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Tebow's On Again Off Again Trade To Jets On... Again
It was rather complicated, but Tim Tebow has been traded to the Jets.

The team announced on Wednesday morning that it had acquired the quarterback from the Broncos. According to the Associated Press, Denver general manager Brian Xanders says the Broncos will receive fourth- and sixth-round draft picks, while New York gets a seventh-rounder-all in 2012.

Then the deal hit a snag.

ESPN's Adam Schefter first reported that language in Tebow's contract that would require the Jets to pay $5 million to the Broncos in money that was paid to Tebow against his 2012 and 2013 salaries. The clause requiring the payment was in the contract all along. The Jets just missed it.

But they missed it before finalizing the deal with the league office.

While the two sides haggled over the $5 million in question, the Jacksonville Jaguars jumped back into the fray -- and it appeared the Jags held the upper hand for a short time. But in the end, the Jets agree to pay half the $5 million in compensation back to the Broncos and the deal was consummated.

Denver started shopping Tebow after signing Peyton Manning on Tuesday.

Tebow is expected to complement starter Mark Sanchez, who received a $40.5 million contract extension, with $20.5 million guaranteed, earlier this month. The Jets also had pursued Manning.

Tebow led the Broncos to the playoffs last season - along the way beating Sanchez and the Jets, who missed the postseason. But Denver executive John Elway believed Manning gave the team a better chance at winning a championship now.

According to ESPN.com's Rich Cimini, the Jets began internal discussions regarding Tebow on Monday as soon as he became expendable with the arrival of Manning.

The Jets signed former Detroit Lions quarterback Drew Stanton last week to back up Sanchez, giving Stanton a $500,000 signing bonus, but the availability of Tebow -- though not unexpected -- prompted the team's decision makers to reassess the quarterback position.

The team is concerned about the negative perception of its locker room, which was divided by player unrest last season, and "bringing in a guy like (Tebow) would help," one source told Cimini. "It makes perfect sense."

According to Cimini, the Jets are also intrigued by what Tebow could do in the wildcat offense. New York's new offensive coordinator Tony Sparano introduced the wildcat to the NFL as coach of the Miami Dolphins. That, coupled with coach Rex Ryan's desire to be a power-running team, has fueled organizational discussion on Tebow.

On the downside, Cimini hnotes there's concern Tebow's presence could create a distraction for the incumbent Sanchez, whose leadership came into question after the season. Sanchez recently received a three-year contract extension with $20.5 million in guarantees, all but ensuring he'll be the starter for at least the next two years.

"I don't know how he'd handle it," one source told Cimini when asked about Sanchez. "That would be interesting."

Worth noting. ... At least one member of the Jets didn't sound too thrilled about the prospect of Tebow.

"We don't need Tebow," cornerback Antonio Cromartie tweeted earlier this week. "We sell out every home game let him go to Jacksonville Tampa or Miami. Our wildcat offense can b ran by [Jeremy] Kerley or Joe McKnight."

Cromartie also tweeted, "We have (Sanchez) and just signed Drew. Mark has taken us to 2 AFC championship game. We need to build on the team we have now."

I'll also suggest if a guy like Santonio Holmes didn't necessarily think Sanchez was doing a good job of getting the ball down the field, what happens when he gets a taste of Tebow?

That said, Tebow took over a 1-4 team from Kyle Orton last year and led the Broncos to an 8-8 finish and the AFC West crown with a series of stirring comebacks that captured the attention of the football world.

Tebow-mania reached its apex in the playoffs, when he threw an 80-yard touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas on the very first play of overtime to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers. The next week, though, Tebow was smothered by the New England Patriots, who easily eliminated the Broncos, 45-10.

Bottom line?

As Profootballtalk.com's Michael David Smith put it: "Mark Sanchez, Tebowmania is in your rear-view mirror."