Jets quarterback Tim Tebow: I didn't ask out of wildcat
TIM TEBOW has been criticized for years about his quarterback skills, his arm and how he throws. He refuses to accept anyone calling him a quitter or phony.
TIM TEBOW has been criticized for years about his quarterback skills, his arm and how he throws. He refuses to accept anyone calling him a quitter or phony.
The New York Jets backup quarterback insisted Wednesday that he didn't ask out of running the team's wildcat plays last week, but acknowledged what he said in a meeting with coach Rex Ryan might have been misinterpreted as such.
"I never said, 'Hey, I don't want to do anything or I won't do anything,' " Tebow said. "That wasn't the talk at all. He knows that, and everybody on this team knows that. I'd never not do something if I was asked, and I think that's what's disappointing about the whole situation, people saying, 'You quit,' or, 'You didn't do this.' It was not it at all.
"It was just me asking to get an opportunity to play the position I love, which is quarterback. It wasn't me asking out of anything."
Last Tuesday, Ryan chose to go with third-stringer Greg McElroy over Tebow in place of the benched Mark Sanchez for Sunday's game against San Diego. After hearing the news, Tebow went to Ryan to discuss the situation and told him he wanted to be "a regular quarterback."
"I was definitely disappointed and frustrated," Tebow said.
ESPN New York first reported Sunday that Tebow had then asked out of the wildcat. But Tebow thinks it was a situation in which he wishes he was "more clear" when he initially spoke with Ryan. Tebow realized that Ryan might have misinterpreted what he said when they met when he wasn't in wildcat packages during practice Wednesday and Thursday, and then sat down with the coach Friday to clear the air.
"I just asked for an opportunity to play quarterback, and he definitely understood that," Tebow said, "and then Friday, I went up to him again and reiterated that, 'Hey, I'll do anything for this team like I have all year.' "
Tebow never played in the Jets' 27-17 loss to the Chargers, as wide receiver Jeremy Kerley handled the majority of snaps in the wildcat package.
Noteworthy *
A grand jury formally indicted Dallas nose tackle Josh Brent on one count of intoxication manslaughter. Brent is charged in connection with a Dec. 8 crash that killed his friend and Cowboys practice-squad member Jerry Brown. Brent is out of jail on $100,000 bond. Dallas County District Attorney's Office spokeswoman Debbie Denmon says the indictment was returned Wednesday. Police in the Dallas suburb of Irving say Brent was speeding when his vehicle struck a curb and flipped. Intoxication manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Brent could be eligible for probation. Denmon says no court dates have been scheduled.
* After spending the last 3 months fighting leukemia, Indianapolis coach Chuck Pagano arrived early at the team complex, met briefly with his players to give them a succinct message about this week's game plan, then stepped onto the practice field for the first time since Sept. 26.
* Josh Cribbs has apologized for his profane tweet following Cleveland's latest loss.
* New York Jets defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson suffered a concussion and injured a knee during the team's loss to San Diego on Sunday, and his status for the season finale at Buffalo is uncertain.