Boomer Esiason says Jets should cut Tim Tebow
New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow throws a pass at their NFL football training camp. (July 28, 2012) Credit: AP
CORTLAND, N.Y. -- Less than a week after President Barack Obama voiced concern over the trade for Tim Tebow, former Jets quarterbacks Boomer Esiason and Joe Namath took their own shots at the team's backup quarterback.
"If I were the Jets . . . I would cut Tim Tebow, I really would," Esiason said Monday on his WFAN morning radio show. "It's not in any way, shape or form, I think, benefiting this team."
Esiason, a four-time Pro Bowl quarterback, said Tebow has no place on the Jets, given the media attention he draws and the potential for a future quarterback controversy.
"All you have to do is watch him throw the ball," Esiason said, referring to Tebow's often wobbly mechanics. "I just think this whole thing, at least from my perspective right now in relation to who Mark Sanchez is -- your starting quarterback -- is a major mistake."
Namath, a Hall of Famer and Jets Super Bowl III champion, has waffled in his stance on the Tebow trade. While in Canton, Ohio, this past weekend for the Hall of Fame ceremonies, Namath was asked again about Tebow.
"I really believe, going back to Day 1, it's the greatest publicity stunt the Jets could have pulled," he said of the March trade for Tebow. "Now, if they can utilize him, it's a major positive. He's a positive in the locker room, he's a positive with the players. Tebow's a sensational guy. Now, how much playing quarterback he's going to do remains to be seen."
Tebow, not surprisingly, took the high road when asked about Esiason's comments.
"I've heard nothing but great things about Mr. Esiason," he said. "I know he was a great player here, and I just wish him nothing but the best in his announcing and God bless him."
