The Facts:
In his first interview since being fired at the end of the season, former Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum took responsibility for acquiring Tebow in a trade with Denver. He acknowledged it was a failure, but he expressed no regrets. "I'm disappointed it didn't work out, just like I'm disappointed when certain draft choices don't work out," Tannenbaum said on Tuesday. "We put in a lot of time and effort. We had a rationale for it. At the end of the day, it didn't go as we had planned."
Reported by ESPN.com
Fantasy Football Diehards Line:
As ESPN.com's Rich Cimini kindly suggested, "That's an understatement. ..." Tebow was used sparingly and his presence became a season-long distraction for the Jets, who finished 6-10. Just recently, retired special-teams coach Mike Westhoff called the Tebow situation "an absolute mess." Tannenbaum refused to go that far. "It's just a trade that didn't work out," he said. Tannenbaum confirmed he hatched the idea to pursue Tebow, who became expendable when the Broncos signed Peyton Manning last March. Tannenbaum explained his rationale for making such a controversial trade. In Tannenbaum's mind, "it all seemed to make sense," right down to the compensation. They surrendered a fourth-round pick for Tebow, the same round in which they drafted Smith in 2006. "We thought there was a role for him," said Tannenbaum. It didn't work out that way. From Day 1, Tebow, who participated in only 75 offensive plays, was a constant storyline that eventually chafed teammates and coaches. Tebow remains on the Jets' roster -- he's signed through 2014 -- but new GM John Idzik is expected to trade or release him.
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