Tim Tebow hasn’t had many media missteps in his career, but there’s at least one he’d like to have back. His first press conference with the New York Jets.
Tebow joined CBS Sports Radio’s afternoon show with Maggie Gray and Andrew Perloff this week and the former NFL quarterback recalled joining the Jets in 2012.
“Oh that was a disaster,” Tebow bluntly stated of his first press conference in New York. “I had no idea what I was walking into.”
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Tebow walked into a room filled with reporters, which is customary for starting quarterbacks of New York football teams. But when the Jets acquired Tebow, they did so with the vision of him being Mark Sanchez’s backup and a player who could occasionally be used to run the Wildcat formation.
Despite being a backup quarterback, the Jets knew the celebrity and star power commanded by Tebow, which is why they decided to organize a gathering of more than 100 media members at their training facility in Florham Park.
“It was a lot,” Tebow said. “That’s something I just wish I would have handled differently or just not had a press conference or just avoided that a little bit more or just kind of calmed it down.”
Tebow categorized his opening presser as a disaster, but his entire tenure in New York was a disaster. Although Tebow stole the spotlight from Sanchez, the polarizing quarterback was unable to ever start under center for the Jets. Even when Sanchez was injured and struggling mightily, Gang Green opted to bypass Tebow for Greg McElroy.
The Jets released Tebow after a brief tenure that saw him attempt just eight passes and rush for 102 yards, effectively ending his NFL career. Although he went on to join a few training camps, including a failed attempt at converting to a tight end for the Jacksonville Jaguars last year, the 34-year-old Tebow never made another regular-season NFL roster.
Tebow’s tenure in New York began with regret after a “disaster” of a press conference, but ultimately, it was his lack of passing prowess that led to his NFL downfall.
