A Denver Bronco Fan’s Perspective of Tim Tebow
As I watch Tim Tebow from the perspective of aDenver Broncos fan there are so many thoughts going through my head. The first is this and no one will remember this but I like Tebow, I really do. He’s everything you want in a player on your favorite team; he’s competitive, he’s humble, he’s a gamer and he is generally a great person. What’s not to like? The problem is everything that goes along with Tebow and, honestly, none of it is his fault. He has never asked for the attention he receives but for whatever reason, people are drawn to him and he has become a human lighting rod. To me, that’s where the first problem starts. Now before I go on, please remember that I like the kid!
When Tebow is on your team, it’s a circus and I speak from experience. It doesn’t matter who the other quarterbacks are on the roster, the Tebow fans will want him to start. Regardless of what happened in the regular season for the Broncos last year, Kyle Orton was easily the best quarterback in camp, but if anyone said that then they were going to hell because they weren’t supporting Tebow. I was at that training camp and Tebow was the fourth best quarterback. He was hitting trees that were 25 yards off of the field and the fans were still cheering for him. Now I’ll be the first to admit that Tebow ended up being the right quarterback for the Broncos in 2011, the results speak for themselves but I still don’t believe he can be a successful starting quarterback in the NFL.
Tebow had some magical moments last season, moments that I will never forget as a Bronco fan but one thing has always baffled me. When Tebow brought the team back to win 17-13 over the New York Jets for example, no one talks about the Denver defense that kept the Broncos in the game and also scored a touchdown of their own. No one talks about kicker, Matt Prater who made a 59 yard field goal to tie the game versus the Chicago Bears and a 51 yarder to win it. No one talks about running back, Willis McGahee who had a great year and broke off big run after big run. The wins were all because of Tebow. However when Denver lost, it was the defense, the receivers, the coaching, John Elway’s lack of support and on and on. Again, that’s not Tebow’s fault but it does create a circus like atmosphere.
With all of that said, I’m glad he’s no longer in Denver. Yes it is easier to say that because, Peyton Manning signed with the Broncos but I would have felt that way even if that meant starting a rookie like, Brock Osweiler. As many good things as Tebow brings to a team, there are two facts that cannot be glossed over. One, whatever team he is on is going to have to deal with the circus that comes with him. Winning in the NFL is hard enough without those kind of distractions, again not his fault. Two, he’s just not a good quarterback! He’s a good to great football player but he can’t throw from the pocket and his accuracy is awful. (46% last season.) Tebow does bring attributes that other quarterbacks don’t but this is a passing league, and he’s just not good enough. Could he get better, maybe a little but he’s never going to complete 65% of his throws.
As a Bronco fan, I thank him for a great ride in 2011 and I will always root for him, but I am happy that the circus is someone else’s problem!
