It should come as no surprise, given the way he played last season and the competitive spirit that drives him, that Tim Tebow would envision himself as the starter at quarterback for the Jets in the near future, and according to several sources, the ability to beat out Mark Sanchez for that role was a major factor in his choice of New York as his preferred trade destination over Jacksonville.

Sanchez has faced significant criticism for his play throughout the majority of his three seasons in New York and the addition of Tebow will only fuel that fire in the future, especially if the former USC quarterback struggles early on this fall.

“There has been a little bit of a question mark in the front office, the head coach and players, with Mark Sanchez,” one Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator said Thursday. “At different times, different people have alluded that he might not be good enough. Now all of a sudden you bring in the most popular guy in the league — the guy sold more jerseys than (Tom) Brady did last year. It’s going to put a lot of pressure on Mark. More pressure than he’s ever had.”

Tebow has said all the right things about joining the Jets thus far and is unlikely to rock the boat by pushing for the starting role publicly any time soon, however his personal belief that he is capable of beating out Sanchez to become the permanent starter going forward is almost certain to start a firestorm around the team before he even dons a jersey.

The trade of Tebow from the Broncos to the Jets has yet to be completed, thanks to a contract language snafu, but it’s expected that he’ll officially be a member of Gang Green tomorrow and introduced by the club on Monday.