Set Timmy Free

Hey, Tim. Are you still excited to be a Jet?

I'm guessing the answer to that question is a big, fat emphatic, "No!"

Manish Mehta, the Jets' beat writer for New York Daily News, tweeted last night: "Next domino in Jets QB situation: Tim Tebow will request to be traded/released after season assuming [Greg] McElroy starts last 2 games, per source."

First of all, with the Jets, nothing can be assumed. You know what they say what happens when you assume. Multiply that by 10 when trying to assume what the current Jets regime will do next.

As for Tebow, you can't blame the guy for wanting out. From all reports, it was his call to go to the Jets. I'm guessing his thinking was he could better expand brand Tebow and/or more broadly spread the gospel to more people from the platform of the world's largest media market.

I'm not sure what he was thinking, but whatever it was, it was wrong.

When Tebow was traded to the Jets, Rex Ryan told us we could see Tebow running some super secret form of the wildcat offense. Remember, they wouldn't even show it to reporters in practice. It was going to be earth-shattering when they eventually unveiled it in the regular season. It was going to blow the minds of defensive coordinators everywhere.

We're still waiting.

None of this is Tim Tebow's fault. He went to New York, fresh off turning Denver's season around and leading the Broncos to a playoff victory, thinking he was going to get playing time. And given his confidence and evidence from last season that Mark Sanchez was never going to be more than an average quarterback, I'm sure Tebow thought he could win the starting job.

He was never given a chance, most likely because he's not an NFL starting QB.

But the Jets specifically traded for Tebow. Brought him to New York and told us he would make a significant contribution to the team each. He may be in on 20 plays a game, Ryan said. We believed this, and I'm sure Tebow believed it, too.

We're 14 games through the season, and, except for that odd scripted insertion of Tebow into the game Monday night in Nashville, we've barely seen No. 15.

Whatever the circumstances, whether he could be a starting quarterback in the NFL or he just plain out sucks, the Jets need to grant him his wish – if that is really his wish – and trade or release him.

They haven't been fair to Tebow – perhaps they've even set his development back a year – and now they need to do the right thing and let him go.