Tebow Hasn't "Progressed" Enough for Doubters

I believe in Tebow.

If you read the media reports or listen to the talking heads on TV they say, “Tebow isn't far enough along yet and should be progressing quicker." Really?

So far his NFL career spans 2 seasons and 14 games, which is not even a full NFL season. If the doubters and haters out there would give him a break, technically he has 2 more games to go to have 16 starts; all of this done with a new coaching staffs this year and no extended reps in training camp. In my opinion that still classifies him as a Rookie.

So what has he done in 14 games?

He was 1-2 last year as a starter, 7-4 this year for an overall record of 8-6. Hmmm… not progressing enough for you?

Okay… So after taking over as starter for a 1-4 team and about as down as you can possibly get, he led the team to a 7-4 record. Not good enough, he should have won more games as a starter right?

He has 6 4th Quarter come from behind wins. Still not enough for all you QB experts?

During one stretch this year he led the Broncos to 3 straight wins over divisional opponents all on the road. Whatever…That doesn’t matter either.

Alright then, he led his team to a playoff berth something that hasn’t happened in 6 years. Yea but the Broncos lost their last 3 games.

Even though the Broncos backed into the playoffs with some bad football the last 3 weeks of the season, “Hey, it’s a whole new season anything can happen right?” Who cares, we’re going to get creamed by the Steelers because Tebow has not “progressed” enough as a passing QB by my standards yet. We need to dump this guy and move on.

It’s amazing how all the talking heads and know-it-all QB experts who wildly supported and defended a certifiable Bum like Orton at the start of the season would then condemn a “Rookie” to the NFL gallows after taking one of the worst teams in the NFL from a year ago even though it wasn’t a thing of beauty to a playoff berth. If he were any other QB, in any other city he’d be one of the biggest stories in the NFL this year. Instead of getting pats on the back all he gets is kicks in the ass in part because he’s a devoted Christian. This just can’t be denied.

All I know is we’re in the playoffs. I know it doesn’t look good against a strong Steelers defensive team. But Hey that’s why you just keep playing hard and maybe the Steelers have a few breakdowns and we could pull off an upset. It is possible right? Wouldn’t that be amazing? If you throw out all the negative aspects of Tebow’s game which there are many and which have been very well documented repeatedly I’m going to ignore it all and just be a fan this week.

I don’t have any idea if Tebow gets any better or “progresses” as an NFL QB. I have no idea if he’s the QBOF, that well be decided later. All I know is TODAY he led my team to a worthy playoff spot and I hope that we beat the Steelers. This Sunday my Fan Faith will be in full force because it’s GAME ON. GO BRONCOS!!!

Denver Broncos "Opportunistic" D = W's

Wesley Woodyard forces Barber to fumble the game away.

3 days later the first thing that comes to my mind after the Chicago Bears game was how many people call this win just dumb luck. The other comments by Non-Broncos Fans and the NFL Pundits were that Marion Barber LOST the game for the Bears. This just isn’t true at all, while Tebow continues to draw all the media attention the Broncos D has been quietly under the radar playing some of the finest defensive games I’ve seen for 6 years. They WON the game Barber didn’t LOSE it.

What some seem to forget is that while Barber did run the ball out of bounds it was because DJ Williams forced him out of bounds. Now… should Barber of hit the deck a second sooner on that play? Yes, but if you look at the replay he was running full speed trying to run straight up the field near the sidelines and DJ pushed him out. So DJ’s hustle play forced Barber out of bounds, Barber really was in a bad position to be sure but it was a snap play and a snap decision he had to make. DJ, who should be considered one of players of the game, had 9 tackles (led the team) and 2 sacks. But the Barber hustle play alone helped to extend the game. 

What about the fumble in OT? Again…some would say that Barber fumbled the ball but what I would say was Wesley Woodyard made an outstanding defensive play by stripping Barber and causing a turnover.

If this were any other team in the league or any other defense in the league without a guy named Tim Tebow at QB maybe this would be how many might describe what happened in the 4th Q and OT. In my opinion this is what you call playing “Opportunistic” Defense. Good defensive teams create turnovers, good field position and momentum shifts. This is exactly what happened in the Bears game and has manifested itself many times during this current winning streak.

One of the important factors that can’t be overlooked was just how much Von Miller contributed to the game even though he played it with a cast on one hand. How can your teammates not get motivated when they see you flying around the field with one hand disabled and still making tackles and sacks? Miller had 4 tackles and 1 sack and his presence on the field for the Broncos D is directly and equally in proportion to Tebow leading the charge for the O.

The Broncos turnaround is 2 fold. Tebow’s passion and never say die attitude and the Broncos D playing a full 60 minutes of solid football. Tebow’s heroics are well documented but much of the success lies in a Defense that has been an amazing group of overachievers.

This week the Broncos D is going to be the difference again between winning and losing against the Tom Brady aerial show. The Broncos should easily shut down the Patriots running game. So it’s my hope that Fox gambles at every opportunity to get pressure on Brady. If he has to send 6 or 7 guys to get to him on every obvious passing play he must. He’ll have more success doing that than trying to play a conservative zone coverage game against Brady. The only way the Broncos can win this game is by bringing pressure early and often and making Brady earn every passing yard by hurrying him, knocking him down or better yet sacking him as many times as possible.

If Champ and company can keep the clamps on Wesley Welker and Rob Gronkoski, the front 7 get pressure on Brady and keep the game close the Broncos have an excellent chance of winning this game. I don’t see the Broncos O winning a shoot out no matter how horrible the Patriots D is, because Brady wins those every time.   

The best chance the Broncos have to beat the Patriots is by continuing the same formula that has brought them this far. A turnover free time consuming conservative grind it out smash mouth O and a very aggressive “Opportunistic” D will bring it home for the Broncos. I know no one outside of Denver is giving the Broncos a snowball’s chance in hell of winning this one but I see another great game and a W in the win column. You heard it here first. GO BRONCOS!!!

Broncos Fans Celebrate the Day!!

For almost a month and a half, the Broncos have been winning. Some of the games were not a thing of beauty at the time, but are still wins. During that time we’ve been subjected to the ‘so called’ experts and NFL Pundits on the internet, in print, on radio and TV and worst of all, many Broncos Fans. To many Fans had all but given up on the team at game 6 of the NFL Season. It seemed as if everyone had totally dismissed the idea of winning…. not so much with Tebow’s game on the field, but because of a personal hate and grudge for what he is as a man.

Some of these Fans were ready to throw in the towel and do what’s been done for the last 5 years…. look to next year’s draft or for next year’s QB. This year it started after game 5 of the NFL season, with 11, yes 11 games yet to be played.

I guess I’m different. When Tebow started his first game against the Fins I was just a fan, being in the moment, watching a game hoping my team would win one. I didn’t have the TV remote in one hand and my iPhone in the other checking the latest college QB’s statistics from the day before or trying to figure where the Broncos draft position would be if we lost to them.

The height of the insanity came when I saw a post made by a fan on a Bronco’s message board. First and foremost, I have to say this person is one of the best contributors on the board. He’s an intelligent, even handed guy who’s as die-hard as they get. But even he had been driven to think more of next year than the present one. And with his post that calculated what the Broncos losing percentage would be as it related to next year’s draft, I was at a loss for words. I’m sorry, but that just goes beyond anything I could possibly imagine going into week 6 of an NFL Season.

In the beginning I had my doubts about Tebow too. Today (And that’s what really matters) the guy is a real live Clark Kent. As Kent, I’m not sure he’ll ever be a Superman, which is fine with me as long as he continues to improve and more importantly helps the team win. If he succeeds at this feat, I don’t care what he does off the field.

I think the doubters and haters would much rather have a Dark Knight than a Clark Kent. A cerebral Batman type QB that’s a genius on the field and off. Tebow isn’t that complicated, his life is orderly and simple. He puts all of his love and faith in God first, and then loves his family second. His final priority is to be completely devoted to being the best team football player he can be.

Personally I think those are qualities to be admired, not hated. We’ve been subjected to a whole league full of thugs that have committed every terrible vice known to man and call it acceptable. But we somehow can’t seem to accept Tebow? He wears his faith on his sleeve and he comes from a very successful Florida program. That alone sets him up to burned at the stake by a bunch of wolves who hate the idea of a goody two-shoes succeeding at anything, let alone a QB of an NFL team, especially ‘their’ team.

Winning supersedes all ills and winning breed’s confidence. Winning, no matter how so many Broncos Fans would like to apologize for it or say it’s a fluke…is still winning. The wins in week 6 and 8, no matter how ugly they were, will only matter because they bring the Broncos one game closer to winning the AFC West and a playoff berth.

It’s too bad more Fans can’t get used to the idea of winning and having Tebow as their QB of the future. I’m having the time of my life right now. I can’t wait to see the Bear’s game. If the Broncos make the playoffs, win or lose, it’ll go down in Bronco’s lore as one of the greatest seasons ever in my book because so many had written them off, and many of them…. are so called Bronco’s fans.