There has never been an athlete quite as polarizing as Tim Tebow. After a storied career at the University of Florida, he entered the NFL with his share of supporters, but also with many who doubted his ability to play quarterback at the professional level. He started last season as the fourth quarterback on the Denver Broncos, but ended up taking the team all the way into the playoffs and leading them to an upset playoff win over the heavily favored Pittsburgh Steelers.
Even with his team’s success in Denver, he never had a strong grasp of the starting quarterback role. He was traded last offseason to the New York Jets, where he has been the backup quarterback for every game in the 2012 season.
Starter or not, there is still an immense amount of buzz about Tebow. His jersey is the third-best seller in the NFL this season, and he still carries a large legion of doubters, who believe his media coverage is excessive compared to that of other more deserving players.
This quandary provides a challenge to Dustin Cohn, Chief Marketing Officer for Jockey International. Jockey is heavily invested in Tebow, in fact Jockey signed Tebow before he was even drafted. Cohn believes that now isn’t time to unveil their strategy about how to best capitalize on the attention surrounding Tebow.
“We have a great viral strategy ready to go,” Cohn said at the IMG Sports Symposium last month. “Just waiting for the right time.”
The right time in sports marketing is always the million dollar question. Will Tebow ever get the chance to become a full-time starting quarterback in the NFL? What if Tebow gets the starting quarterback job in New York and then doesn’t succeed?
“We believe in him, he’ll be a part of the conversation good or bad, said Cohn. “He’s someone that transcends the sport, so he’s going to be a role model and good in the community regardless.”
It is a risk for sure, but Jockey has never wavered on its commitment to Tebow. They signed him even before he became a Bronco–when some predicted he wouldn’t be anything more than a late-round pick and far from an NFL starter. With the unpredictability of sports, and the fragile nature of NFL careers, these marketing decisions are always very difficult, with no clear answer or strategy, regardless of past case studies.
Tebow’s career so far is a good example of this rollercoaster ride. In just 18 months he has gone from fourth-string quarterback, to NFL starter, to playoff quarterback and back to second-string quarterback. Cohn is confident there will be better days, and there aren’t many players better at defying the critics than Tim Tebow.
(Photo Courtesy of hollywoodreporter.com)
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