim
Tebow is taking his act to Broadway. Really, this time.
Despite
a major snag that held up the trade for nine hours and let the
Jacksonville Jaguars jump back into the bidding at the last minute,
the New York Jets officially acquired Tebow from the Denver Broncos
on Wednesday night, bringing the NFL's most polarizing star to its
most dysfunctional locker room in the country's biggest media market.
The
Dolphins never had interest, with Tebow being a poor fit for new
coach Joe Philbin's West Coast offense, which requires timing,
accuracy and good footwork, none of which are Tebow's specialties.
"I
just can't see Tim with the accuracy issues he has had being able to
adjust to what Joe is going to want to do in this offense,"
former NFL quarterback Joe Theismann said.
But
Tebow, who starred at the University of Florida and has legions of
fans in South Florida, will certainly spice up the Dolphins-Jets
rivalry. He will play the Dolphins twice next season - once at Sun
Life Stadium, where he won high school and college championships and
engineered a memorable comeback win last year for the Broncos - and
play under new Jets offensive coordinator Tony Sparano, the former
Dolphins coach who had Tebow for a week at the 2010 Senior Bowl.
The
Jets will give up a fourth- and sixth-round pick in exchange for
Tebow and a seventh-round pick. And they leave their fans scratching
their heads about what, exactly, their plans are at quarterback.
On
March 12, the Jets gave Mark Sanchez a contract extension that pays
him $20.5 million over the next two years. The move was seen as an
apology for the team's pursuit of Peyton Manning and a sign of
confidence in Sanchez as the team's starter.
But
the Jets are begging for a quarterback controversy with Tebow, who
will be used initially as a situational quarterback, particularly in
the red zone. The Broncos controversially sat Tebow, who plays an
unorthodox, bulldozing style of quarterback, at the beginning of last
season. But he took over with the Broncos at 1-4 and became the NFL's
biggest sensation, going 8-5 as a starter with six last-minute wins
and an overtime playoff victory over Pittsburgh.
Tebow,
known for his virtuous ways and devout religious beliefs, also seems
like a strange match with foul-mouthed coach Rex Ryan, known as much
for making outlandish statements and boorish behavior as he is for
coaching football.
When
word of the trade first broke around noon, it was panned by many Jets
faithful.
"I'm
stunned," legendary quarterback and Tequesta resident Joe Namath
said on ESPN 1050 in New York. "I can't agree with it. I just
think that it's a publicity stunt. I really think it's wrong."
Jets
cornerback Antonio Cromartie also questioned the move on his Twitter
account. The Jets are trying to heal their locker room after several
veterans - most notably Cromartie and receiver Santonio Holmes, a
Belle Glade native - publicly ripped Sanchez after their
season-ending loss to the Dolphins in January. Cromartie defended
Sanchez this time.
"Y
bring Tebow in when we need to bring in more Weapons for
@Mark_Sanchez let's build the team around him. We already signed to 3
year ext."
But
Tebow, who has hired famed entertainment agency William Morris to
handle his burgeoning off-field career, certainly would be a huge
star in the bright lights of Manhattan. And he would be an
interesting fit with Sparano, who helped start the Wildcat formation
craze with the Dolphins in 2008. Tebow, who threw 12 touchdown passes
and ran for six more TDs last year, could be a dangerous red zone
threat with his abilities as a runner and passer.
Still,
bringing in Tebow could put Sanchez on the hot seat early in 2012.
"My
biggest question is, how is the locker room going to mesh?"
former quarterback Kurt Warner said on NFL Network. "If Mark has
a bad game here or there, are people going to start calling for
Tebow? Is that big fan base going to put pressure on the power that
be?"
The
trade almost didn't happen, even though the Jets announced to 338,711
Twitter followers at 12:50 p.m. that they had acquired Tebow.
"He
was signed, sealed and delivered," older brother Robby Tebow
told reporters while playing in the pro-am at the Arnold Palmer
Invitational in Orlando.
Except
"Apparently,
they didn't read the fine print."
The
Jets thought they were getting Tebow for three years and $3 million
guaranteed, according to reports. But if they had read Tebow's
contract closely, they would've realized that they really owed Tebow
$8 million guaranteed.
The
Jets balked when they found out the new price of Tebow, and the trade
was never approved by the NFL office. The Jaguars, Tebow's hometown
team, jumped back into the bidding and almost stole him away from the
Jets. But in the end, the Broncos and Jets decided to split the extra
$5 million owed to Tebow, sending him to New York after all.
