Column: Jaguars Signing of Josh Pederson Is Nothing Like Tim Tebow Farce

Josh Pederson is a rare NFL signing. 

If Pederson's last name were any different, he wouldn't stand out much in the grand scheme. He wouldn't be out of place on most -- if any -- NFL rosters entering the dog days of summer, but he also wouldn't be having many -- if any -- articles penned about his signing. 

But Pederson is simply different. 

The 25-year-old tight end was one of the USFL's top tight ends this past season, but his relationship with his father, Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson, is headlining his signing. 

It is understandable why. Nepotism is one of the NFL's leading internal issues, specifically at the coaching and front-office levels. With the NFL failing at a grand scale in diversity in their hires, nepotism hirings have been one of the most scrutinized aspects of recent NFL offseasons. 

Coaches such as Bill Belichick, Andy Reid, Lovie Smith, Marvin Lewis, Jeff Fisher, Pete Carroll, Mike Zimmer, Norv Turner, Jack Del Rio, Wade Phillips, Rex Ryan, Mike Shanahan and many others have hired their own children to their staff. In many cases, the NFL is a family business, for better or worse. 

Hiring one's child to a full-time role on an NFL squad is different from signing one to a 90-man roster, of course. Pederson will have to earn a role during camp and the odds are still greatly stacked against him to make the 53-man roster, whereas being hired to a full-time coaching role is a locked-in position. 

But nepotism is nepotism in the world of the NFL. Pederson has already been on three NFL rosters (49ers, Saints, Chiefs), was a solid college tight end, and produced in the USFL. But whether he would have been signed to the Jaguars' roster specifically likely hinges largely on his relationship with the head coach.  

In that sense, it is understandable if the signing raises a few eyebrows here and there. It is just a bottom-of-the-roster spot on a 90-man roster, but it is still a spot that another tight end who isn't related to Pederson could have obtained.

This argument has led some to compare the Pederson signing to the Tim Tebow fiasco in 2021. While there are some cons to signing Pederson's son, it isn't fair to compare it at all to the farce that was signing Tebow.

If Pederson was 34 years old, had never played tight end at the high school, college, or NFL level, and had not played in an organized football game in nearly a decade ... then maybe he would be like Tebow. 

But he isn't. 

The Tebow signing was a slap in the face to every football player who has ever wanted a chance in the NFL. Tebow did nothing of actual merit to earn his signing, which was proven by his disastrous tenure on the field in his limited time on the roster. He was signed by a coach who had zero credibility in an NFL locker room, too.

Pederson is an actual tight end who likely would have been signed to another roster at some point this month. Yes, he is the son of the head coach, but he would be more qualified as an NFL tight end on his worst day than Tebow ever was or ever will be.

So, any criticisms about the Pederson signing and what it means in today's NFL climate are fair to consider. But the compare it to the Tebow debacle is disingenuous at best and ignorant at worst.

How far Pederson goes in the NFL will depend on what he does in camp. But for now, he is an NFL tight end and a Jacksonville Jaguar. And until he isn't, expect for some to have questions on hand.