Former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow recently appeared on a podcast and discussed some players he encountered during his college and NFL careers.
One name that came up in conversation is the late New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez. Hernandez was found guilty of first-degree murder in 2015 and was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. This was in connection with the murder of Odin Lloyd.
But Hernandez was acquitted in the double homicide case in 2017. Five days later, Hernandez was found dead in his jail cell. It was ruled a homicide. Tebow and Hernandez were college teammates at the University of Florida under then-head coach Urban Meyer.
What Did Tim Tebow Say About Aaron Hernandez?
Tebow, on a podcast with host Andrew Schulz, was asked by Schulz about Hernandez.
“It’s so hard for me to talk about it for a lot of reasons,” Tebow, who works as an analyst for SEC Network, said. “One, because we loved him very much.”
“You get emotional talking about it, I don’t want to push you too much,” Schulz said after Tebow could be seen tearing up on the video. “No, it’s not that,” Tebow replied. “He’s family, you know, it’s tough. I loved him very much.”
“Did you have a relationship with him outside of football?” Schulz asked. “Yeah, I signed with the Patriots before a lot of that went down,” Tebow, who was released before the team set its 53-man roster, said. “It’s hard what he went through. I mean, I think there’s a weight that I probably feel.”
“Yeah?” Schulz asked. “Like you could have done something?” “Could have,” Tebow replied. “But that’s not your responsibility,” Schultz then said. “Do you think that is?”
“Sometimes,” Tebow said. “But I think that, um, you know when people ask there’s a reason that I don’t say anything because why would I talk about it when he’s still so much of his family is hurt and gone through this. And it’s easy for people to just talk and make shows and highlight and also not always share all of the sides of it.”
While Tebow discussed Hernandez’s struggles in life, he also made a point to let Schulz’s viewers know that Hernandez was a person trying his best to figure out life’s challenges.
“I’m not defending his actions,” Tebow said. “I’m just saying, when you paint the picture, like… You have a lot of compassion,” Schulz said. However, this did not mean he cleared his beloved teammate of wrongdoing.
He added, “Obviously, there were some horrible things that he did. I’m not defending that whatsoever. I’m just saying, if you are talking about him, would you at least try to paint him accurately?”
Tebow has also made comments in the past about how the media handled everything surrounding Hernandez and his life.
In a recent podcast interview with Graham Bensinger, Tebow highlighted how much of the entire Hernandez story has been sensationalized, with little focus on what Hernandez went through and overcame in his life.
This season, the Patriots are 9-2 after defeating the New York Jets 27-14 last Thursday night. In the PFSN NFL Offense Impact metrics, the Patriots have an 81.1 Offense Impact Score and grade out to a B-.
Tebow remains in the spotlight through his own foundation and speaks out about matters that are important to him personally.
