If Tim Tebow was not worried about making the New England Patriots final roster, he should probably start getting a little concerned. On Thursday night, the Patriots faced the Detroit Lions in the third preseason game and the third string quarterback saw zero field time. The game was a blow-out loss and still, Tebow was not put in on one play. As cuts loom, things are looking bad.
Even the Detroit fans wanted to see Tebow. They chanted his name with about 10 minutes left to go in the game, but instead backup Ryan Mallett remained the quarterback. Bill Belichick opted to stick with Mallett after Tom Brady played the entire first half of the game. Lions fans then booed the head coach for not letting Tebow play.
"You just prepare, and whatever you're asked to do, you do at 100 percent, with everything you have," Tebow said, via the Boston Herald. "You want everything to go well, but it's not. There are going to be ups and downs. That's what life is, and you just have to handle them as best as you possibly can."
Tebow told reporters that he is always prepared to play if his number is called and that is the best he can do. Tebow's chances to hear his number called could be coming to an end quickly. The Patriots have one more preseason game on Aug. 29 where the starters are not expected to play that much. Afterwards the team must begin to trim their roster. The first cut will happen on Tuesday when New England must drop to 75 players.
Belichick would not address in detail why he opted to stick with Mallett which could make Tebow's chances look even grimmer. Up till now, the head coach had remained very positive towards the quarterback and had given him a fair amount of playing time to show something, anything. Instead Tebow recorded -1 yards in last week's game.
No matter what, Tebow's spirit remains unbroken. He continues to call himself a "blessed individual" and will approach each practice like every other player, trying to be his best. In total this preseason, Tebow has gone just 5-for-19 for 54 yards and one interception. The Patriots continue to work him as a quarterback instead of a possible running back or even H-back.
The Patriots do not have a good history of carrying three quarterbacks on the final roster. The team normally sticks to a two quarterback system. Tebow could be a practice squad guy if he is lucky.
