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Tebow claims Belichick nixed $1M endorsement deal before cutting him

Joe Camporeale / USA TODAY Sports

If you weren't already aware, Bill Belichick is cold blooded.

Back in 2013, when Tim Tebow was attempting to prove he could still play football with the New England Patriots, the head coach apparently advised his wannabe quarterback not to take a one-day, $1-million endorsement offer, according to Tebow.

A few weeks later, Belichick cut Tebow, sending him home without another team to turn to.

The former Heisman winner told the story of the missed financial opportunity in his soon-to-be-released biography "Shaken."

I remembered when I had signed with the team in June. Then I'd had an offer on the table to make a one-day appearance endorsing a product for a million-dollar paycheck. I'm sure you'd agree that a million bucks is a lot to make in just 24 hours. But I wasn't quick to say yes ...

So when the offer for the one-day commercial turned up, I was sure to discuss the opportunity with him. "I want to know what you think, Coach," I said. "I respect you and I want to fit in. I want to be one of the guys. Should I do it?"

He thought for a moment and then shook his head. "Timmy, I would really appreciate it if you didn't."

Highly respecting the man, I turned down the deal. I didn't even think twice about it. I wanted the chance to impress Coach Belichick more than I wanted the money. I'll say that if I were on any other team, I would have probably said yes to the offer. But the thoughts he offered in our initial conversation mattered to me - even more than a million dollars.

Back to the conference room.

"It's not the right fit," Coach Belichick said.

In a Monday interview with "Fox and Friends" Tebow said he asked Belichick about the endorsement because he "didn't want to be a distraction on the team."

The only issue with that is that you've got to make the team before you become a distraction - which he likely would have been anyways.

- With h/t to ForTheWin

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