I became a fan while watching him in college as he ran roughshod over my favorite SEC teams Yes, I'm from down here in the South where SEC football is a religion unto itself. I heard all the hype when he came to Florida, and the first few times I saw him play, I just didn't get it. I said "WTF is all this hype about? So he can run the ball and gain short yards". As time went by, my opinion of him changed from doubt and hatred (because he kept beating us) to grudging respect, to actually getting on board the Tebow train. Here's an interesting stat comparison that you rarely hear about and most people aren't familiar with: Rushing TDs of SEC greats. Bo Jackson: 43 Herschel Walker: 49 Tim Tebow: 57 Yep, more rushing TDs than either Bo Jackson or Herschel Walker, two of the greatest SEC running backs ever. Oh yeah, while rushing for those TDs, Tebow was also known to throw some TDs as well. Another quick comparison: Peyton Manning: 89 TDs Eli Manning: 81 TDs Matthew Stafford: 51 TDs Tim Tebow: 88 TDs. So, here you have a QB who rushed for more TDs than either Bo or Herschel, and he threw for more TDs than Eli or Matt, and only 1 fewer than Peyton, even though Peyton was a 4 year starter and Tebow only started for 3 years. In short, the kid was a scoring machine. On another level, I like Tebow simply because of his "intangibles" and the way he plays football. Don't know about others, but I actually like watching a QB, take the ball, elude some defenders, then lower his shoulder to try and run over LBs and Safeties instead of dropping into a slide. I'm kind of torn about it now, but I loved it last year when Tebow lowered his shoulder and went at Revis instead of going out of bounds as most other QBs (and some RBs) would have. On yet another level, I'm one of those guys who enjoys watching Option football and I think it will work on the NFL level, given the right QB. One who has power and enough size to take the hits. I understood/understand why people said Tebow's passing wasn't good enough to be an NFL QB, but I'm a contrarian who thinks that people weren't looking at the question the right way. They were trying to put Tebow into the mold of "traditional pocket passer" and decided that he wasn't good enough as a passer. I think that if you run a Spread Offense with him in the shotgun, it changes the way teams defend him and even his college mechanics would have been just fine. Wrapping it up (going to go ahead and actually make a case for Tebow now): I sat through last year listening to the criticisms that Tebow faced. I also listened as pundits and experts talked about other "young QBs" in the league such as Gabbert and Ponder. After the trade, I came here to this forum (and another one) and read a lot of the defenses of Mark Sanchez. Funny thing is that much of what was said was also said about Gabbert and Ponder. That these QBs were young. That it takes time to develop and learn. Or for the game to "slow down" for them. I mean, Sanchez is ONLY entering his 4th year as a starter, give him time. Afterall, Eli didn't look good in his first 3 years and it wasn't til his 4th that he began to show that he was really getting it. It amazes me that the same people making these arguments about Sanchez, and Gabbert and Ponder as well, turn around and talk about how bad a QB Tebow is and that he will never make it as an NFL QB. The kid has only had 16 starts, and unlike Gabbert, Ponder, or Sanchez, he's never had an offseason and TC where he went in as the starter and got the 1st team reps, or ever had an organization and coaching staff truly behind him.
I think he's a fantastic quarterback -- great athleticism, great explosive strength, and off-the-charts aerobic capacity to go for a full 60 minutes. He attacks the game like he has a real fire for it, and it makes him fun to watch. I like running quarterbacks. They are hard to stop late in the game -- after the time when both teams have seen the other teams crap, and adjusted to it, and there are no surprises. Just man-on-man, who wants it? In those late game drives, guys like Elway or Mike Vick or Tim Tebow, who can run around and find an open receiver, or run to pick up a first down (or touchdown), they give you a feeling that you've always got a chance. He has a great arm. Some guys just can't make the league because they can't "make all the throws" from a velocity standpoint. Tebow can. He's got the height, the arm strength, and the hand size to be a successful NFL quarterback. He has really freakish downfield accuracy on the long throws. This is what eliminates a lot of guys who look good on the more routine throws. But for some reason, Tebow can really drop those long throws in there -- and I like long bombs. He led the NFL last year in air-yards-per-completion. He not only the ability for those long throws, he has the appetite for them. He's greedy for them. To a fault, he runs around looking for long throws. Ultimately, his greatest shortcoming seems like one of the most fixable things to me -- he doesn't have the mechanics for a quick, precision passing game. His errant throws come form a footwork and body motion problem. But I think practice can improve that to a competent level. He's been hesitant to pull the trigger so far, holding the ball too long and bypassing throws he needs to attempt. But the flip side is he hates interceptions, and likes to try and find a "sure thing" before throwing it. I believe that can improve with time in a system, where he feels comfortable, in rhythm, and knows what he's looking for.
how many playoff wins do you think Mark will have at the end of this year....end of next year? how long does he get to ride the fact that he was quarterback of a team with an outstanding defense and run game when they made 2 playoff runs. Cam Newton doesn't have any playoff wins, neither does Matt Ryan, I would trad both of them without hesitation for either Tebow or Ryan
One thing people never mention about his college career is how many games he closed out BY HALFTIME and spent the remainder on the bench. 40+ points by half time then let's play the back up. His stats could have been even more godly then they were.
The D wasn't outstanding by the time the playoffs began. See: Jim Leonhard, Kris Jenkins. Not many QBs in NFL history will ever be able to say they beat Brady and Manning on the road in consecutive games. And by "Tebow or Ryan" I hope you mean "Newton or Ryan". Regardless, you're ignoring the fact that, despite the fact that Sanchez is a borderline-starter, he's a better long-term solution than any QB the Jets have had arguably since early 2000s Testaverde.
Which highlights another strength he has, that he hasn't gotten to use much in the pros. He's a great quarterback with a lead. His natural tendency is to protect the ball, and to not risk throws (especially short ones). He likes to get a bit of a lead, and then just tighten the tourniquet. He can look only for really safe throws, and if it's not there run the ball. But last year, the Broncos started off in a funk in most games -- some will blame only Tebow, but the Broncos coaches really had a hard time getting a good game plan going early. (Same problem this year with Peyton). The one game I can think of at the pro level was the Raiders game -- he got a lead in that thing and just put his foot right on the Raiders neck. (Was doing the same thing to the Steelers, but there were some untimely turnovers).
!! Two exclamation points because this is a different theory then most. Simply we have been conditioned to from birth almost. why you might ask? Tim Tebow IS the underdog movie. Think about every under dog movie plot ever. The unskilled player with bad technique gets looked over, discredited, and ridiculed. then the protagonist joins up with a ragtag group of players like him self (1-4, something like 7-24 broncos). and like a bloody disney movie through hard work, determination, heart, and coincidence/luck/funny hijinks they manage to win some games. then comes the conflict in the story, the bad stretch after the big win streak and finally the play off win as the big finale. if this was a big movie/fairy tale w/e why not have them win the super bowl? simple how would u have a sequel ? a bit of a crazy ramble, but seriously pixar couldn't have done a better job of setting this one up lol. tldr: Tim tebow is just like the protagonist of every underdog sports movie ever.
So you are basing giving tebow a shot based on his success? So where does that leave Sanchez with his success? Or are you using a double standard?
didn't they average like 21 points per game allowed during the 2010 run? pretty damn good considering they faced Tom Brady Manning and Big Ben
I think he is probably looking at Tebow taking a 4-14 team from 1-4 to 8-8 and a playoff win vs Sanchez taking a team that was 11-5 with a deep playoff run to 8-8 and missing the playoffs. It is apples to oranges to some extent, but it is what it is
Read the OP. Tebows absolute college dominance is what led me to become a fan. Something about a qb that would absolutely flatten DEs and LBs was intriguing. To me it was some of the most exciting football I've ever watched and for that I'm a Tebow optimist. Last year with the Broncos was an absolute shit show and I loved it every week.
I was responding to a comment that Tebow wasn't an NFL QB. Show me where I have once said Tebow should start?
If you read this, you are really bored... When Tebow came to UF, I was in grad school. It had been 5 years or so since undergrad, but there I was. I was all about Chris Leak at the time and felt he would take us to the NC that year. Well, he did... but there was this Tebow kid I had never heard of who everyone was saying was the next coming. I had spent the last four years deployed overseas so I didn't have a clue who Tebow was. He came in on certain downs and would rush for a 1st down or TD with the occasional jump-pass TD and assorted other crap. I thought to myself, man the kid looks like he could be good, but can he throw like Leak? Blah, blah, blah we win a NC with Leak and Tebow. So then he gets the starting job as a sophomore. Nothing short of amazing how deadly accurate he was passing. He could also truck the huge linebackers and outfinesse the secondary. A scoring machine. Never looked shaken. You always felt like Tebow would lead that team to victory. Yes, there was a lot of talent on his teams. Shut up. Heisman trophy... yada yada yada... another NC... yada... yada... yada... gets robbed on another Heisman... yada yada yada... then graduation. So now it's NFL draft time. I'm thinking who is going to be the lucky team to snatch up this beast of a QB and football player with the #1 overall pick? I guess I lived in a UF bubble, because as soon as the draft projections started being discussed on ESPN I heard things I couldn't comprehend. Straight up blasphemy! Analysts on TV were saying our boy, Tim Tebow was not just an average passer... noooo.... they said he sucked! I couldn't believe it. The nerve of these motherfuckers! So then I started looking up the stats and they just didn't support their arguments. They start harping on bullshit that I didn't get like, "he has bad mechanics." I watched almost every Tebow game at UF. I'm embarrassed to say I never once looked at his throwing motion. I didn't give a rat's ass about it because his throwing motion... whatever it looked like... resulted in massive yardage and touchdowns. Then came "science". i.e. Tebow throwing motion takes 10.44 seconds compared to .23 seconds of an average NFL QB (I'm making up numbers, STFU). But wait... the defensive players in the NFL run the 40 yd dash in -3.1 seconds compared to the college guys who run 7.6 seconds. They are going to murder the poor kid! He will get picked off on 9 out of 10 throws and will have all his bones broken the first time an NFL defender breathes on his fragile 6'4" 240 lbs frame. So now my brain hurts because I'm trying to understand what is going on here? Is Mel Kiper Jr. that much smarter than me? Is Merril Hoge a genius? Am I a bad person? I started doubting myself. I sold all my worldly possessions and went on a pilgrimage to meet with the Dalai Lama even though I am not a Buddhist. I asked him, "Dalai Lama... is Tebow's throwing motion too slow?" He looked at me with a calming expression and said, "Backup QB, Tebow sucks and will never be an NFL QB." He then showed me his FSU tattoo before offering me jasmine tea. So Tebow gets drafted in the 1st round and everyone across the world who did not go to UF is butt-hurt. The stronger the hate of Tebow grew, the more I felt compelled to defend him. Tebow gets in NFL games his rookie season and scores touchdowns. He passes for them, he runs for them, he runs over defenders. I was shocked that his arms and legs were not ripped off his body by the first NFL beast defender to tackle him. Millions of years pass... and Tebow is promised the starting job in Denver after a good showing during the final 3 games 2010. But Elway can't dump Orton. So Tebow gets benched by John Fox. Orton gives them the best chance to win or some B.S. like that. Whatever. Cool. Anyways, you know the story I'm not going to rehash it. Tebow takes over and division title, playoff win, then gets traded. Now he's in NY and the Sanchez lovers can't stand him. They use the same arguments to defend Sanchez that they laugh off when used to defend Tebow. They call me names like Tebot, Tebowner, Tebow-lover. They call me stupid. Bu..bu.. buuut... I got a high SAT score and was on the honor roll. I have a graduate degree. Ah, no they must be right. After all, they know me very well from me making posts in the Tebowmania forum. One guy even called me a fag. It made me cry. Not like boo-hoo crying... just one solitary tear streaming down my face. And now, Sanchez sucks and Rex Ryan doesn't know what to do. I want Tebow to start, but then I don't. Because I know deep down that it doesn't matter what this kid does. The Dalai Lama and his band of Tebow haters will never love Tebow... and they will never love us... the faceless victims of this whole tragedy... the abandoned Tebots aimlessly roaming the world like refugees hoping that Tebow finds a home so we will have a home... One that accepts us. Oh well, Jacksonville sucks, who knows there might just, might just be a chance... Packing my bags now...
