The legend of Tim Tebow

You have undoubtedly heard that Tim Tebow was traded this week from the Denver Broncos to the New York Jets.  This is coming on the heels of the Broncos acquisition of former Colt and future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning.  While the replacement of Tebow with Manning would seem like a no brainer to most people, most importantly Broncos VP John Elway, it set of the ire of the "Tebowites".
The Tebowites are those fanatical Tebow fans that not only believe that Tebow is a good quarterback, but that somehow divine intervention helps him to win games.  They feel so passionately about him that when it was announced the Broncos had signed Manning, they proceeded to send vicious tweets and messages to Elway.  Not only did they threaten the life of Elway but also his family, which is very surprising coming from the followers of a man who claims to have such strong morals.

However before I get too far down a road I do not want to travel, this post is not about the character or beliefs of Tebow.  By all indications he is a great guy, though assuming his personality based on what he projects in public is a dangerous proposition.  He does however seem to be genuine.  I do not care what he believes, it does not impact what I believe or make me think more or less of him as a football player.  Which is what I want to talk about, Tebow the football player.  It seems hard for people to separate Tebow the Man from Tebow the football player, but that is exactly what football scouts and GM's have to do.

Is he a good if not great athlete?  Absolutely!  Is he a good football player? I would say yes.  Is he a good or even serviceable quarterback? Not even close.  Adrian Peterson is one of the best running backs in the game today, but you wouldn't want him playing QB for your team.  Could he win some games for you running the same offense the Broncos ran for Tebow last year?  I think so.  But it wouldn't be something you would want to do long term.  Eventually a team like the Patriots are going to come and crush you.  So why was it able to work for Tebow last year and get the Broncos into and win a playoff game?  I think there is a number of reasons for this.  First of all its the teams he beat - Dolphins, Raiders, Chiefs, Jets, Chargers, Vikings and Bears, not one playoff team.  Oh yeah, he did beat the Steelers in the playoffs and kudos to that.  But it wasn't due to a great QB that is Tebow.  It was due to an ill-prepared, injured and over confident Steeler team.  Secondly, the Broncos had the perfect team to run the offense they were running.  Utilizing Tebow, Willis McGahee and a strong running game (1st in the NFL), combined with a serviceable defense, the Broncos were able to wear teams down throughout the game.  This was especially pronounced in games played in Denver at Mile High, where players not used to it are already quickly tired.  I believe it worked as a perfect storm of events for Tebows success.  I do not believe he has the ability or skill to run a modern NFL offense.  Scouts I have read said he does not have a good feeling for reading NFL defenses unless it is while running option plays, which were designed to be simple reads.  Keep in mind the offense run by the Broncos this year was designed specifically for good athletes who were poor quarterbacks.  It was designed by teams in college who had trouble recruiting a good quarterback.

All in all, if Tebow wants to remain a quarterback, it will only be as a gimmick, a gimmick that is fading quickly.  Modern NFL defenses are too big, too fast, too strong (thank you Stacy King), for the option to have long term success.  If Tebow wants to be a great NFL player, he needs to move to H-back or Tight End.  One of the biggest problems is at this point he has seemed to be unwilling to make this change. And because of the ego of NFL coaches, each next one sees just enough ability to think "if I could just be the guy to turn him into a real QB, that will make my career".  They think they can make him and themselves a Legend!