The Tebow Thing

So, as the football season gets under way, it's the same old story in Denver, unfortunately. During the off-season it seemed that the time had finally come for Tim Tebow — God's quarterback — to take the reigns for the Broncos.

He started the final three games of last season, he is one of the most popular figures in professional sports, and it seemed as if the Broncos were ready to see what he could do with the team. After the lockout finally ended, the Broncos put Kyle Orton on the trading block and it appeared the Tebow era was about to begin.

Then it didn't. The Broncos took Orton off the trading block and named him the starter. Then a variety of analysts, none crueler than Merrill Hoge, took shots at Tebow based on three games worth of evidence from his rookie season.

Now, it appears I can look forward to a Broncos season that looks a lot like last year — or maybe worse. But that's the question, isn't it.

Since I launched my Facebook page, no one has born the brunt of more of my joke posts than Kyle Orton. That's probably not entirely fair, so I thought I would clarify a couple reasons why I think it should be Tebow time in Denver.

First, Orton isn't a terrible player. He's a serviceable quarterback who's put up some decent numbers in Denver. In many ways he exceeded my expectations as a Bronco quarterback, especially during the first half of the 2009 season.

But he's also limited. He's professional and capable, but that doesn't really light anybody's engines. He also struggles on third down under pressure — which happens to Denver a lot — and struggles in the Red Zone, which leads to a lot of field goals and missed opportunities.

To be fair, the Broncos' 3-10 record in games he started last year wasn't totally his fault. The defense was awful and there was, in many cases, no running game to speak of. But the problem was — watching those games every Sunday — I never really felt like anything special was going to happen when Orton was in, and it mostly never did.

Which brings us back to Tebow. I am a Florida fan, so I watched Tebow play for the Gators for four years. Safe is not a word that could be used to describe his play, and capable wouldn't be the adjective that comes to mind. Exciting, determined, and gutsy best describe Tebow. Which means there's a potential for the highest of highs and the lowest of lows with him in the starting lineup. But it's that potential for highs that is the most encouraging.

In the three games Tebow started Denver won just one of those games, but the team competed in all the games and had chances to win. Tebow couldn't pull it out all the time, but his eight touchdowns (five passing, three rushing) made the games thrilling. In fact, in his first start against the Raiders, he had both an incredible passing touchdown and an incredible rushing touchdown.

So it's not that I think Tebow will be the second coming of Tom Brady, I just think he will bring a dynamic presence to the field and, most importantly, possibility. That's something Orton can't bring.

I don't expect the Broncos to be a playoff team this year. They're too young, lacking in talent in key positions, and struggling to find the mix of players that will serve as the team's foundation into the next decade. I don't know if Tebow is the answer — I hope he is, but only time will tell. But I do know that watching him try (and sometimes fail) on Sundays will be a lot more exciting than watching Orton capably lead Denver to another 4-12 season.

It's time for John Elway to step up and get Tebow time under way.