On the day before Tim Tebow was to be thrown to the New York media wolves, Jets owner Woody Johnson made it expressly clear the trade was solely for on-the-field reasons.
“Let me be really clear about this, we work for the fans and the fans want us to win games,” Johnson said at the NFL’s annual spring meeting yesterday. “So all of the decisions we make regarding the team are just for football. It’s hard to predict other things.”
Financial analysts may disagree. Jockey, one of Tebow’s endorsers, has already posted a giant billboard near the Lincoln Tunnel. Former Jets lineman Damien Woody straight out called it “a marketing ploy.”
Not so, says Johnson.
“Tim Tebow will be a good addition to the team,” he said. “From a football standpoint, he adds flexibility, versatility [and] he’s a great athlete and he’s a big athlete.”
He could also add a huge headache for Mark Sanchez and head coach Rex Ryan. Sanchez was signed to an extension just a few weeks ago and while general manager Mike Tannenbaum repeatedly stated in a conference call last week that Sanchez was the starter, Ryan has already heard the questions.
“I told [Sanchez] we got another competitor who is going to make our team better,” Ryan told ESPN. “Mark wants to win. He’s good.”
The New York Post reported yesterday that some teammates were already grumbling about the treatment afforded their new teammate — a backup quarterback.
And yet, when Tebow is introduced today at noon they will be doing it from a practice field instead of the media room. The media room wasn’t big enough the Jets said.
