NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 08: Tim Tebow attends the Z100's Jingle Ball 2017 - GIFTING LOUNGE on December 8, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)

Tim Tebow names 'maybe the best of all time as far as defensive minds' go

That's not too much of a surprise.

Tim Tebow has played against some of the greatest defensive coaches in the college ranks and the NFL. Having played for and against the New England Patriots (read: Bill Belichick) as well as having played against Nick Saban a few times, he knows what a good defense looks like. However, he believes that it's Saban that has one of the greatest defensive minds he's ever seen.

In an interview with ESPN's First Take he said that Saban has an even greater defensive mind than the notoriously defensive Patriots coach.

"I played against Nick Saban. And it is one of the hardest things I have done in my life, to beat a Nick Saban-coached football team. I got to play against Bill Belichick and so many of the best defensive minds, and there is not a brighter defensive mind in the game than Nick Saban. 

"Because of his schemes and talents, he got them (Alabama) to the top. When you talk about defense, Nick Saban is up there with the best in the world and is maybe the best of all time as far as defensive minds. Yes, it's recruiting, but it's also scheme. What he has done on the defensive side of the football has changed college football."

Tebow of course beat a Saban-led team in 2008 in the SEC Championship Game, but lost the next year in the same game. He saw Belichick up close when he played with the Patriots in the 2013 preseason so he certainly knows how Belichick operates.

[h/t Saturday Down South]