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How Tim Tebow's Reported Contract Impacts Jaguars' Depth Chart
May 20, 2021
The Jacksonville Jaguars have finalized the long-rumored contract with former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow, who will attempt to make the Jags' final roster as a tight end.
ESPN's Adam Schefter first reported the news Thursday:
Here's a look at the Jaguars' updated offensive depth chart after the signing:
QB: Trevor Lawrence, Gardner Minshew II, C.J. Beathard
RB: James Robinson, Carlos Hyde, Dare Ogunbowale
RB/WR: Travis Etienne
WR 1: DJ Chark Jr.
WR 2: Marvin Jones Jr.
WR 3: Laviska Shenault Jr., Phillip Dorsett, Collin Johnson
TE: Chris Manhertz, James O'Shaughnessy, Tyler Davis, Tim Tebow
LT: Cam Robinson, Walker Little
LG: Andrew Norwell, Ben Bartch
C: Brandon Linder, Tyler Shatley
RG: A.J. Cann, Tre'Vour Wallace-Simms
RT: Jawaan Taylor, Will Richardson
Jacksonville later made the deal official and provided comments from Tebow:
The 33-year-old University of Florida product last played in a regular-season NFL game in 2012. He had training camp stints with the New England Patriots in 2013 and Philadelphia Eagles in 2015, but he couldn't crack either team's final roster.
He's since tried his hand at baseball, embarking on four-year run in the New York Mets' minor league system, and worked as a college football analyst for ESPN and the SEC Network.
Tebow is a long shot to make the Jags' final roster for a variety of reasons, ranging from his age to his lack of experience at the position, but he's got a relationship with head coach Urban Meyer from their time together at Florida, which included two national titles.
Meyer told Pro Football Focus' Cris Collinsworth (via Charles Curtis of USA Today) the team's coaches and talent evaluators were surprised by Tebow during his tryouts:
"He was in the best shape of his life, asked to see if he could work out with a couple of our coaches. I wasn't even there. They came back to me and said, 'Wow, this guy's in incredible shape.' Then, I went another time and watched them try him out. And they said go work on these things, he comes back later. They try him out again—I'm not there—they come in and they said, 'Wow, this guy's ball skills, he's a great athlete, he looks like he's 18 years old, not 33. I said, 'Guys you don't understand, now this guy is the most competitive maniac you're ever gonna talk to and let's give it a shot.'"
The one thing working to Tebow's advantage is the lack of a standout tight end on the Jaguars roster. So if he can showcase progress throughout training camp and makes some plays in the preseason, he may force the coaching staff into a tough decision when rosters are trimmed.
If he does make the team, he will likely operate more as a pass-catching and gadget-play specialist than an every-down tight end expected to handle in-line blocking responsibilities and things of that nature.