Jets to trade or release Tim Tebow by March, according to reports

The New York Jets plan to get rid of Tim Tebow this offseason by trade or release, according to one report. Greg McElroy leap-frogged Tebow on the Jets' depth chart this past week when coach Rex Ryan announced him as starting QB for the game against San Diego.

The New York Jets reportedly have no intentions of retaining Tebow, as a source tells New York Post reporter Brian Costello the team intends to trade him by March. If no trade options are available, they plan to release him.

The third-year quarterback, of course, was traded for this past offseason with hopes that he would become a change-of-pace quarterback to Mark Sanchez running out of a customized formation. It didn't pan out: he's only thrown eight passes and this past week was bypassed by Greg McElroy to become the starter with a struggling Mark Sanchez benched. Rather than hold on to the media's favorite quarterback as a conversation starter, the team will apparently cut its losses after one year despite the fourth-round pick and $2.5 million they gave the Denver Broncos for him.

Putting Tebow on the trade market would be a repeat of last year's offseason, when the Broncos didn't need him after signing Peyton Manning. Then, the market was limited for Tebow, with only the Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars as suitors. That leads to the question of whether any team would sign him if he were to become a free agent after an ugly 2012 campaign, but then the issue would be out of the Jets' hands.