It really didn’t take long at all, just like you knew it wouldn’t. Within minutes of Tim Tebow’s predictable release from the Jacksonville Jaguars, the first memes and posts started up and the momentum kept on rolling from there. Pretty soon there were cartoon jokes and celebrity jokes and religious jokes and WWE jokes and every kind of attempt to raise a chuckle you could think of. Some were funny, some were silly and the never-ending list was interspersed with non-stop clips from last weekend, when Tebow tried to show he could be a tight end in the National Football League and didn’t come anywhere near achieving that. And so the quirky summer experiment ended much like we could have guessed it would, with Tebow cut by the Jaguars and Twitter having an absolute field day with it. To many, Tebow is a punchline. Or an online punchbag. It’s not entirely fair, but that doesn’t stop the jabs from coming in. On a Tuesday morning, a touch over three weeks out from Week 1 of the NFL season, the freshly-ditched guy from the foot of the depth chart on a team that went 1-15 last year generated more conversation than Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Lamar Jackson combined, a fact which would have surprised no one. Such is the curious case of Tebow, a player, like so many others before him, who tried and failed to stick around in the NFL but a crossover personality with a level of fame that matches up with some of the best to ever play the game. Now that it’s over … wait, hang on, we assume it’s over, right? Right, Tim? At the very least, clearly, this is the end of Tebow’s time in the NFL sphere. The footage of his blocking attempts won’t suddenly disappear and no, that tight end thing isn’t going to fly. At 34, he’s not going to resurface as a running back or, welp, a throwback quarterback. If it was anyone else, it would be categorically assumed it is the end of their athletic career entirely, though social media won’t have it, with suggestions and Photoshopped images that he’ll try basketball or rugby or even go for a spot on the United States curling team, forming part of the internet giggle-fest by the time lunchtime on Tuesday had hit. He’s already called it a day in baseball after four seasons with the New York Mets organization, an odd little segue that is somewhat hard to categorize. It felt like a pure marketing ploy by the Mets, except Tebow kept moving up through the minor league system and ended up with a passable batting average of .222 and 18 home runs in a sport he hadn’t played since high school. “I will miss Tebow,” FS1’s Skip Bayless said on “Undisputed.” “The firestorm of reaction pro and con, to Tebow – he was the biggest lightning rod I’ve ever encountered and the single most debatable athlete in the history of sports.” The thing is, Tebow isn’t going to be going away, no matter what. He’s too juicy a talking point for that, and if there is one thing sports fans everywhere adore, it is someone who polarizes opinion. Mark this down, however things shake up with the Jaguars this season, head coach Urban Meyer’s decision to have Tebow along for a decent part of the preseason ride will form part of the chatter. The wisdom or otherwise of that decision is roiling now. Don’t expect it to cease. “I just hate that someone missed an opportunity because Urban gave a friend, a former player of his, an opportunity he didn’t deserve,” Undisputed’s Shannon Sharpe added. “Somebody else deserved that opportunity and didn’t get it.” It is impossible to even find consensus on how Tebow’s career should be remembered. He won the Heisman Trophy and a national title at Florida, though some will argue his impact on the NFL with the Denver Broncos, the whole Tebow-mania stretch that spawned a dramatic overtime playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, had a level of cultural relevance that can’t be matched. For others, the ceaseless effort to remain in sports, with baseball and even this last hurrah with the Jags, may be the most fascinating part of the tale. Because even Tebow’s firmest critics have to have a grudging respect for his continued attempts to live the dream of being a professional athlete. He knew what would be said about him when he tried baseball, yet did it anyway. He would have been even more acutely aware of the jokes certain to follow his tight end try, but he gave that a go too, probably knowing it was going to take a miracle to land a roster spot. Sure, he got his opportunity by leveraging his fame and his history with the coach. A lot of people would have done the same and the main reason someone wouldn’t is through fear of scorn, something Tebow never concerned himself with. “Thankful for the highs and even the lows, the opportunities and the setbacks,” Tebow tweeted. I’ve never wanted to make decisions out of fear of failure and I’m grateful for the chance to have pursued a dream.” Should Tebow have realized long ago that the kind of breakthrough to stardom he wanted wasn’t coming and given it up for a full-time television gig? Why? If the chance is there, however slim, why not try? Say what you like about Tebow, he was never frightened to make the attempt, never put off by the harsh words, the scoffing doubters or the mean tweets. Barring a new beginning in curling or dodgeball or lacrosse or whatever, Tebow departs the field of play as a guy who truly gave it every chance. Not everyone can say that, though everyone would like to. The internet humor will keep on coming at Tebow and it’s OK to laugh along with the funny ones, but whatever social media says, the joke’s not on him. Here’s what others have said … Colin Cowherd, The Herd: “(Tim) Tebow is not a pro athlete… You can go into any Gold’s Gym in America and find a dozen Tim Tebow’s. It’s over and it should be.” Skip Bayless, Undisputed: “Tim Tebow would have been a good story, but he couldn’t back it up on the field.” Troy Aikman, FOX: “Albeit a short tenure, don’t discount the impact Tim Tebow had in helping Urban Meyer with his locker room culture. And knowing the respect Urban has for Tebow, his release sends a message to team that this is business.” |
