Could Denver trade or cut second-year quarterback Tim Tebow?

Mike Freeman of CBS Sports.com considers the possibilities. Freeman reports that he spoke to some NFL personnel executives and he gathered that Tebow -- who has fallen to No. 3 on Denver’s depth chart behind Kyle Orton and Brady Quinn -- could be traded. But Denver will likely either keep Tebow or cut him because there isn’t much trade interest in him.

On “SportsCenter” Monday, NFL analyst Merril Hoge (who has been highly critical of Tebow’s ability this summer) said Denver should cut Tebow if it can’t work out a trade with St. Louis. Former Denver head coach Josh McDaniels, who drafted Tebow with the No. 25 overall pick last year, is now the Rams’ offensive coordinator. With budding star Sam Bradford quarterbacking St. Louis, Tebow wouldn’t be more than a backup and special-package player in St. Louis.

Freeman writes that Denver is not “openly” trying to deal Tebow, but they aren’t saying he isn’t off the trading block. I couldn’t see Denver getting much for Tebow at this point. The fact that Denver has dropped him to the third string is a message to the rest of the team he is not developing. How many teams are in the market for a third stringer at any position?

Still, I’d be surprised if Tebow wasn’t in Denver this season. I don’t think he’ll be traded or cut. I think Denver’s ownership likes him and it wants to stay patient with him. Still, it’s clear his stock is not rising at this point.

Meanwhile, here is a debate about whether Tebow or Carolina rookie Cam Newton will be the better player in the long run. With Newton having a strong chance of being the opening-day starter for the Panthers, the early money could be on him.