Tim Tebow is still a fan favorite despite being out of football for two years. Photo by T.J. Engler / contrastphotography.com

It’s hard not to like Tim Tebow once you meet him in person. To be honest I didn’t know what to expect when the Eagles signed the former Denver Broncos first round draft pick (2010).

Like everyone else, I watched him struggle on the field but attract an extraordinary amount of attention with his on-field energy and passion for his spiritual beliefs.

His lack of NFL level quarterback skills and poor stats have not diminished his star power despite being out of the NFL for two years, as evidenced by merchandise sales that skyrocketed once he signed with the Eagles in April.

After Tebow signed a one-year contract with the Birds on April 20, he became the fifth-highest selling NFL player, according to Fanatics, the largest retailer of officially licensed sports merchandise.

Tebow merchandise, which includes jerseys, has been sold to fans in all 50 states during that time, according to the online retailer.

After a recent Mini Camp sessions I asked Tebow, from his perspective, why does he command such interest despite a somewhat pedestrian NFL career?

The 27-year old paused for a second.

“I’m not sure,” Tebow said on the edge of the NovaCare practice field. “I know it’s always a blessing to be supported and support you no matter what you are going through…highs or lows…it always means a lot.”

Tebow was asked if he can transfer the positive vibes he gets from all over the country to help his play on the field, which has had its share of highs and lows during his pro career.

“Coming out here you just have to focus,” said the former Heisman Trophy winner. “And you can’t worry about anything that is going on outside of these buildings and outside the practice field. I think that’s something that you learn throughout time, through more and more experiences.

“Whether it’s good outside, whether it’s praise, whether it’s criticism, you can’t take that into here. You just have to come out here and focus on your reads, your progressions and everything like that.”

Even with his poor stats as a pro, stats that include a 47.9 completion percentage did not seem to stop him from winning games while with Denver.

Tebow started the last three games of his rookie season and became the team’s full-time starting quarterback beginning in the sixth game of 2011. The Broncos were 1–4 before he became the starter, but began winning with him on the field, often coming from behind late in the fourth quarter, until they won their first AFC West title and first playoff game since 2005, defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime.

Tebow was traded to the New York Jets during the offseason after the Broncos acquired free agent quarterback Peyton Manning but was released in April 2013.

He signed a two-year, non-guaranteed contract with the New England Patriots on June 11, 2013, before being cut from the team on August 31, 2013.

Tebow talked about the things Eagles coaches are working with him as he prepares for training camp that starts at the end of July.

“I think it’s my footwork, going through my reads,” Tebow said. “Obviously, it my first time in this offense, getting through the reads and letting your feet take you from progression to progression.”

Tebow’s throwing is what draws the most scrutiny. He talked about strides he believes he has made.

“I feel just so more confident, more accurate,” Tebow said. “I feel quicker, I am able to trust (myself) a lot more.

“I have gotten so many thousands and thousands of reps of working on certain things,” he continued. “Now it’s so ingrained, it’s so muscle-memorized, but it’s even beyond that. For me, yes you always want to focus on your fundamentals. When we come out here and we do our drills, you focus on that, but when you go seven-on-seven team, you’ve just got to go play football, and be a football player.”

Some of the attention Tebow generated his first time around was positive, some not, some of it was mockery.

Some of the negative attention it can’t be denied he brought on to himself, he bought into the hype. “Tebowing,” taking a knee in the end zone was being mimicked in every corner of the country…again some of it was seen in a positive light, some not.

Tebow has surely made an impression on his teammates. He was involved recently with putting a music compilation together with some other players that has been uploaded to many iPhones in the locker room. His teammates called it the “Timmy Turn-up Mix” and asked to have Tebow questioned about his choices.

Tebow could not stop laughing when he heard the mix was named after him.
“We have fun,” said Tebow after his finally did stop laughing. “We hang out and have fun. We get to know each other.

“I never came up with that name,” Tebow continued. “Other people came up with that name for it. It’s just us having fun. We’re just enjoying each other. You have to have a lot of joy. I try to have joy in everything I do, whether we’re hanging out waiting for practice, pre-practice, post practice afterwards, hot tubs, cold tubs…we just have fun. We enjoy it.”

One of his teammates said he found Tebow to be authentic and easy to get along with both as a teammate and off the field.

“Tebow’s about as genuine as they come,” said Vandervelde, now in his fourth season with the Eagles. “What you see is what you get. Always positive, incredible work ethic, and honestly he’s more open-minded than I thought he’d be in regard to his faith. You can really see the grace of God in everything he does.”

Tebow seems to be toning down his spiritual passion, as least in public, at least for now. He is focusing on football only. Having said that, he finishes his media sessions by saying to reporters, “God bless you guys.”
Head coach Chip Kelly says his long shot quarterback signing is getting better.

“I have seen an improvement from Tim since the day we got him in terms of his knowledge of what we’re doing, understanding where everybody is,” Kelly said. “There’s a whole process, and for him what we have done is different than what he’s done anywhere else, so in terms of learning our terminology and how we do things, I think each week you’ve seen an incremental bump in him, so excited to see where that takes him, and it’ll be a good competition as we get into August.”

Will Tebow be a blessing for the Eagles? When he first arrived, most said Tebow didn’t have a prayer making the team.

It wouldn’t hurt the Eagles coaches, their fans and observers to have a little faith.

Email Al Thompson at the.magazine2@footballstories.com