Tim Tebow could be returning to the NFL — as a tight end

Tim Tebow could be headed back to the football field, but don’t expect to see him behind center anytime soon. 

Shortly after the Jacksonville Jaguars selected Trevor Lawrence No. 1 in the 2021 NFL Draft on Thursday, reports surfaced that fellow former first-round pick Tim Tebow could also be headed to the Sunshine State.

Tebow reportedly worked out with the Jaguars’ tight ends coach, Tyler Bowen, after requesting a tryout.  

The Jaguars are led by first-time NFL head coach Urban Meyer, who happened to be the head coach of the Florida Gators from 2005 to 2010, when he and Tebow led the Gators to BCS National Championships in 2006 and 2008. Tebow played under Meyer all four years of his collegiate career before heading to the NFL Draft in 2010.

The Denver Broncos selected Tebow with the 25th pick in the first round in 2010. He went 8-6 in 14 starts with the Broncos in two seasons before being traded in 2011. 

When Tebow was traded, he had the choice to go to the Jaguars but opted to join the Jets. Could things be coming full-circle now for the former Heisman Trophy winner?

He played in 12 games with the Jets, starting just two games at quarterback behind Mark Sanchez before being released after one season. 

After his time in New York fizzled out, Tebow went on to sign a two-year, no-money-guaranteed contract with the New England Patriots in 2013, but he managed to get into only a couple of preseason games before the Pats cut him ahead of the season. In 2015, Tebow had another short training camp stint with the Philadelphia Eagles but failed to make the team’s 53-man regular-season roster and was released less than six months later.

If the 33-year-old Tebow ends up playing with the Jags in the fall, it will mark his first regular-season NFL game since 2012. 

Tebow pivoted to a professional baseball career in 2016, playing in the minor leagues in the New York Mets organization. He made it as high as Triple-A by 2019. After the 2020 minor league season was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tebow announced his retirement from baseball in February of this year. 

On Friday’s "Undisputed," Skip Bayless discussed the "Tebow magic" that could be headed Jacksonville’s way. 

"It’s going to work because Tim Tebow is desperate just to be on a football team," Bayless said. "He misses it dearly. … It just tore his heart out that he never really got a chance to be a starting quarterback after what he did for the Denver Broncos for that one glorious run."

Shannon Sharpe wasn’t as confident, however, saying that Tebow's return to the game isn't that simple.

"Football didn’t pan out. He wanted to be a professional baseball player," Sharpe said. "Baseball didn’t pan out. Now he wants to try to be a professional football player in a different position ... a position that he was unwilling to try when he was in the NFL.

"Tim needs to understand that … most NFL players’ dreams only last two-and-a-half years. Tim got something about that. Let it go. … We know very few people would get this opportunity, but had he been willing to swallow his pride … play fullback, teams offered … My only question is why wouldn’t you attempt to make this switch when you were in your 20s?"

Is Tebowmania headed to a stadium near you?

Only time will tell, but until then, get your eye black ready. 

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