While the preseason is not of much interest to many NFL fans, or even a large swath of players, it's supremely important to the most famous reserve in any sport, Tim Tebow this year.
Tebow is currently listed as the No. 3 quarterback on New England's depth chart, behind Tom Brady and Ryan Mallett, and needs to improve on his passing ability to be able to function in the Patriots offense.
Tebow likely didn't engender too much confidence after his preseason Week 1 showing. The lefty was 4-for-12, compiling just 55 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. He also was sacked three times for 23 yards.
His accuracy often comes under fire, but a lesser known problem plaguing Tebow is a tendency to hold on to the ball in the pocket too long. Against Philadelphia he seemed slow to read the Eagles' defense, and even slower to react once plays were set into motion. Several times he missed open receivers, and on others he failed to get rid of the football.
True to form Tebow shook off the various incompletions and chose to stay positive. "It's fun, and I'm comfortable with it," Tebow said when asked about running a no-huddle offense. "You have to stay on your toes, there's a lot of moving parts out there. We still have to get some things down, and that's something that we're still working on."
Later on in the locker room Tebow earned some chuckles when a cameraman had some kind of accident and yelled out "Jesus Christ!" Tebow responded instantly, "He loves you," according to The Washington Post.
Still, Tebow will need to do more than make people laugh and run a read-option to keep his roster spot in New England, and eventually earn a starting job in the NFL again. 4-for-12 does not cut it these days, and even though he picked up 31 yards on the ground on four carries passing is paramount this preseason.
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