Tim Tebow feeling more comfortable
New England Patriots third-string quarterback Tim Tebowthrew plenty of wounded ducks in a forgettable preseason outing against the Philadelphia Eagles when looking at things throw-by-throw, but he did an impressive job mentally by learning a new offense and doing some option stuff. The Patriots offensive line, as Sebastian Vollmer told us yesterday, has a new blocking scheme when Tebow is on the field, and it seems like Tebow is set to make the roster even if Bill Belichick isn’t willing to commit to saying anything about that (well, he obviously isn’t going to tell us regardless). Belichick stated yesterday that the team has to be careful not to waste too much time on something that won’t pay off, and I have a hard time believing that the Patriots would take Tebow, implement these schemes, and then abruptly release him before one full season when looking at that quote.
New England Patriots quarterback Tim Tebow (5) leaves the field after the second half of a preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. The Patriots won 31-22. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Tim Tebow is already starting to feel more comfortable with the Patriots team and scheme, via WEEI, “I’m trying to do everything the other guys are doing and obviously learn as we go. But I’m feeling more comfortable every day.”
That’s definitely bound to happen, and I hate it when people try and read too much into Tebow’s outing against the Eagles. We learned absolutely nothing new that we didn’t already know about Tebow, because we know he is work in progress with severe accuracy issues. What I do want to know, though, is how he fits into the Patriots scheme. They aren’t going to take Tom Brady off of the field for using Tebow on gimmick plays, but it will be interesting to see if the utilize his abilities as a rusher. In my eyes, it is more likely that we see Tebow inactive this season whilst developing under the Patriots. This team needs to see if Tebow can be the next backup in New England, as this will allow them to feel better about trading Ryan Mallett if the right price finally comes their way.
Tebow has been working closely with assistant coach Brian Daboll, and he’s also in great company with Bill Belichick as his head coach, Tom Brady as the starting quarterback, and the man who drafted him in the first round as his offensive coordinator. He added this, “I’ve really enjoyed it. I love the offense. Being able to learn from a great quarterback — one of the best ever to play. To be able to learn from coach McDaniels and work with coach Daboll and coach [Scarnecchia] and everybody who has been in this offense, it’s been a pleasure for me.”