Tim Tebow - My Personal Thoughts

Let me educate those of you reading this blog on a few things about myself so you understand where I am coming from when I make my evaluation of Tim Tebow, quarterback of the Denver Broncos:

1. I have never played a down of football personally in my life.  I admit that freely.
2. I have watched games as a fan since I was 5 years old, and since the age of around 14, have enjoyed watching the Xs and Os side of life - why teams do what they do when they do it.
3. I am, technically, a member of the Catholic faith.  I have not been inside a church in at least 20 years.

So there you go.  Now you will understand where I stand when I criticize, and praise, Tim Tebow.

The big hangups on Tim Tebow are his religious beliefs and his throwing motion.  I will tackle both of those here.  First up, the religious beliefs.

Usually I have an issue with people I term as "happy-clappies" - overly zealous religious people who seek to, in my humble opinion, sway you to their position on issues of faith or become self-righteous about their view on an issue that could involve their faith.  This is not everyone that is religious, but the majority of people I encounter of this ilk are like this.  I do know people that can have calm conversations about "sensitive" topics where they have differing beliefs but can see the other point of the argument, even if they disagree.  They are rare, but they do exist.

Back to Tebow.  Tebow has made no secret of his religious views since his days at Florida.  This is not a shock to people, or should not be.  But religion is one of those "taboo" topics that people are always uncomfortable talking about, or hearing about.  People get crazy when they get uncomfortable.  But I personally look at it from the other side of the coin:  Tebow's genuine.  To paraphrase a famous comedian, George Carlin, Jesus is on every athlete's lips when they win, but never mentioned when they lose.

How does Tebow start almost every press conference?  "First off, I'd like to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ...".  Win or lose.  Blown out by the Patriots and Tom Brady?  Same line.  Overtime win against Pittsburgh in the playoffs?  Same line.  Consistency I respect a lot.  It takes true faith to believe in God when times are tough.  Normal people just fold.  Myself included.

I respect that about Tebow.  I may not share his fervor for Jesus, but I respect that he does because he does it consistently.

Next is the attitude on the field.  NOTHING rattles this guy on the field.  If Tebow makes a mistake, he owns up to it and promises better results in the next series.  If a teammate misses a key play, Tebow is the first to be there and promise better times and results for that teammate ahead.  This is his makeup thanks to his religious foundation - Tim Tebow sees the larger picture of life, and football is a small part of his life.  That is blasphemous to football worshippers.  I respect it, personally.  But this foundation of religion makes Tebow unshakeable on the field.  With that faith in God, himself, and his teammates, you cannot rattle him ever.  There is nothing you can say or do to him to shake his belief that he will triumph in the end.  I think if there wasn't a timekeeper, Tebow would just keep going until he won or was told to stop.

Personally, I would rather have a quarterback with supreme intangibles over supreme athletic ability to play the position.  Which will lead me to my final thought on Tebow:  his mechanics.

ESPN has dissected this kid down to the minute details.  "He can't do this....He needs to improve his throwing motion...."  Tebow is not perfect as a pocket passer.  He's never been asked to do that, though.  He's always been a spread option quarterback, or a read-option quarterback.  He's never been asked to be a true pocket quarterback.

Is he rough around the edges?  Absolutely.  Is he consistent as a passer?  Absolutely not.

But he's getting better.

He reminds me a bit of another left handed, mobile quarterback who started off kinda rocky in the NFL and USFL (remember that league, kids?).  A guy who, honestly, had a better release, but was a run-first type quarterback when he got onto the scene.  He got some solid tutelage from a future Hall of Famer, and, when he got his chance, made it count.

Guess who I'm talking about yet?  Steve Young.

If the Broncos continue to take care of Tebow with John Elway providing some tutelage while getting Tim some great coaching, Tebow could be better than Elway was.

I knocked Tebow's mechanics when he came out of college and said, at best, he would be a backup quarterback in the NFL.  Just like any of Tebow's critics, he is proving me very wrong, and I personally love it.  I also said that if Tebow succeeded in any form, I would be the first to line up and say I was wrong.

To this stage in Tebow's career, I was wrong.

Tebow's religious foundation builds his extreme intangibles, and those intangibles, along with his athleticism, wins games.  His religious foundation builds his work ethic, which in turn will make him better in the long term.

Josh McDaniels, former Broncos head coach, may have gone crazy with drafting Tebow in the first round.  But ultimately he may have the last laugh if Tebow is successful in the long run.

BCS Title Game - My Personal Thoughts

It's been almost 12 hours since "The Game of the Century Part Deux" ended.

And let me say that, as an LSU fan first and foremost and a SEC fan second, Alabama was the better team in the first matchup, and they were definitely better in the second matchup.

First off, kudos to Coach Nick Saban and their defense's execution all night long.  Proof positive that if you give a defensive-minded head coach like Saban that much time (40+ days) to prepare for a team like LSU, they will ultimately get the job done...IF their offense can do any work.

And that is where a lot of my kudos will ultimately go.  Alabama's offensive gameplan was sheer genius, unlike last time.  They allowed their quarterback, A.J. McCarron, to throw on early downs, starting with short passes and working their way downfield to deeper crosses and post patterns.  This gave Alabama balance, and while Trent Richardson didn't have a phenomenal game by his standards, the pass set up the run late, which is unusual for this Alabama team.

Now for the complaints...what the hell was LSU doing on offense?  You want to know why the defense, and the team itself, looked lifeless?  Look no further than its quarterback for the game - an ill-equipped young man with maturity issues and serious lack of quarterback skills in Jordan Jefferson.

I read the stats on Jarrett Lee against the Tide.  Yes, he has stunk it up.  Yes, he did throw two interceptions against Alabama in their matchup earlier this season.  So, for the LOVE of all that is holy, WHY do you leave a quarterback out there that is clearly lost his confidence in Jefferson and not TRY something different?

Would the outcome have been different?  Probably not, with the way the Crimson Tide played all game long.  But at least give your defense some hope.  Tyrann Mathieu was dead on the sidelines midway through the third quarter.  The defense as a whole was gassed, having been out on the field a majority of the game thanks to inept offensive execution and playcalling.

Jordan Jefferson, meanwhile, is without a doubt one of the worst quarterbacks I have ever seen.  I watched him in person his junior year against Louisiana-Lafayette.  I have NEVER played a down of football in my life.  I knew exactly who Jefferson was throwing to on every pass play, and if not for some softer hands by ULL cornerbacks, that game would have been on ESPN as the upset of the year.  I personally rank him right up there (and higher now, in honesty) with another abysmal quarterback I got to watch a lot of, sadly - Aaron Brooks.  Both looked like the bright lights of the BCS Title Game (in Jefferson's case) and ANY NFL game (in Brooks' case) got to them.

Jefferson looked rattled all game long, and especially after his bonehead interception.  A quarterback has to constantly carry his team emotionally, even in losing times.  He has to be that steadying force that says with both body language and voice, "Forget about that mistake.  We'll get them next time.  Just get me the ball back."

Jefferson's body language said, "Take me out.  I'm done.  This game is over.  I can't win."

Why LSU head coach Les Miles did NOT take Jefferson out and put Lee in, no one will ever know truly.  But LSU's coaching mistakes, and Jordan Jefferson's inability to be mature and LEAD his team, cost LSU this game in some form or fashion.

Alabama won the game and went out and took control of it from the start until the end.  LSU lost the game because they just did not want it as bad.  And in sports, if you don't want it, you definitely won't get it.