National Football League

Tebow's Pro Day: The blow-by-blow

Published Mar. 17, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

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It was arguably the biggest Pro Day in NFL history.

That's because Florida Gators superstar Tim Tebow finally unveiled his new and improved throwing motion before NFL scouts.

Since you couldn't be there for the action, Scout.com's Gators insider Bob Redman blogged live on the day's festivities.

For more inside info on the University of Florida, check out more at Florida.scout.com.

1:07 p.m. -- The last word from Steuber: "It's only been a couple of hours since Tebow wrapped up his Pro Day performance, but I've already had conversations with a couple of scouts who attended today's festivities in Gainesville. One NFC scout told me, 'I was blown away by the confidence he displayed in the new release and how effective he was delivering the ball. I was most impressed with his footwork and how quick he got rid of the ball; very impressive.' "

1:01 p.m. -- More final reaction, from Tim Yotter (covers the Vikings at Scout.com), who covered Tebow at the Senior Bowl and Combine: "Having followed Tebow for Scout.com and FOXSports.com throughout his week of practice at the Senior Bowl, I can tell you that he was easily the most popular player there. He wasn't the best quarterback there, but he drew fans like no else in the history of the college all-star game, according to Senior Bowl public relations director Kevin McDermond. The event sold out quickly and Florida and Alabama fans were prevalent lining the fences surrounding the playing surface, with fans all over talking about Tebow, his popularity.

"The question was, could he be an NFL quarterback? Sounds like he's starting to answer some of those questions with a change in his delivery."

12:53 p.m. -- My final take: I talked to a few scouts and to them, the most impresssive thing they took away from Tebow's performance was his ability to take away a lot of coaching in a short period of time. They felt his footwork was much improved, and because of that, they think both his short and long passing was very good ... and better than expected.

One scout made the point that a lot of the negative stuff that's been said about Tebow is way overblown, and the things he needs to improve upon are secondary to the fact that he does everything else right to win football games. By all accounts that I've heard, Tebow had an impressive performance here today at The Swamp.

12:36 p.m. -- Biggest News of the Day (in order):

12:30 p.m. -- Hernandez, Nelson and Cooper smoked the 60 yard shuttle.

12:04 p.m. -- Reflects Scout.com National Recruiting analyst Scott Kennedy: "In 2003, I got a highlight video in the mail of a pretty good receiver from Nease High School in Jacksonville. Will Oakley ended up signing a scholarship with Alabama in the Class of 2004, but it was the big lefty quarterback that was really the star of the highlight film. He was a sophomore named Tim Tebow, a member of the Class of 2006. I get asked all the time, 'When do you start scouting players?' The answer is usually pretty simple - as soon as I see them. It was apparent at an early stage in his career that Tim Tebow was a player that had star power written all over him."

11:57 a.m. -- Markihe Anderson slipped in the 3-cone with a sloppy field from too much work. He came up limping.

11:46 a.m. -- Cooper, Hernandez, Wondy, Nelson, Doe and Mirkihe are all doing 3-cone drill now.

11:43 a.m. -- Looks like Tebow is done. Crowd is chanting "First Round Draft Pick!"

11:40 a.m. -- There hasn't been a misfire yet. Scouts ask for more work, and boom! Another perfect bomb to Hernandez.

11:36 a.m. -- Tebow to Hernandez on deep seam route ... Great route by Aaron ... Mike Holmgren had a great seat for that throw.

11:35 a.m. -- Tebow hits Cooper on a 45 yard post ... Cooper never breaks stride. Then, right away, he hits Nelson on the same route but opposite side of the field ... in stride.

11:33 a.m. -- Crowd appears to be 3,000 now, and they are cheering every throw. Tebow is really hitting the long out routes. I have to think this is an impressive performance following up a great combine showing.

11:29 a.m. -- He has been on the money on every throw so far. He's hitting the receivers in stride. Tebow is clearly holding the ball higher. He hasn't changed his delivery so much but he's not looping down to his waist on his throws. Tom Coughlin is front and center to watch.

11:28 a.m. -- Tim has obviously done a lot of work on his backpedal, and he looks like a total different player dropping back. Very quick with his feet. Very impressive.

11:25 a.m. -- And so it begins. Tebow is already doing very well in his throws. I heard one scout say "Wow" when Tebow improvised a run after a fake pass rush and threw on a dime 30+ yards down the field.

11:22 a.m. -- Reflects Scout.com Recruiting analyst Bill Green: "My first introduction to Tim Tebow came when a player I covered in recruiting, current Kentucky quarterback Mike Hartline, was going through the recruiting process. Hartline attended a camp on the East Coast, and when he returned he told me 'I just saw the greatest athlete I've ever seen, and he happens to be a quarterback. All the other quarterbacks at the camp were in awe of Tebow. I've never seen anything like this guy at quarterback.' Turns out Mike Hartline was right on the money in his evaluation."

11:15 a.m. -- It's almost Tebow Time. Hearing sirens in the background, and the clouds are starting to part.

11:10 a.m. -- Scout.com NFL analyst Adam Caplan on Tebow: "Everyone wants to know where Tebow ends up. I could see the Eagles having some interest in him, especially if they end up trading Michael Vick. If they do, Tebow could slide into Vick's role in the offense.

"The New England Patriots have never been shy about using players at different positions, and so I could see them having some interest in running Tebow at TE or H-Back.

"There's always been discussion about the Jacksonville Jaguars having some interest due to their proximity to Gainesville and the built-in Tebow fan base."

11:03 a.m. -- Major Wright is the biggest ham on the team. He has a beaming smile, and loves to sing, dance and rap. Back at the Army Game four years ago, it was easy to entice him to interview fellow 5-star recruits, Aaron Hernandez and Deonte Thompson, and as you can imagine, it was a great interview session.

11:00 a.m. -- Tebow is warming up with receiver Riley Cooper, who decided not to run today. Tebow will have a compliment of receivers to work with today in Cooper, David Nelson and Brandon James.

10:58 a.m. -- Elvis has entered the building. Tebow stepped out to explosive applause from the sizable crowd which continues to grow in size.

10:57 a.m. -- Moving into DB drills now with Joe Haden, Major Wright, Markihe Anderson and Wondy Pierre-Louis. LB, OL, and DL drills are now over.

10:55 a.m. -- CB Wondy Pierre-Louis is out here today and not many know that Gator assistant Chuck Heater had to spend a great deal of time in Haiti to make sure the paperwork on Wondy went through so he could stay in the States after high school. Wondy's family made it safely through the earthquake that devastated his hometown.

10:52 a.m. -- Responds Chris Steuber: "Tebow's mechanics are crucial to me. I want to see him take snaps under center, be quick in his 5-7 step drops and display balance. If his footwork is sound, his deliver and accuracy will be fine. But if he's off-balance, he will force the issue and revert back to his elongated release and lack accuracy."

10:50 a.m. -- Speaking of Tebow, it's hard to believe that the first guy to win the Heisman as a sophomore and led the nation in passing efficiency is also the guy that has to change everything about his motion. Tebow is a winner.

10:47 a.m. -- Still no Tebow, who is always first on the field and last off of it. I think these gloomy clouds will part if he would just come outside.

10:44 a.m. -- I can remember driving to Shelby, NC to visit Spikes and his mom after he signed with Florida. Mom lived in a nice, but little apartment, and was just beaming that her son had signed with the Gators. Spikes will most assuredly buy mom a house, and work to fund freeing his brother who he feels is falsely imprisoned for a crime. Spikes has always been a great leader at Florida and fantastic with the media when he had the chance. A real straight shooter.

10:35 a.m. -- No one seems to have a great sense of exactly how fast Brandon Spikes ran today. I've heard anywhere from 4.85 to 5.01. With his playing ability, anywhere in the 4.9s should guarantee him a place in the first round.

10:33 a.m. -- David Nelson may have secured a draft spot today with his 4.4 40. Nelson was quiet most of his career because he wasn't thrown the ball. The former Army All-American stands 6-5 and is over 200 lbs, and will be a big target for QBs.

10:31 a.m. -- The knock on Dunlap so far has been immaturity, but you have to remember he's only 20. There's a reason for the immaturity.

10:25 a.m. -- Says Chris Steuber, Scout.com's NFL Draft analyst: "I've confirmed that every NFL team will be present at Florida's Pro Day today. I've talked with over a dozen scouts and they're all interested to see his new release and if he can sustain it throughout the workout. Five scouts have basically said, 'If he reverts back to his old elongated motion, he will drop significantly on our draft board.' "

10:20 a.m. -- Former Gator assistant and current Ravens DC Greg Mattison is here. He knows these guys well.

10:13 a.m. -- Tebow fact: Tim has changed the face of Florida football for sure, even as it applies to media and fans. Rules regarding access were changed because of him. He would show up a half an hour before practice to take care of autographs and after practice he'd meet with hundreds of adoring fans. It's always been a madhouse around Tim and nobody could have handled it better.

10:08 a.m. -- Still no Tebow as they set up for position drills. Tebow has certainly drawn the biggest crowd ever for a pro day, and it continues to grow ...

10:02 a.m. -- David Nelson clocks a very impressive 4.5 4.

10:00 a.m. -- Jermaine Cunningham will not run today. Spikes runs a 5.0 flat on his second run.

9:58 a.m. -- Nearly all teams are represented in Gainesville today to see if Tebow can be Te-Pro. There are about 1,000 people now in the stands, and about that many on the field with players, coaches, scouts and media.

9:55 a.m. -- Brandon Spikes runs an unofficial 5.01.

9:54 a.m. -- Joe Haden runs a 4.43.

9:51 a.m. -- Little known fact: My dad was Tim Tebow's barber, so anyone who was sure he would end up at Alabama four years ago was fooling themselves. Everyone knows you tell your barber everything!

9:50 a.m. -- Carlos Dunlap with a 4.62.

9:49 a.m. -- Markihe Anderson runs in the 4.5 range. Dustin Doe in the 4.7s.

9:40 a.m. -- Unofficial 40 times for Joe Haden (4.42) and Hernandez (4.56).

9:38 a.m. -- Just found out that TE Aaron Hernandez threw up 30 reps of 225 in the bench. Carlos Dunlap bested his combine rep number by one by getting to 22. Tim Tebow did not lift.

9:34 a.m. -- I see David Nelson and Markihe Anderson. Looks they are about to run the 40, and it certainly isn't the best of conditions. I have a feeling Tebow may not doing anything but throw today.

9:28 a.m. -- It's drizzly and about 55 degrees. There's about 500 people in the stands ... mostly to see Tebow. There will be 17 other participants working out today as well including Gator great Eric Wilbur from a few years ago.

9:25 a.m. -- The NFL scouts are coming out of the locker room, so it appears that the 2010 Florida Gator Pro Day is about to get started.

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