New England Patriots quarterback Tim Tebow and star Aaron Hernandez were teammates together at the University of Florida and now that the tight end has been involved in a murder scandal, it brings to light some of his behavior back then and also the differences between the two players.
The Patriots are known for running a tight ship when it comes to players talking to the media and just the media in general, but nothing prepared reporters or the team for what has transpired over the past few weeks. First it was the decision to sign Tim Tebow and after he spent so much time getting written about how his NFL career was over, it was a national story when Bill Belichick signed him.
The Patriots did a good job of keeping the media at bay after his first practices with the team and they have continued that, taking the exact opposite tact that the Jets did when they had him. Tebow was acquired by the Jets in a trade with the Denver Broncos and he was immediately thrusted up on a podium for all the media to see and then the team wondered why it turned into a circus. He had all the attention in training camp and then the Jets decided they had no idea how to use him and after a lost year of just 102 yards rushing and 39 passing, he was released.
The Patriots decided they liked something in Tebow or just wanted to get back at the Jets, now he is on their team and another media storm soon followed, as tight end Aaron Hernandez was found to be connected to a murder of a 27-year-old. Hernandez is one of the prime players on offense for the Patriots and his involvement brings into question his past as well as his future. Reports came out soon after that he got into trouble while at Florida, including in a shooting, with drug tests as well as possible gang ties.
With Tebow being a former Florida teammate the two are slightly connected and now may think that since Hernandez is in trouble, if he misses time coupled with the fact that Rob Gronkowski is coming back from surgery that the quarterback will play some tight end. So far that remains to be seen, but Hernandez himself said that he could see Tebow in that situation. When Tebow was signed, Hernandez was asked about his role with the team and after saying "I don't know" he added that he could see him out on the field as a tight end. Hernandez's fate is still up in the air and there is a chance he could be cleared, but so far it appears that there was some wrongdoing in the case, as he destroyed his cell phone and home security and also had a cleaning crew come to his home last Monday.