Philadelphia Eagles

When Did Tim Tebow Turn Heel?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Why are some rooting for Tim Tebow to fail?

Our nation’s obsession with former National Football League quarterback Tim Tebow is difficult to explain. Tebow was last a college football sensation all the way back in 2009. Following his days at the University of Florida, Tebow experienced some success with the Denver Broncos. How much of that was due to Tebow and how much came down to luck has been debated for years. What cannot be debated, however, is that Tebow won a playoff game as a starting QB in Denver.

The Broncos replaced Tebow with Peyton Manning, a decision that worked out well for the franchise and for Manning. Tebow, meanwhile, found no success with the New York Jets, New England Patriots, or Philadelphia Eagles. Despite looking decent while serving as a backup with the Eagles during the 2015 preseason, Tebow did not make the team’s final roster.

Tebow has not since been an active member of the NFL.

Tebow-related stories still make headlines, generate page views and explode on social media whenever he is in the news even though he technically hasn’t been a pro athlete in over a year. We were reminded of this last month when Tebow announced he was holding a workout for Major League Baseball scouts. The New York Mets, it turned out, were impressed enough to offer Tebow a minor league contract.

A nice twist to the story, right? You wouldn’t know that judging by certain responses on social media and on local and national sports talk shows. Some mocked the signing and mocked Tebow after the Mets announced the signing of the former NFL QB.

"The biggest joke ever."

Some MLB players aren't too happy that the Mets signed Tim Tebow. https://t.co/DgaWdvqv7O

— SB Nation (@SBNation) September 9, 2016

AL exec calls Mets signing of Tim Tebow 'a joke.' https://t.co/8fomktwgNt pic.twitter.com/7lzIuT7DiE

— theScore (@theScore) September 9, 2016

We, thus, arrive to the question asked in the title; did Tim Tebow turn heel at some point and I just missed it?

Tebow, by all accounts, was a good guy and a good teammate during his days in the NFL. Tebow never had a reputation for rocking the boat. He didn’t ask to be traded to the circus that was the Jets during the Rex Ryan era. Tebow never got arrested. He was never linked with performance-enhancing drugs or a scandal.

He is seemingly an even better person off of the football field. Tebow goes out of the way to be personable with fans. He is charitable, travels to hospitals to interact with sick kids. If anything, Tebow seems too good, to the point that you would think he was playing a gimmick if you didn’t know he is genuine.

The Mets taking a flier on Tebow is not like an NFL team stashing him on a roster just to sell jerseys. Yes, the Mets made news and will probably sell some merchandise due to signing Tebow. Tebow is not anywhere close to even flirting with making the club’s main roster. Nobody within the organization is pretending otherwise. A 29-year-old who is a great athlete and who proved during a workout he can crush baseballs during batting practice received a minor league contract.

What’s the big deal?

Such criticisms of Tebow are, of course, nothing new. Even when Tebow won games while with the Broncos, NFL analysts seemingly found joy in pointing out the numerous flaws in his mechanics. They mocked Tebow’s well-known religious beliefs, suggesting that maybe “divine intervention” was allowing Tebow to trip into victories until the Broncos lost a playoff game to the New England Patriots.

These haters, “haters” being the appropriate word to describe anybody who openly cheered against Tebow over the years, missed out on some fun while it existed. No, Tebow wasn’t a classic quarterback who was going to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame years after his career ended. Tebow was never going to become a top-tier QB.

Would Tebow really be the worst quarterback in the NFL today? Would he really be that much worse than who you see as the second-worst QB in the NFL?

Denver fans wanting a better quarterback to lead their team’s offense all those years ago is understandable. Casual observers with no ties to Tebow or the Broncos had no reason, however, to not sit back and enjoy the ride. You never knew what you were going to get when Tebow lined up under center for a drive, particularly in the closing minutes of games.

That’s what made Tebow so entertaining.

The NFL could use a lot more guys like Tebow these days. Tebow would not only make for a positive face for the league. He would also serve as a mentor and positive influence for younger players. Tebow shouldn’t offer any would-be starting QB passing lessons, but that’s a different matter entirely.

In reality, Tebow is a role model for anybody out there chasing an objective he has not yet caught, and for anybody who tried to accomplish something but failed. Tebow likely dreamed, as a youngster, his NFL career would go differently. He fell time and time again, to the point that he was bounced out of the league. Tebow picked himself up, dusted himself off and moved on to the next chapter.

That’s admirable, regardless of what any haters may say.

I, for one, am rooting for Tebow to get at least one MLB at-bat. Maybe, a year or two from now, the Mets could call Tebow up to the main roster in September, and maybe he could see a few pitches from an ace or a closer. Tebow may not make contact, but that’d make for quite an interesting at-bat. Either way, he’d probably be all smiles after the game.

What a heel.