USA Today Sports
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- Tim Tebow has never been this big, 249 pounds as of Wednesday and climbing. His corded muscles are clearly evident beneath the Nike shirt he wears underneath his pads in practice.
"I'm not sure, but I'll probably play at about 250 this year," the New York Jets ballyhooed backup quarterback said after the team's minicamp practice today.
"I just feel like I'm training hard and just trying to be in shape, be strong enough to handle anything but also fast enough to be able to run around a little bit as well."
Perhaps an indication he'll need extra armor if the Jets, as expected, frequently deploy him in run-oriented Wildcat packages or expose him to potential special teams risks by utilizing him as the upback on the punt team?
"They just want me to be just athletic, but I feel like I'm at a good weight right now," said Tebow, who estimated he played between 240 and 242 pounds last season for the Denver Broncos.
It's an interesting nugget considering many coaches prefer their quarterbacks to be lithe and flexible rather than heavily muscled. Jets starting QB Mark Sanchez is 1 inch shorter than Tebow, who is 6-3, but weighs nearly 25 pounds less.
Former Baltimore Ravens head coach Brian Billick suggested after the 2011 season that Tebow needed to cut weight to improve as a passer.
"I think the No. 1 thing Tim Tebow has to do, I don't think he can lift the way he's lifted before," Billick said in January. "There's three people that can't lift the way Tim Tebow does: pro quarterbacks, pro tennis players and golfers.
"He has got to cut back on that rigid, thick (frame)," Billick added. "I know it keeps him alive as a running quarterback, but it does not bode well for his passing, the fluidity that he has to have. So that's, to me, job one in the offseason, he's got to change his (conditioning) mind-set."
No dice, Brian.
Jets RT Wayne Hunter says Tebow hasn't sacrificed any speed, estimating he runs a 4.4 or 4.5 40-yard dash. But Hunter couldn't resist a playful jab at the quarterback head coach Rex Ryan claims is outlifting Jets linemen in the weight room.
"He looks pretty solid," Hunter said. "He's always wearing those tight shirts, I don't know what's wrong with him."
By Nate Davis
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