PHILADELPHIA — When Tim Tebow completes a pass or takes off running with the football, fans watching the Philadelphia Eagles practice cheer loudly and reporters quickly post about it on social media.

Few, if any, players fighting for a roster spot ever drew more attention.

Tebow is back after sitting out two seasons and competing for a job as the No. 3 quarterback. His passing skills have improved and everyone is eager to see how innovative Coach Chip Kelly plans to use him.

“Tim obviously has a lot of skills that other quarterbacks don’t have because of his ability to run the football,” Kelly said. “But we haven’t delved into any of that.”

Tebow will get a chance to show his skills Sunday when the Eagles host the Indianapolis Colts. He’s been impressive and sometimes erratic during training camp. With Tebow, it’s not always pretty. But he often finds a way to win.

“Tim is a little bit of a gamer,” offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur said. “These team settings which are a little bit uncontrolled, he gets out there and makes plays. And we’ve seen great improvements in him from his ability to execute our offense. Then he’s got that skill set where if it’s not right, he’s willing to take off and run, and when he’s running with it, he’s like a running back.”

Sam Bradford is Philadelphia’s starting QB. Mark Sanchez is the backup. Tebow and Matt Barkley are battling for the third spot. Tebow may have an advantage because of the intangibles. His athleticism fits Kelly’s up-tempo offense. Perhaps Kelly will use him to run a few zone-read plays. Maybe he’ll be a 2-point conversion specialist.

“My focus is whatever coach out here is trying to implement, do it as well as possible,” Tebow said.

A first-round pick by Denver in 2010, Tebow was 9-7 as a starter with the Broncos in 2010-11. He had 316 yards passing in an overtime playoff win over Pittsburgh in January 2012, but was traded to the Jets after Denver signed Peyton Manning. Tebow played mostly special teams for the Jets and threw just eight passes. He spent training camp with the Patriots in 2013 and didn’t get another chance in the NFL until the Eagles signed him in April.