Posted on 05/21/2013 3:51:54 AM PDT by Kaslin
America has the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) and the UCP (ultimate clutch players). One is mixed martial artists, and the other is quarterbacks of the NFL. They all are athletic warriors who are extremely determined to win.
My favorite in the UFC is Georges St-Pierre. My favorite in the UCP is Tim Tebow.
I know what you are thinking: Tebow has been in the NFL for only three years. True, but Tim's 2011 season with the Denver Broncos was one of the most remarkable in football history.
What sportsman ever could forget how that amazing second-year QB came back from a 15-0 disadvantage to the Miami Dolphins to lead the Broncos to an 18-15 overtime victory and then led Denver to six wins in its next seven games and into the playoffs, beating the highly favored Pittsburgh Steelers in a wild-card game? It was the Broncos' first playoff victory in six years.
I have been following Tim since he became a QB for the University of Florida Gators, and I never have seen a more determined or inspiring athlete to play the game of football. And I'm not alone in that sports assessment.
Akbar Gbaja-Biamila, an analyst for NFL.com and NFL Network, explained in his article "Tim Tebow's history as a proven winner should not be ignored": "Training camps are still a few months away, and already, every team in the NFL has made a major mistake: They've overlooked the winning record of Tim Tebow. ... Pundits have tried to erase the success Tebow had in 2011 with the Denver Broncos, but make no mistake: It all happened. He did mount multiple fourth-quarter comebacks and notch four overtime victories; he did rush for 118 yards and throw for two touchdowns in one game; he did complete 66 percent of his passes and throw for two touchdowns in another. ... In the locker room, we had a word to describe that kind of personal highlight reel: ballin'."
Forbes just released its 2013 list of the most influential athletes, and Tim Tebow leads the pack, with the No. 1 ranking; the next football player on the list is Peyton Manning, at a distant fifth. The only other NFL players on the list are Drew Brees (No. 6) and Aaron Rodgers (No. 8).
I've heard the critics say Tebow has poor technical skills, but the truth is that Tim is a natural leader, an amazingly gifted football player, an inspiration to his team and the possessor of intense determination and strategy to bring any team to victory -- no matter what the odds. One can improve technique, but leadership is innate. That is why I believe that Tebow could be a superstar and legend in the NFL.
Tebow is a player who rises to the occasion and delivers big in critical moments. He reminds me of myself when I used to compete in martial arts. I would spar with my black belts in class, and sometimes they would outscore me. Yet in the tournaments, I would defeat them. My students used to ask me, "Why is it that we can contend equally against you in class but can't beat you in the tournaments?" My answer was always the same: "When it counts, I rise to the occasion."
The same is true of the former Heisman Trophy winner: When pressure mounts and the game is on the line, Tim's turbo turns on. It has been said, "If a quarterback came through with a clutch, final-minute victory, he pulled a 'Tebow.'" And that is why he is the ultimate clutch player.
I believe we have just begun to see what Tim is capable of doing as one of the best among the NFL's UCP. But a team must play him and let him lead as the Broncos did. No warrior can prove his worth if kept from the battlefield.
So what team do I feel should give Tim the opportunity to excel as a quarterback and usher it to Super Bowl status?
My present pick would be the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Why? To put it simply, it's because Tim could help turn that mediocre team into a championship one. Tebow works miracles on the field, and his inclusion would embolden the spirit of the Jaguars' players and fans.
Plus -- and this has no reflection on the current quarterbacks -- Tim is from Florida, where he bears a victor's legacy and an extensive fan base, to boot, from his days with the Gators, whom he led to two national championships and with whom he became the first sophomore ever to win the coveted Heisman Trophy.
So Shad Khan, who is the owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars, David Caldwell, who is the team's general manager, and coach Gus Bradley should give the preceding some serious thought. Whatever you would pay Tebow would be recouped tenfold by the increase in attendance and the fan base. With Tim as the QB for the Jacksonville Jaguars, the team would add thousands (if not tens of thousands) of additional fans to the stadium, including me -- even though I don't live in Florida!
Only one thing stands in the way, as Gbaja-Biamila wisely retorted: "Here's the truth as I see it: Many coaches let pride or fear of media and fan scrutiny affect the decisions they make about star players."
But I was reading a USA Today article last week titled "Trailblazer Shad Khan should set course for hirings." It reported that Khan, as the first minority owner of an NFL franchise, often cites Martin Luther King Jr.'s work as a contributing factor to his success.
So let me respectfully challenge Khan to consider these words from Dr. King: "There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe nor politic nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right."
I know that Khan, Caldwell and Bradley have talked, and they know hiring Tebow would be right -- right for them, right for the team, right for the fans and right for Florida.
All that is needed now is for the management of a football team to have the vision and faith to watch Tebow turn around the team. I guarantee they would see positive results. I have been an athlete all my life, being a six-time undefeated world middleweight champion in the martial arts, and I know a winner when I see one.
Tim Tebow is a winner -- plain and simple!
Eli Manning is clutch. He has won two Super Bowls DURING the Peyton/Brady/Rodgers/Brees era. That is not easy, especially when his skill are not top five. How J’Ville passes on Tebow is beyond me. They would pack the seats and would bench a less than mediocre talent in Gabbert. Damn shame about Tebow.
I realize I’m going to get lit up for this. So it goes...
As a man, Tebow is a great kid. A role model.
As a QB he is just not that good. He’s a talented athlete but he’s uncoordinated as a QB. Doesn’t seem to know where all the players on the field will be at any given moment, His throws are innaccurate - wildly so - . He regularly misses guys by 10, 20 yards. Wide open ones. Guys that you would be upset that you missed if you were playing with friends in your schoolyard.
He won a few big games and was the recipient of a ton of luck. He had a great defense in Denver which kept the Broncos close in the game vs. the Steelers long enough for that cornerback (safety?) to fall down. Tebow then hit a wide open WR for a TD.
As a New York Jet, he was a complete mess. To be fair, that was a combination effort. He’s not that good and The Jets messed him up further.
I’m glad he’s a spokesman and a role model. As a man, I’m proud of him. He’s just a QB who’s benefited from a good defense and a ton of luck.
That's exactly what I think of Tebow, and in his case I think his biggest problem is that he's playing one of the few positions on the football field where raw athletic skill and great character can't overcome serious mechanical deficiencies.
Ya, ‘cept one is an “athletic warrior” that you can’t hit, at least not too hard.
Tebow is a better athlete than half the guys in the NFL. That hack Sanchez and Colt McCoy, really. What have they won?
You can say the same about Ben Rothlesmolester. He sucks as a QB but he wins games because he has to good fortune of being on the Steelers. QB’s are only as good as the team they play with. Had the Jets truly given Tebow a chance he would out-shined Sanchez.
There were only 23 defenses ranked higher than the Broncos that year. But the defense was better than expected. They ranked 32 in several categories the previous year. It was a much improved defense, not sure how you get 'great' out of that.
In his “good” year in Denver - 2011 - Tebow:
14 games, 11 starts
12 TD
6 INT
6 Rushing TD
14 Fumbles
Completed 46.5% of his passes
Overall, he was below average - bad. Having watched many of his games, the stats reflect reality. He looked bad too.
Where he looked good was in the 4th quarter. When the pressure was on, he found ways to win. Very hard to judge that in a QB (Eli Manning, has that where Tony Romo doesn’t).
Looking at the skills - accuracy, “zip” on the passes, choosing the right receiver, reading defenses etc...Tebow’s a mess. He finds ways to come back and win in the 4th quarter but with his skill set that will not last.
I don’t think Dave Winfield is a fair comparison. Winfield had plenty of baseball skills. He looked herky jerky sometimes because of how big he was but if you look at stop action of when he made throws from RF or when he was hitting 500 foot HRs, everything looked right.
Tebow is the opposite. Watch his throwing motion. It’s a mess. Watch his reading of defenses. It’s a mess.
You can bash Rothlisberger for being a criminal. He is one and I’m not defending him. As a role model. he’s somehwere on the list near Michael Vick, Charlie Sheen and Mike Tyson. His throws, ability to escape and read defenses are miles ahead of anything Tebow brings to the table.
The Jets made so many mistakes last year it’s laughable. Giving Sanchez that contract. Signing Tebow and then completely mishandling him. They were a complete mess. It’s fair to say that Tebow couldn’t have done worse than Sanchez. It’s also fair to say that I may not have done much worse. I am capable of throwing wobbly ducks off my back foot while running for my life too.
That Sanchez also stunk does not make Tebow good. He’d have been just as bad but in a different way.
A fullback who is a threat to throw makes defenses have to adjust their coverages, creating other opportunities. That's how I'd like to see him utilized.
There were only 23 defenses ranked higher than the Broncos that year. But the defense was better than expected. They ranked 32 in several categories the previous year. It was a much improved defense, not sure how you get 'great' out of that.
Yep. He should have been used like how the Jets used Brad Smith. That way they maximize use of his athletic skills while minimizing the risk of his poor throwing motion, defense reading etc...
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