NFL quarterback turned football analyst turned baseball player Tim Tebow appeared on Fox & Friends to discuss his new book Shaken: Discovering Your True Identity in the Midst of Life’s Storms, focusing on the first chapter titled "The Cut." Co-host Ainsley Earhardt reflects on Tebow's brief two-month tenure with the New England Patriots, which included turning down a $1 million endorsement deal after head coach Bill Belichick advised him to pass on the opportunity shortly before cutting him from the team.
“I didn’t want to be a distraction on the team," Tebow said. "I wanted to be just another guy in the locker room, someone that could work, someone that could be a backup to Tom[Brady], and I didn’t want to be a distraction, having stuff all over the headlines. So that’s why I called coach Belichick to say, ‘Hey, what do you think about this? This is a great opportunity that I would say yes to, but I want to do what’s right for the team first.’" Tebow remembers returning to Jacksonville after getting released by the Patriots with no house, car, or any other NFL teams willing to take a chance on him. Needless to say, the money would've been incredibly helpful, but Tebow still honored Belichick's The Patriot Way mentality.
“He appreciated me calling, but said, ‘Hey, I would prefer if you didn’t do it,’ so of course I didn’t, because it would put the team first," Tebow recalls. "And that’s not something that I look back and regret at all. It was me trying to honor the team, and if I could do it again, I would’ve done the same thing.”
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