Tim Tebow’s invitation may have gotten lost in the mail.
More than 50 NFL tight ends will attend “Tight End University” in Nashville this week, led by the 49ers’ George Kittle and the recently retired Greg Olsen. Tebow will not be one of them. The former quarterback-turned-tight end was not invited to the event.
“So, nothing against Tim Tebow, but I found it hard to invite — I wish nothing but the best for Tim Tebow, and I hope he has a fantastic season playing tight end — but it’s hard for me not to invite a backup tight end on, let’s say the New York Giants, as opposed to inviting a guy who just started playing the tight end position because we do have limited spots,” Kittle said on Barstool Sports’ “Pardon My Take” podcast.
Tebow won the Heisman Trophy in 2007 as a quarterback. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos with the No. 25 pick in 2010, again as a quarterback. He has thrown for 2,422 yards and 17 touchdowns in 16 starts at the position.
Now, after being out of the NFL for six years, he is attempting to make a comeback as a tight end.
Kittle would have loved to have had Tebow and a bunch of other tight ends at his summit, but there was limited availability. He is looking to make the event unique for all of the tight ends in attendance.
“I wish I could make it so every NFL tight end can come, [so] it’s accessible to everybody,” Kittle said. “But what we tried to do this year, we wanted to pay for everything for all the tight ends that come to kind of make it a special event for all tight ends.”
This is not the first time that Tebow is experimenting in his athletic career. After being released from the Eagles in 2015, Tebow signed with the New York Mets and played four seasons in their minor league system.
Olsen, the former Bears and Panther who played his final season with the Seahawks last year, wants to see Tebow succeed at tight end before getting an invitation.
“If he’s on a roster this year, and he plays tight end, we would love to have him,” Olsen said. “We would love to work with him. Once he’s officially a tight end, we would love to work with him.”