A year ago, even though he was playing only a little and producing even less, Tim Tebow was all the rage with the Jets. Based on his rabid following, he was perceived to be the most interesting backup quarterback in the world.
Two years ago, he was helping lead the Broncos into the playoffs and upsetting the Steelers in a playoff game. He was one of the darlings of the league, an improbable story, a marketer’s dream.
Today, Tebow is out of football, working out on his own and staring at phones that are not ringing.
The last thing we heard publicly from Tebow came in the form of an Aug. 31 tweet he posted after the Patriots cut him. The tweet, from @TimTebow, read: “I would like to thank Mr. [Robert] Kraft, Coach [Bill] Belichick, [offensive coordinator Josh] McDaniels and the entire Patriots organization for giving me the opportunity … ’’
According to his Twitter account, the tweet was posted at 3:16 p.m. that day (of course it was).
Since then, Tebow has been a quarterback without a team (reports have said not even the Canadian League is interested), and that’s a development that saddens former Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde, who helped school Tebow on mechanics in the spring.
“He’s as hard a worker as I’ve ever been around,’’ Testaverde told The Post on Friday. “He’s focused, he’s dedicated and he is everything what you want in a player. As far as work ethic and dedication and being a great teammate, he is the poster boy for all that. Unfortunately, he just needs to continue to work on his quarterback skills if he wants to be a quarterback in the NFL.’’
Testaverde said he’s surprised Tebow is not on an NFL roster at all, but he said he does not “know all the dynamics.’’
“I feel bad for him, but I don’t know what he’s told other teams — whether he is saying, ‘I just want to be a quarterback,’ or if he is open to playing other positions,” Testaverde said. “ My feeling on it is, tell anybody and everybody that you’ll do whatever it takes to make the team, whether it’s returning kicks or being a personal protector on the punt team. Then, once you’re there on a team, you can work on your quarterbacking. Get on a team first, learn the offense, do what they ask you, and then whether you stay after practice or sneak into quarterback meeting rooms [is up to you].
“You do what it takes. Unfortunately for him, he’s not on a team, and at this point he just needs to go somewhere and play football and work on his craft.’’
Testaverde, who was recommended to Tebow through mutual acquaintances, helped him with his footwork and reading defenses for a few weeks in the spring.
He, like many, thought the Patriots were the perfect landing spot for Tebow because of Belichick. Testaverde said he thinks if Belichick had not encountered so many question marks on the team because of injury, he “probably would have kept Tim and helped him develop into a nice quarterback.’’
“But Bill lost his tight ends, and [receiver] Wes Welker is not there, so he’s missing some pieces trying to groom new guys, and it’s hard to keep somebody that can’t help you right now on your team,’’ he said. “I think Tim is a victim of that in New England.’’
Rex Ryan, Tebow’s coach with the Jets, who released him in the offseason, said he “thought he’d get picked up’’ after the Patriots cut him.
“As a personal punt protector, what he did for us flew under the radar a bit,’’ Ryan said. “We did fake three or four punts, and we were successful on every one of them. He’s a good football player. Is he a stand back, drop-back, five-to-seven-step guy? No. But he’s got certain skill sets that he can do certain things.’’
Jets guard Willie Colon, who was on the Steelers team Tebow upset in the playoffs two years ago, said, “I think Tebow has to just stop playing quarterback and invest in another position. Be willing to do that.’’