@alcaruso3[/author_info] [/author]
The Philadelphia Eagles are 3-3 this season. Yet, head coach and overseer of the football operations department Chip Kelly has elected to go with Sam Bradford as the quarterback after the trade for Nick Foles.
While he has struggled, another quarterback, who was with the team during its training camp, can’t even get another shot in the league. Tim Tebow was released by the team in one of its final cuts.
Yet, Eagles fans are getting frustrated with Bradford. And they’re the type that will turn quickly on you when you’re not performing. A longtime Eagles fan, David Rickert believes the team would have been better off with Tim Tebow as the quarterback.
“When you see Tebow play, he could scan the field,” he said. “If the No. 1 wide receiver was covered, he would go to the No. 2 or No. 3 option. Bradford, on the other hand, if a play was called to go to the No. 1 guy, he’ll throw it to him no matter what. The guy’s in triple coverage, which has happened, and yet, he throws it to him anyway. I mean, Bradford doesn’t even know how to throw it out of the end zone. I think the two ACL’s have something to do with it.”
When Tebow was released, Kelly said that he wasn’t good enough. But if you ask Rickert and others diehard Eagles fans, they would tell you that it should have been the other way around.
“I’d like to see him (Bradford) fired first of all,” he added. “I mean, he’s horrible. He shouldn’t even be in the NFL. He’s thrown close to 10 picks already, and he throws the ball too high or too short. One in every billionth pass, it seems like, it’s perfect. Tebow would have done a lot better with this team. At least with Tebow, he was always throwing short, so you can adjust for that, or allow the playmakers to make plays. He was still learning the offense when he was cut, as was Bradford, but this offense isn’t right for him. There were two former Heisman winners fighting for the depth chart at that position – and I think, along with other fans, we got the worst one of the bunch.”
Earlier this year, Tebow was signed by the Eagles to a one-year deal. The deal gave the Eagles coaching staff enough time to look at the signal-caller during training camp.
The signing was the first time that he was in the NFL since being released by the New York Jets in 2012. But when it was time for the Eagles to make final cuts, the University of Florida legend was not on the roster.
“I can’t answer the question as to why he’s not in the league,” longtime Philadelphia Eagles beat writer Mark Eckel said. “I think he belongs in the league, but I think he’s run out of chances now. Even the players love him – over the summer, I asked them if they were going to keep (Matt) Barkley or Tebow – and nearly everyone said Tebow, while some said they didn’t know.”
But when he signed with the Eagles, it was believed that when he signed, it was the perfect team for him. When he was at the University of Florida, he run an option system, and that’s the offense that Kelly runs with the Eagles.
“Chip (Kelly) said that he wasn’t good enough,” Eckel added. “He had Thad Lewis in here now, who’s not very good as a third quarterback. He also had Stephen Morris, who was horrible. The rap on Tebow is that he doesn’t throw a good ball, or a spiral, but it doesn’t have to be great. You also need your players to make plays. He also brings an attitude to the team, too. His presence rallies people and the whole team plays better with him.
“I even talked to Riley Cooper, who was with him at Florida, and he said that he leadership qualities that when he says something, everyone believes it. The promise quote against Mississippi, when he said we’re not going to lose another game that year. Riley told me, “Ok, we’re not going to lose, and we didn’t.”
If Tebow would have made the team, he would have been the third string quarterback behind
Bradford and Mark Sanchez. Yet, more importantly, he would have been a great locker room guy.
“Bradford hasn’t played well, and there’s no denying that,” Eckel mentioned. “He’s irratic at best. That’s another thing: Tebow at his worst wouldn’t turn the ball over, as he doesn’t throw interceptions or fumble the ball as much as other quarterbacks. He secures the ball very well, and that’s another reason why I can’t understand why he’s not in the league. Again, I’m not saying he should be starting, or a star, but he’s a heck of a lot better than a lot of quarterbacks in the league. It doesn’t make any sense to me. I like the guy a lot, as I probably wrote about him a 100 times in two months.
“A lot of the guys talk a lot about him, but he’s very genuine and sincere in what he believes in. Off the field, with what he does to help kids, he told me that means way more. He told me that his mission is to help people and football is part of that, especially the kids. He has a foundation that does so much work in the Phillipines and all around the world. He’s a wonderful person and I don’t get why any team doesn’t have him on their roster. He belongs in the NFL somewhere.”
As Eckel and Rickert believe that Tebow should be in the NFL, it’s the decision-makers in the NFL that won’t take another chance on him. It appears like he may be done after failing in his attempt to make the Eagles and the New England Patriots prior to that after spending three seasons combined with the Denver Broncos and the New York Jets.
In four preseason games in Philadelphia, Tebow went 21 of 36 for 286 yards. He also had two touchdowns and one interception, while being sacked five times. He also rushed for 82 yards on 14 carries and a touchdown.
Many thought that Tebow played his way onto the Eagles roster after the final preseason game. The next day, Barkley was traded to the Arizona Cardinals for a seventh round pick, and the following morning, Tebow was let go.
“I really don’t know,” Eckel acknowledged. “We were led to believe – everyone who covers the team – we thought the battle was between Barkley and Tebow. I thought Tebow beat out Barkley personally. When they traded Barkley that Friday to the Cards, everyone wrote Tebow won the job. Well, then the next day, which was a Saturday morning on cut down day, they cut Tebow, too. I said, they brought in Morris, who they put down to the practice squad, before they brought in Lewis, who is really just another guy. If you would have told me during training camp that neither Tebow or Barkley would not be on the team, I would have told you that you were crazy. I thought at least one of them was going to make it. This all came out of nowhere.
“It’s a shame, because I’m a Tim Tebow guy. I thought he would be the Eagles third-string quarterback without a doubt. I’m shocked as to why he’s not in the league, especially here. I’ve been awful quarterback play from so many teams in the league. I believe there’s a handful of elite quarterbacks, some average one’s, and a lot of bad one’s. You can say all you want about Tebow – his throwing motion or the ball not having a tight spiral – but this guy wins. He’s won everywhere he’s been. He won State Championships in high school, National Championships at Florida, and he goes to the Denver Broncos when they had Kyle Orton . That year, they were like 1-4 or 2-5 under Orton, and then he leads them to the Division and beats the Pittsburgh Steelers in the playoffs. Then, once they get Peyton Manning, they ship him to New York, which was a disaster from the start. But he deserves to be in this league without a doubt. I’ll hope that he gets another shot, but sadly, I don’t think that time will come.”