Photo: Getty Images - Garrett Ellwood
- Troy BallardWhen the New York Jets finally completed the back-and-forth trade for Tim Tebow, incumbent starting quarterback Mark Sanchez started sweating bullets.
The Jets may have made a public promise that Sanchez would be the starter in 2012, but I doubt that the former USC star is buying into it. Neither is Tebow, for that matter.
New York is playing coy, but the move for Tebow is part of an elaborate solution to one of the most broken locker rooms in the NFL.
Following an incredibly underwhelming, playoff missing, locker room rifting, and Rex Ryan profanity laced season -- the Jets are in crisis mode. The overall attitude of the team is split, and the majority of the players do what they want, when they want. Regardless of whether it helps the team or hurts it.
Leadership is totally absent.
Ryan's outbursts and ridiculous comments only pour fuel on a rapidly growing fire. He obviously has no control in the locker room, and the players all have their own unique agendas. Whether that be boosting stats to get more money on the open market, or pushing for a Pro-Bowl appearance, there is absolutely no sense of team unity.
Enter -- Tim Tebow.
At first, Tebow to the Jets was a totally puzzling destination. Sure, Sanchez has underperformed and played down to competition, but New York had a better quarterback situation than most other teams. Then -- like a freight train to the face -- I realized why New York made the move for Tebow.
The Jets needed a leader that can rally a group of disorganized, selfish, and disgruntled football players. New York was looking for anyone at all that could salvage the mess that was the current roster, and after scanning the draft, and most of free agency, there wasn't anyone that could do it.
But there was Tebow.
After Peyton Manning landed in Denver and the Broncos placed Tebow on the trading block, the Jets jumped at the chance to land a potential franchise savior. It was a perfect situation for New York, and it couldn't have even been scripted better in Hollywood.
Sanchez may still have the potential to develop into a franchise player -- but he lacks the leadership to contain the zoo that is the New York Jets roster. Tebow does. It may not be in the most conventional and realistic ways, but he gets the job done. His teammates respect him, and that can lead to a miraculous turnaround on the field.
Take one look at the Denver Broncos last season.
Tebow may not be starting when the regular season starts, but once the same issues begin to arise in New York, he will be given the task of damage control. It may not be a totally smooth transition, but Tebow will get things under control on the Jets as a starter. This is the way it has to be. No other end result makes any sense.
The Jets have a plan, and it's Tim Tebow.
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