Copyright Men's Journal
After Tim Tebow’s time with the Denver Broncos ended in 2012, the opportunity seemingly presented itself where, had he chosen to do so, he could have been traded to his hometown of Jacksonville and played for the Jaguars. In fact, at the time, Jaguars owner Shad Khan expressed interest in Tebow and offered the Broncos a sweeter deal to land him: a fourth-round pick and $3 million to compensate for money that had to be advanced to Tebow. Instead, Tebow expressed interest in being traded to the New York Jets following conversations with then-head coach Rex Ryan. For years, the sports world wondered why Tebow gave the Jacksonville Jaguars the cold shoulder. In a new In Depth With Graham Bensinger interview, Tebow reveals for the first time why he chose to play for the Jets instead of his hometown Jaguars. “Well, I would’ve loved it. But we were all told that – besides the ownership – that nobody wanted me here,” he said. “And so it’s makes it really hard when the ownership wants you, but the staff doesn’t.” At the time, the Jaguars were still heavily invested in 2011 first-round pick Blaine Gabbert at quarterback, meaning Tebow wouldn’t have really had the chance to play himself as the starter. So, while he would have loved to play for his hometown team, Tebow says he needed to be where he was wanted. “It’s obviously a dream come true. I would love it [to play in Jacksonville]. I mean, are you kidding me? I love Jacksonville,” He said. “I think most people would get this: It’s important to go to a place you think you’re wanted, right? It just changes so much.” As for why he never revealed this at the time, Tebow said “it’s not really my place to bring that up.” Tebow fizzled out in stints with the Jets, New England Patriots, and Philadelphia Eagles. Then, after six years out of the league, Tebow in 2021 called his former Florida coach, Urban Meyer, who was coaching the Jaguars, about an opportunity to play in Jacksonville. Tebow signed with the Jaguars on a one-year deal, but not to play quarterback. It was to be a tight end. That opportunity also fizzled out. When asked if he should have gotten another starting opportunity, Tebow offered a hard truth. “I think I should have done better with the opportunities that I had,” he said. “I think it just could have handled it better. I mean, I got an opportunity with the Jets and should have performed better. With the Patriots, should have performed better. Eagles should have performed better.” He added, “I don’t want to make it about ‘I should have got another shot.’ No, I should have made more with my shot. There’s a big difference.”
