By Gregg Rosenthal
Around The League Editor
It's safe to say
Bill Belichick doesn't hate Tim Tebow after all.
NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reported Monday the
New England Patriots are signing Tebow after all. Just in time for Tuesday's mandatory minicamp.
Way back in April, the
Patriots were
atop our list of potential Tebow landing spots because of Belichick's appreciation of versatile players and his love of all things University of Florida. But this news still comes as a surprise because of the timing.
Yahoo! Sports reported last month that there was "no chance" the
Patriots would sign him. Belichick came out publicly and lambasted the accuracy for that report last week.
So why would Belichick sign Tebow?
Because he can. It really might not get more complicated than that. Former
Denver Broncos coach
Josh McDaniels remains on the
Patriots staff and is obviously a big believer in Tebow. There is virtually no risk to the signing because Tebow's contract is unlikely to have any guarantees. The
Patriots love to kick the tires on veterans, and this is nothing more than that.
Signing Tebow doesn't mean that he's a lock to make the roster. Rapoport reported that Tebow is being brought in as a quarterback, and it's hard to imagine him passing
Ryan Mallett on the depth chart. Third stringer
Mike Kafka was released on Monday.
Tebow, like a lot of No. 3 quarterbacks in the league, has to prove his worthiness in limited practice snaps. Unlike most No. 3 quarterbacks in the league, he could potentially help on special teams and the occasional trick play.
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.