Tim Tebow has been released, though he made it through Friday’s cut of 10 players. ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted the news Saturday morning, as did Jacksonville’s First Coast News.
The New England Patriots released veteran tight ends Jake Ballard and Daniel Fells in the first batch of final cuts. The Patriots had to trim the roster by 12 more after their 10-player cut on Friday to get down to the NFL regular-season limit of 53 by Saturday.
It was known that Tim Tebow was in jeopardy despite a decent performance in the Patriots’ 28-20 win over the New York Giants in the exhibition finale Thursday. The third-string quarterback completed 6 of 11 passes for 91 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He also was sacked four times but got poor protection on some of them.
“It’s not just one game (that matters),” coach Bill Belichick said Friday about the player evaluation process, “although every game is important. But the body of work, the camp, the rate of improvement, the ability to do the things that players are going to be asked to do at their respective positions (also matters).”
Tebow was one of three quarterbacks, playing behind Tom Brady and Ryan Mallett.
Asked after Thursday’s game if he felt that performance improved his chances of making the team, Tebow said, “I’m not sure. I don’t make those decisions.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
