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Why No One in the NFL Wants Tim Tebow
Steve Matoren
Sep 3, 2014
*While this story was first posted more than 2 years, it’s still as revelant as ever with Tebow’s recent release from the Eagles. For the more than 1 million people who’ve already read this post, please scroll down to the bottom to read my latest update. I’ve received hundreds of tweets and emails over the last couple of years- Tebow nation is strong and mighty and we will continue to believe.
You either love or hate him. When it comes to the polarizing football force named Tim Tebow, your feelings are verifiably black and white. Tebow knows no shades of gray. With the NFL set to kick-off another Tebowless season tonight, the reasons why the 27 year old cult hero and physical specimen has been relegated to reporting on football (as an SEC Network commentator), rather than playing football (in the NFL), have been discussed and debated like no other topic in sport the last few years.
We’ve heard everything from “he can’t throw” to “he’s not a good practice player” to “he’s a distraction.” Legendary Green Bay Packers Coach Vince Lombardi must be turning over in his grave. He’d be the first to remind us that “Winning isn’t everything — It’s the only thing.” And at every level, all Tebow did was win.
The only question worth asking when evaluating your QB, widely recognized as the most important position on the field, is, “Can I win a Championship with this guy?”
Tebow won a State Championship in High School, two National Championships in College and a Division Championship in the NFL.
In the 2007 College Football season Tebow threw for 29 TD’s and rushed for 21 more, the most in SEC history. He won the Heisman. In 14 career NFL regular season starts, Tebow is 8–6 with 17 passing TD’s and 12 rushing TD’s. That’s 29 total TD’s in his first 14 games!
Keep in mind, Tebow has never entered an NFL season as a starting QB. No off-season program as the starter. No training camp reps as the starter. Never. Yet, other QB’s with far less credentials and far fewer wins, have been given years to develop as a starting NFL QB. YEARS! Tebow never even got ONE.
Tebow’s limitless heart, insatiable will-to-win, strong character, extraordinary work ethic, humility, countless charitable efforts and leadership skills have never been in question. You would think these off-the-chart intangibles alone should be enough to warrant a real opportunity.
After all, it’s not like he failed with the last team to employ him for a full season. The NY Jets never gave him the chance to. Not once did they allow him to start. They finished 6–10, and 30th in the league in scoring. Tebow was primarily relegated to holding a clip board, and rather inexplicably, asked to punt protect.
In 2013, then Cleveland Browns General Manager Michael Lombardi, was quoted as saying, “(Tebow’s) not the vision of where we’re headed.” What vision was that? Losing? Lombardi’s since been fired and replaced by Ray Farmer. Farmer’s vision apparently is in step with his predecessor’s. Also passing on Tebow, Farmer opted to draft Johnny Manziel this past year — perhaps the anti-Tebow. Off the field, Johnny Football is a partying train wreck — on it, NFL personnel are about as divided on him as they are with Tebow.
By the way, the Browns, as a franchise, have started 20 different QB’s since 1999. So yeah, they’ve got great “vision” with that. No wonder they’ve only had 2 winning seasons since ‘99 and six consecutive 11 loss seasons. Some say — the Browns are cursed. Perhaps, they’re only cursed in their inability to pick a QB. However, I would argue they simply don’t know how to properly evaluate one.
In just 3 seasons in the NFL, Tebow managed to win as many playoff games, one, as current NFL starting QB’s Jay Cutler, Alex Smith, Andrew Luck, Tony Romo and Matt Ryan. Oh by the way, that one playoff win came in Tebow’s first career playoff appearance.
Tebow also has the same number of career playoff wins as former multi-year NFL starters, Matt Schaub, Jeff George, Bubby Brister, Rodney Peete, Steve Walsh, Steve Beuerlein, David Garrard, Marc Bulger, Erik Kramer, Elvis Grbac, “Dandy” Don Meredith, Steve Barkowski, Steve DeBerg, Joe Ferguson and David Carr.
How about some notable QB’s who never won an NFL playoff game? On this undesirable list are Brian Sipe, Neil Lomax, Jon Kitna, Trent Green, Gus Frerotte, Steve Grogan, Bert Jones, YA Tittle, Ken O’Brien, Roman Gabriel, Vince Young, Sean Salisbury, Bobby Hebert and Doug Flutie.
If that’s not enough, Tebow has more playoff wins than 13 current NFL starting QB’s COMBINED — a group that includes: Matt Cassel, Nick Foles, Matthew Stafford, Cam Newton, RG3, Carson Palmer, Andy Dalton, EJ Manuel, Shaun Hill, Chad Henne, Josh McCown, Jake Locker, Derek Carr and Brian Hoyer. You can also add the recently injured Rams starter, Sam Bradford, to this list.
If you still don’t think what Tebow did, in winning a playoff game, was truly special — then consider this omnious fact — Tebow became the first Heisman winning QB in 26 years to win an NFL playoff game. The streak now stands at 28 years.
ESPN has a TV show called Numbers Never Lie. If that’s the case, here’s some eye-popping NFL numbers for Tebow, beyond just his wins and losses.
In his first NFL career start back in 2010 vs Oakland, Tebow rushed for the longest TD run in Broncos history (40 yards) by a QB. In his 2nd start he threw for 308 yards and rallied past the Texans for a 24–23 win, after trailing 17–0 at the half. Tebow became the 1st QB in NFL history to rush for a TD in each of his first 3 starts.
You’d think this would have been enough to warrant the starting job the following season, but new Head Coach John Fox, known for his conservative style, came in and promptly handed the job back to previous starter Kyle Orton without competition. We know how that story ended. Remember Kyle Orton — more on him later.
Bowing to public pressure and a dismal 1–4 start to the 2011 season, Fox reluctantly named Tebow his starting QB after week 5. A prominent Denver downtown billboard orchestrated by fans, practically begging Fox to give Tebow a shot, turned the tide.
Tebow went on to start the final 11 regular season games for the Broncos, winning 7 of them, en route to a Broncos AFC West Division Championship. In case you were living under a rock, here’s the highlights from that unlikely playoff run— a time that will forever be remembered as “Tebow Time.”
In his first start of 2011 vs the Dolphins in Week 6, Tebow and the Broncos found themselves down 15–0 with 3:30 minutes left. And then Tebow went to work. He led back to back scoring drives of 80 and 56 yards, before tying it on a 2-point conversion. The Broncos kicked the game winner in Overtime to win 18–15.
Here’s what former Florida teammate and current Miami Dolpins center Mike Pouncey had to say afterward: “It’s tough to say, but man, Timmy did a great job. Hopefully the critics will get off him about what he can’t do and talk about the things that he can do, and that’s figure out a way to win the game, no matter what.”
Two weeks later against the Raiders in Oakland, Tebow ran for 117 yards, threw for 124 yards and 2 TD’s. Denver won 38–24. The win was the first of 6 in a row for the Broncos.
On a cold Thursday night in Denver in front of a national TV audience, Tebow engineered a game-winning 95 yard drive with less than 6 minutes left to beat the Jets 17–13. Tebow scored the winning TD with a magnificent 20-yard scamper on 3rd down. I was at this game — It was, in single word — electric!
After his third comeback in a month Tebow simply said, “I like winning.”
Teammate Von Miller was a bit more loquatious. “I said before, I trust him. I trust him with everything. No matter how many interceptions he throws, no matter how many touchdowns he scores, that’s Tim Tebow and I’m going to ride with him to the end. I hope he shut up a whole bunch of critics today.”
Coach John Fox finally seemed impressed too, “He’s a competitive dude. He’s super competitive. He never lays his sword down. He’ll fight you to the death. That’s just his nature. He’s a great young man.”
The following week, once again, I witnessed more Tebow magic in person. This time in San Diego before a super charged-up crowd, Tebow led another late comeback and a 16–13 OT win.
Another road game. Another comeback win for Tebow. The week after defeating the Chargers, Denver beat Minnesota 35–32 in a raucous Metrodome with Tebow leading the way yet again.
Next up for T — the trash-talking Chicago Bears. Down 10–0 with just over 2 minutes to play, Tebow and the Broncos found a way. After tying it up, they won it in overtime 13–10. Even in defeat, Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher was unimpressed. He called Tebow “a good running back.”
But after struggling over the final 3 weeks of the season, all the Tebow critics finally found their ammo. They cried and boasted loudly — “Tebow was lucky” or “it was the Denver defense that kept them in games.” Sure, Denver was winning, but not because of Tebow. Nevertheless, a team that began 1–4 without Tebow, then went 7–4 with Tebow and ended up with a division title.
The defending AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers brought the League’s #1 scoring defense into Denver for the opening playoff game. No one gave Tebow a chance of winning this one.
The Broncos beat the Steelers 29–23 in Overtime. And what about Tebow? The guy who couldn’t “throw” threw for 316 yards and 2 TD’s, including the 80-yard game-winner on the first play in OT. The Steelers vaunted defense had only given up 6 completions of 30+ yards all season — Tebow threw 5 in this game.
Tebow was the first player to throw for 300 yards against the Steelers all season. Tebow also became the first player to have 4 completions of more than 30 yards in one quarter of a playoff game in the modern era (1960) and the first to do so in any game since Warren Moon did it in 1990. No QB since the NFL/AFL merger in 1970 had ever completed three 50+ yard passes in a game. And just for good measure, Tebow also ran for 50 yards and a TD.
Tebow’s 97.3 QBR (out of 100) was the highest ever recorded in a single game. The QBR is a relatively new stat created by ESPN that shows total game efficiency that factors in a number of categories. They use it almost exclusively now in determining a QB’s overall proficiency.
Nah…Tebow can’t play QB in the NFL.
The only number that seems to be irrelevant for Tebow is his career completion percentage of 47.9%. Let me ask you something. Would you prefer a guy like Alex Smith who will go 18-for-21 for 120 yards, dinking, dunking and checking down? Or a guy like Tebow who goes 10-for-21 and throws for 316 yards and goes balls out for the first down or TD, completion percentage be damned?! Anyone can complete a 2 yard pass on 3rd and 12 to pad his stats. Also, Tebow never slides short of the sticks (first down marker).
To further address the question of completion percentage, I called the Elias Sports bureau to find out Tebow’s completion to TD ratio, relative to a few other QB’s. My theory is that while Tebow completes a far fewer percentage of his passes than your average NFL QB, those completions are far more meaningful. And while his total number of career completions rank well below the others I inquired about — it does prove my point.
Here’s the career passing completion percentage that go for TD’s (includes playoffs).
Tebow — 9.9%
Aaron Rogers 9.6%
Peyton Manning 8.7%
Mark Sanchez 6.9%
Alex Smith 6.8%
All Chris Carter may have done was catch TD’s — well, all Tebow does is throw them. The numbers never lie.
One of the things I never understood was why so much was made of Tebow’s seemingly unexpected superb play in the 4th quarter. Critics would say, “Why can’t he do that in the first 3 quarters?” The answer was obvious to anyone who watched the entire game — John Fox did not allow Tebow to be Tebow. He called an extremely conservative game plan and hardly ever allowed Tebow to throw in non-obvious passing situations.
Now, his critics will say, “That’s because Fox knew he couldn’t throw!” Well if he couldn’t throw for 3 quarters, then why could he throw in the 4th? When you only get a handful of pass attempts in a game, it’s nearly impossible to get in a rhythm or throw with any consistency. The offensive game plan in Denver in 2011 with Tebow was a joke. The fact he still managed to overcome it and win in spectacular fashion was in spite of his Coach’s lack of confidence and dreadful play calls.
In the end, what do these stats, that AFC Division Title and record-setting playoff performance earn Mr. Tebow? In the off-season, Denver signed perennial Pro-Bowler Peyton Manning and immediately traded Tim to the New York Jets. Despite woeful performances from the two other QB’s on their roster, the Jets never allowed Tebow to start or log any meaningful playing time. He was cut at the end of the season and picked up by the New England Patriots, who then released him the week before the season opener.
New England is a curious place for Tebow’s career to have been shut down, even with the great Tom Brady firmly entrenched as their QB. But if you have to back-up someone, who better to learn from than “The Golden Boy?”
Pats Owner Bob Kraft, a man with extremely high moral character and intelligence, and one of the few Owners I respect a great deal, said he wished Tebow could have made the team. Right or wrong, he put the onus on Head Coach Bill Belichick, who is a very good friend of arguably Tebow’s biggest supporter, current Ohio State State Head Coach and Tebow’s college coach, Urban Meyer.
Josh McDaniels, the man who drafted Tebow in the first round while Head Coach with Denver, is the Offensive Coordinator for the Patriots. Many people say the drafting of Tebow was the reason McDaniels was fired in Denver. I counter that McDaniels got fired because he never played Tebow!
Sticking with another QB (Orton) proved to be his real downfall. Who knows what would have happened if Tebow was named the starter on day one in Denver. It’s possible both he and McDaniels would still be there. If McDaniels ever gets another shot at being an NFL Head Coach, you wonder if he’ll give Tebow another one as well.
So, why has no other NFL team shown interest since? Why does no NFL team want Tim Tebow on their team? And forget just having him on the team, why doesn’t any team want Tebow to be their starting QB?!
Tebow doesn’t fit your system? Change your system.
Tebow doesn’t practice well? I’ll be the first to admit practice is extremely important. With that said, nobody won any Championships in “practice.”
Tebow brings too much attention. Hello! You’re in the business of entertainment and attention getting! Eyeballs and Butts In The Seats, right?
Tebow’s faith is disruptive. To whom? ISIS?
By all accounts, Tebow lives an exemplary lifestyle, which is more than can be said for so many employed in the NFL. No drugs. No drunk driving. No public intoxication. No assault or domestic violence charges. No rape accusations. No accidental bullets fired. No dog killing. No leaked sexting pictures. No “misrepresented” photos that show him fondling strippers in a Dallas area “restaurant.” It’s possible, Tebow’s just too good for this League.
As a group, NFL Owners have long been known for their conservative rule and public policies. NFL Owners do not take risks, at least not anymore. And while they’ve successfully created billion dollar businesses, and often profess to be “all about winning”, they’re also clearly interested in making even more money…i.e. now charging entertainers to play the Super Bowl halftime show. Which is why their collective decision to ignore and dismiss a man who’s aptly proven he’s capable of delivering both so improbable and illogical. It just doesn’t make any sense or cents! Where is the risk with Tebow?!
Tebow’s games, as both a College and NFL starter, were among the highest rated on TV. That Steelers playoff game drew a 31.6 rating and 42.4 million viewers, the second most watched TV event in the calendar year, behind only the Super Bowl. An ESPN poll at the time named him the most popular athlete in the world.
Tebow was more popular than Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods and every other NFL player. Heading into 2010, Tebow sat comfortably at number 1 in NFL jersey sales despite being a rookie on a team with no immediate plans to start him. In 2011, the act of “Tebowing”, going down on one knee to pray, became a world-wide phenomenan.
By last check,@TimTebow has 2.69 million Twitter followers — more than every single TEAM in the league…by a large margin. The Patriots lead the NFL with 912,000 followers. The Cowboys are second @ 879,000. Last among the 32 franchises? The Arizona Cardinals @ 112,000. To keep things in perspective, Tebow is no Lady Gaga or Biebs. The Queen of Twitter has 42 million “Little Monsters” following her and the bratty King from Canada has 54.2 million trollers. I hear ‘ya, but can either of them play QB?
So, with all these numbers and accomplishments, Why is Tebow seemingly being black-balled from the NFL? And why isn’t the right question being asked to the right people?
Urban Meyer, doesn’t understand it. Neither does Super Bowl winning Coach Jon Gruden, a vocal Tebow advocate. ESPN’s Skip Bayless, who first led the media charge to “unleash Tebow” doesn’t get it. Hall of Famer Steve Young begged to see Tebow given a real chance to play QB.
I’m tired of hearing from the traditional sheep herding NFL Coaches and General Managers as to why Tebow can’t make it in the NFL; even though he’s already proven he can. I’m done listening to TV analysts breakdown his faulty mechanics or cite his overall deficiencies as a Quarterback; when the reality is, no other man with Tebow’s significant raw talents and leadership skills have been given less time to develop into a better player. It’s time to hear from those whose voice matters most.
32 individuals sign the checks in today’s NFL. 32 people who can unilaterally hire and fire among NFL teams. Because no one in the national media seems eager to engage anymore in the topic, I decided to personally ask each of the 32 NFL owners the same basic question — ‘Why don’t you want Tim Tebow on your team?’
I emailed the request through the appropriate channels, contacting each team’s Senior PR/Communications executive. I let them know that each of their fellow Owners would be receiving the same exact question. All I wanted in return was an honest, candid answer to a question even a child could address. Surely, a group of adult billionaires, from America’s highest profile sport, who pledge the holy trinity of ethics, family values and character would be able to answer such a simple question. Below are the 32 responses I received (or didn’t) from each team’s PR rep….
New England Patriots: “I (Robert Kraft) understand that you are reaching out to all NFL teams, but the question might be a little too generic, as I don’t think it applies to the Patriots. If you recall, we did want him on our team. We signed him. We brought him to training camp. We gave him a chance to compete and to earn a spot on our roster. I was hoping that he would make our team. Clearly, he has enjoyed a lot of success as a football player. He is a great ambassador for our game, both on and off the field. I enjoyed getting to know Tim and felt like we shared a number of core values.”
Worth mentioning — this was the most complete and dignified answer from any team. And that doesn’t surprise me at all. The Patriots are a first class organization. I also have no reason to believe this is not a sincere and genuine comment from Mr. Kraft. As I previously stated, I’m a long-time admirer of the Patriots owner, which is why it’s so disappointing he couldn’t tell his football decision makers just this once — “This one’s on me. I want the kid on our team.”
Carolina Panthers: “He (Jerry Richardson) never comments on player evaluations, including this one.”
Why the silence? Why Jerry? Why? Is it because you have confidence in Cam Newton? Let me remind you Cam used to back up Tebow at Florida and was later booted from the team and the school for stealing laptops. But since you’ve given him millions of dollars, he can probably afford to buy his own computer equipment now. Gator and Alabama fans refer to him as “Scam.” One last thing, Tebow’s also got more NFL playoffs wins than Newton.
Dallas Cowboys: Did not respond
Another Jerry (Jones) — Another no answer. We all know JJ loves the spotlight (and strippers), yet he’s never once publically considered Tebow, aside from the drunken response he gave a fan back in 2010. Well, they do still have Tony Romo, who’s entering his 12th year, yet has won just once in the playoffs — just like Tebow.
Atlanta Falcons: “Steve – Hope you are having a terrific Labor Day. We are going to pass on this request. Thx.”
At least they were pleasant about it. As for their franchise QB, Matty “Ice” Ryan? He’s 1–4 in the post season.
San Francisco 49ers: “Sorry Steve. We are going to pass on this request.”
Surely Tebow seems a better back-up to Colin Kaepernick than Blaine Gabbert?! How does a QB who miserably failed to make it as a starter with one of the worst teams in the league become a back-up to one of the best?
Green Bay Packers: “Steve, thanks for the opportunity but we’ll respectfully decline. Hopefully we’ll have a chance to work on something in the future.”
Well, they do have Aaron Rodgers. Also, the Packers are a public company, so technically they have thousands of owners. It would be difficult to get a comment from each of them. On the other hand, maybe I should poll every one of the 352,427 shareholders. I wonder how many of them are a Tebow Twitter followers.
Miami Dolphins: “Steve, Thanks for the e-mail and hope all is well. We will politely decline this request as we only discuss players on our roster. Thanks.”
I wonder if I asked a question about Dan Marino if I’d get the same response. After all, he’s not on their current roster.
Houston Texans: Did not respond
Keep in mind, current Texans Owner Bob McNair believes in allowing his QB time to develop. He gave David Carr 75 career starts, where he ended up 22–53. 75 Starts for David Carr?! And Bob McNair won’t give Tebow one. Instead, he just traded for Ryan Mallett.
Cincinnati Bengals: Did not respond
The team’s PR exec did get back to me and said he tried to get a comment from Owner Mike Brown, but he declined the request. So, the Bengals have Andy Dalton at QB. Sure, he’s guided the team to the playoffs in each of his first 3 years, but he’s also lost all 3 post-season games. In those contests, Dalton has thrown 1 TD against 6 INT’s. For those winning ways, Owner Mike Brown handed Dalton a 6-year $96 million extension, with $17 million guaranteed. Journeyman QB Jason Campbell is the back-up. In 79 career regular season starts, Campbell’s fumbled 51 times and amassed zero playoff appearances.
Baltimore Ravens: “Here would be Steve’s (Stephen Bisciotti) reply: ‘I depend on our football evaluators to evaluate players.’”
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: “Thanks for reaching out regarding your request. I believe we will need to take a pass on this as our standard policy is to defer to our player personnel department when it comes to evaluations of players.”
I find it difficult to believe any Owner, of any business, who cuts the checks, has no say in personnel. Besides, both these teams missed the point of my question. I wasn’t asking for an “evaluation” of Tebow’s talent. My question was, “Why don’t you want Tebow on your team?”
Speaking of team’s player evaluators, the Philadephia Eagles General Manager is a University of Florida graduate. Guess he never learned the Gator spirit song, ‘We are the Boys’ that contains the line “In all kinds of weather, we’ll all stick together…”
Philadelphia Eagles: Did not respond
Indianapolis Colts: Did not respond
The Colts no response may have something to do with their owner Jim Irsay unavailable because he’s on suspension for a drunk driving offense and possession of illegal prescription drugs.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Did not respond
Apparently, back in 2010, prior to current owner Shahid Khan buying the team, he told, then Owner and friend Wayne Weaver, he should draft Tebow.The Jags were also reported to be in the running, along with the Jets, to trade with Denver for Tebow; but of course, that didn’t happen. Khan’s past interest in Tebow seems like lip service now because his General Manager David Caldwell told reporters on the day he took the job, the team has no interest in Tebow.
They did however have interest in Blaine Gabbert and Chad Henne. Gabbert’s now backing up in Oakland and starter Henne is on less 2014 ESPN Fantasy Football squads than Tebow. And yes, there’s still plenty of tickets available for any Jaguars game you wish to attend. Did I mention the Jags play in Tebow’s hometown, Jacksonville? If you didn’t know, Jacksonville’s in Florida, where Tebow grew up and went to College. Just saying.
Denver Broncos: Did not respond
No surprise the Broncos have no further comment. Owner Pat Bowlen stepped down a couple of months ago due to his on-going battle with Alzheimer’s disease. In fairness to him, he may not even remember the positive impact Tebow had on his franchise. But I bet President John Elway and Coach John Fox do — along with thousands of Tebow supporters still going to Broncos games. If you’re wondering who those two men prefer to back-up Peyton Manning, instead of Tebow, it’s Brock Osweiler.
New York Giants: Did not respond
Owner Steve Tisch talked to TMZ last year about Tebow and said something to the effect of the Jets killed his career. You can see the actual interview here.Can you imagine Tebow returning to the Big Apple? Apparently, neither can Tisch’s QB struggling Giants. While Eli and the Giants offense continue to be offensive, back-up QB Ryan Nassib, a 2nd year pro out of Syracuse, is ready to jump in and spark the team.
Oakland Raiders: Did not respond
Give the Raiders credit for choosing rookie QB Derek Carr as their starter over Matt Schaub this week. It’s the first time in Raiders history they’ve gone with a rookie QB in his first game. It’s also the 4th different starter in a row for Oakland in Week 1. Maybe the 4th time’s the charm. When the Raiders show no interest in a guy the rest of the league shuns, then you know something is amuck.
Guess Tebow is the wrong kind of “bad boy” to wear the Silver and Black. And while we’re guessing here, which team do you think had the worst attendance in the league last year, both in number and in percentage of capacity? Said team also wants a new stadium. Hint — They play in Oakland.
San Diego Chargers: Did not respond
Tebow’s previous Offensive coordinator in Denver, Mike McCoy, is now the Head Coach in San Diego. But we also know, Chargers Owner Alex Spanos doesn’t like to spend money. Wait — what’s that? You can sign Tebow for the league minimum? 9-year journeyman Kellen Clemons, with 15 career passing TD’s, 20 INT’s and a 8–13 record as a starter, backs up veteran Philip Rivers.
Washington Redskins: Did not respond
After employing Rex Grosman, Steve Spurrier, Shane Matthews and Danny Wuerffel I guess Owner Daniel Snyder has had his fill of Florida QB’s. He’s also got that whole Redskins name controversy on his plate too.
New Orleans Saints: Did not respond
Drew Brees. Yes, I get it. Owner Tom Benson cried this past Tuesday when a 13.5 foot, 1,500 pound bronze statue was dedicated to him outside the Superdome. Are you sure those weren’t tears over back-up QB Luke McCown? With 5 different teams over 11 NFL seasons, McCown has thrown 9 TD’s and 14 INT’s. By the way, Tebow has a big statue too outside his stadium too. And the only time he cries is when he loses.
Minnesota Vikings: Did not respond
Due to construction of a new stadium, the Vikings will play this year in a college stadium at the University of Minnesota. I thought College was the perfect place for Tebow, right?! Instead of bringing in Tebow, veteran Matt Cassel gets the nod over rookie Teddy Bridgewater. Tebow has more playoff wins than both of them, combined.
New York Jets: Did not respond
Did you really expect them to?
Tennesse Titans: Did not respond
Actually, the team’s PR exec did respond by informing me he was unable to get a comment from his Owner. The Titans are one of the few NFL teams who are run by ladies and carry 3 QB’s. And here I thought all women liked Tebow. The QB’s here are Jake Locker, Charlie Whitehurst and Zach Mettenberger. Guess how many combined playoff wins they have?
Cleveland Browns: Did not respond
Best of luck with Brian Hoyer and Johnny Football.
Chicago Bears: Steve, I’m happy to pass along (to George McCaskey) but it seems you’re working on a general assumption…
Yes. I am. I generally assume you don’t want Tebow on your team. Otherwise, he would be. A Billionaire can pretty much get anything he wants. The Bears went to a Super Bowl with a former Florida QB in Rex Grossman, so you think they’d have a certain affinity for another Gator signal caller. The problem with Rexy is that fans hated him.
Ex-Coach Lovie Smith infuriated the faithful by stubbornly repeating the same thing at press conferences, “Rex is my QB.” — until he wasn’t two years later. Chicago ownership has decided to stake their future on Jay Cutler — a veteran guy with a rocket arm and 104 career NFL starts. In those games, he’s amassed a rather pedestrian 56–48 regular season record and a 1–1 playoff record. In just 14 NFL starts, Tebow is also 1–1 in the playoffs.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Did not respond
More than 10 years ago, long time Steelers Owner Art Rooney helped create the “Rooney Rule” which forced teams to consider and interview qualified African-American candidates for open NFL Head Coaching positions. Maybe his son, Dan, who’s now running things, should consider the “Tebow Rule.”Thou shall not disrespect a player who single handedly beat you. Despite being torched repeatedly in the playoffs by Tebow and his record setting passing performance, current Steelers Safety and freshly crowned Captain, Troy Polamalu still insists Tebow can’t throw.
Detroit Lions: Did not respond
As great an arm as current signal caller Matthew Stafford has, his career NFL record is a paultry 24–38. Stafford is a perfect example of how the NFL misses the skills that matter most at the QB position. One of the Lions other former mediocre QB’s (they’ve had a plethora) was Scott Mitchell. Scott now weighs 366 pounds and is starring on NBC’s TV show, ‘The Biggest Loser.” Take care of yourself Scott — you are not the biggest loser to come out of the Motor City. That honor belongs to deceased Lions Owner William Clay Sr, who passed away in March.
Not to kick a man when he’s down for good, but Mr. Clay’s Lions won as many playoff games in 50 seasons as Tebow did in 3. Clay’s wife, Martha, still owns the club, while their son, William Jr, runs the day to day operations. Hey, if Stafford continues to not work out, the Lions can always turn to Kellen Moore or 9 year NFL career back-up Dan Orlovsky.
Arizona Cardinals: Did not respond
The Cardinals are sticking with 11-year veteran QB Carson Palmer, 7 year back-up Drew Stanton and Rookie Logan Thomas. Returning starter Palmer holds a career 64–73 record, and that was after posting a 10–6 mark a year ago. So, at 34 years old, he’s finally turning the corner. Sorry to be a downer here, and dare I repeat myself, but Tebow has more playoff wins than all 3 current Cardinals QB combined.
Kansas City Chiefs: Did not respond
Former Urban Meyer protege and displaced 49er, Alex Smith, is the main man in Kansas City. He may have a fantastic career winning and completion percentage, but he’s Tebow-lite to many of us. A couple of former SEC QB’s back him up, Chase Daniel and Aaron Murray. Under the Hunt family ownership how many playoff wins do you think the Chiefs have amassed since 1995? — Here’s a hint — not as many as Tebow has.
St. Louis Rams: Did not respond
The Rams should know better, as they plucked their former Super Bowl winning QB out of a grocery store. Kurt Warner went from bagging groceries to 2-time NFL MVP. So, what did they do when mediocre high priced starter Sam Bradford was lost for the season last week? They went out and signed Texans QB Case Keenum, who was waived by the equally mediocre Texans this week.
Keenum joins Shaun Hill and Austin Davis at the QB position in St. Louis. In case you’re wondering how many playoff wins the Rams have since Warner left in 2004, the answer is - you guessed it — not as many as Tebow’s had. In fact, the Rams haven’t even sniffed the post-season since Warner’s departure. Maybe, Billionaire Owner Stan Kroenke is the one who should start bagging groceries.
Seattle Seahawks: Did not respond
The defending Super Bowl champs won it all without Tebow. Their Billionaire Owner, Paul Allen, gets a pass — not for ignoring my question, but for winning a Championship without Tebow on his team. However, his Head Coach Pete Carroll does not get such a free ride. Carroll called Tebow a “distraction”when he was apparently distracting Carroll’s former USC QB Mark Sanchez from completing passes while with the Jets.
Not only do the current crop of NFL owners not want Tebow on their team, none of them have the courage to tell us exactly why. It’s no wonder so many of them see their teams lose more often than they win - year after year, after year. No guts. No glory. Why are people with more money than they know what to do with so afraid to speak their mind?
And finally, I told you earlier not to forget the easily forgettable Kyle Orton, another mediocre journeyman QB with a career 500 winning percentage. In 70 NFL starts, Orton’s gone 35–35, yet the Buffalo Bills just signed him this week for $5 million after he quit the Cowboys and said he was retiring. Retiring and quitting are the same thing by the way. This is the same Kyle Orton who lost his job to Tim Tebow, not once; but twice in Denver.
And just for good measure, guess how many playoff wins Orton has in his 9 years in the NFL? I’ll give you a hint. It’s not as many as Tebow. I’m not suprised theBuffalo Bills ownership (Mary Wilson) declined to respond to my inquiry.She found her man! The good news is the Bills are up for sale, so we’ll have a brand new NFL owner next season to ask the Tebow question to.
Maybe the problem lies with Tebow’s agent, Jimmy Sexton — the same agent he’s had since he turned pro and the very same agent who also represents Rex Ryan — the Coach who transformed Tebow into an NFL leper. Maybe it’s time for a new agent, Timmy.
Speculation aside, I’ve been sure of one thing for awhile now. An enterprise that has no interest in employing Tim Tebow is no business I wish to do business with. After nearly 40 years, I no longer follow the NFL. I don’t watch games, highlights or play Fantasy Football. If I had a billion dollars, I’d buy the Buffalo Bills, or any other team that’s for sale, and name Tebow my starting QB the same day.
Keep the faith Tim, as I know you will. One day, you will get your chance to rise again, just as my all-time favorite fictional character, The Natural’s Roy Hobbs, did. Like him, the prime of your career has been taken away for no good reason. And maybe, the next time you exit the game, people everywhere will recall one of the greatest American sports figures, and rightfully say,“There goes Tim Tebow, the best there ever was.”
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UPDATE #1
At the time of this update —9:30pm Sunday night, Sept 6, 2014, this story has now been viewed more than 220,000 times in just a few days (it’s now over 500,000). Medium keeps track of all postings. For a relatively unknown writer, that number astonishes me. I want to thank everyone who’s checked this out, retweeted and re-posted. I also can’t believe how many of you chose to personally email me with your reactions — the great many of which are overwhelmingly positive. The Tebow support group is as strong and vibrant as ever!
In the initial article, I intentionally did not offer my personal reason as to why Tebow is no longer in the NFL. I chose, instead, to present an argument filled with facts and statements from others. However, given all the subsequent comments and opinions I’ve received, I feel like I should offer my take.
Before I do, I want to make it clear that I do not think Tebow is a perfect QB — far from it — I’ll be the first to admit he has major holes in his game. He’s had some awful games and thrown miserably poor passes at time — but what QB hasn’t? Obviously, I feel his strengths still outweigh his weaknesses. In addition, one would expect a young QB who did not run a pro style offense in college to come with a steep learning curve.
In contrary to what the naysayers spew, given his college system background, what he accomplished in the NFL is even more remarkable than he’s given credit. Just because he’s struggled on things in the past, doesn’t mean he can’t improve on them through proper coaching and practice in the future. Many people forget Troy Aikman began his NFL career by losing his first 11 starts. John Elway started 4–6. Anyone who doesn’t think Tebow will work as hard as he needs to in order to raise his game just hasn’t been paying attention.
In one of the emails I received, a reader pointed out that I misquoted Lombardi — his message was actually, “Winning isn’t everything, the will to win is everything.” Only another reason support Tebow and for Lombardi to continue spinning in his grave — if there’s a bigger competitor than Tebow bring him on!
As for the infamous quote — the reader challenged me to look it up — and I did. He was right. The “winning is the only thing” line was, in fact, first stated in 1950 by UCLA Football Coach Henry Russell “Red” Sanders.
Here’s another quote, which came to me today, courtesy of a passionate Broncos fan. He called Tebow’s time in Denver “cute inspiration.” Obviously, I took some offense to his deliberate attempt to mock double T. Short of Lou Gherig, if there’s a more inspirational professional sports figure than Tebow in the last 100 years, I’d certainly like to meet him. If you have yet to watch the video in the article, I urge you to do so.
Back to my thoughts on why Tebow isn’t wanted. I do not think it has anything to do with his ardent Christian beliefs. Former Head Coach Tony Dungy, QB Mark Brunell and LB Ray Lewis all publicly practiced and preached as much as Tebow — yet, all were extremly well respected and enjoyed lengthy NFL careers. In post game interviews, how many players thank their Lord and Savior JC prior to answering the question? And, have you looked at mid-field after every NFL game? There’s enough players down on one knee praying together to start a brand new religion.
Tebow is not wanted because of EGO— the ego of Coaches, General Managers and Owners. Humility is not a virtue that dominates this group. Everybody within the NFL saw what happened in Denver. Basically, the fans took over and forced John Fox and the organization to go with Tebow. And no one else around the league wants to be put in that position.
Teams would rather go down with “their” guy then someone’s else’s — especially if that someone else is “Joe fan.” What NFL coaches, executives and owners still inexplicably fail to realize is that they only the reason they have jobs in an entity called the NFL is because of Joe fan. If it were not for people watching, cheering and betting 8 Sundays a year, there would be no National Football League.
Any team Tebow goes to as the back-up QB will inherently face pressure to start him. But so what?! These are professionals — pressure is the first line in the job description. My position on Tebow is clear — Bring him in as your starter in training camp and allow him to start a full season. Only then will we properly be able to evaluate him at the NFL level. Hundreds of other QB’s have been given that opportunity — why not Tebow?
Massive egos aside, the other natural question is why don’t they think they can win with Tebow? NFL people will…and have sold their souls to win. They don’t care who you’ve allegedly killed, beaten or drugged — their collective belief is if you can help us win, we’ll take care of the rest. So, they clearly and simply don’t think they can win with Tebow. But given THE FACT that he has won — and won so improbably and courageously — there must be something I’m missing.
Instead of watching NFL games, I was on the beach today, relaxing and reading a collection of Rolling Stone interviews. The first one happened to be with the Who’s Pete Townshend from 1969. Pete mentioned an upcoming record the group was working on. He hoped the title was going to be, “Deaf, Dumb and Blind Boy.” The album ultimately became “Tommy,” but the theme and lyric remained. It’s also the only logical question left to ask all Tebow detractors, “Are you deaf, dumb and blind, boy?”
UPDATE #2
We’re up to nearly 700,000 views now. Thank you again to everyone who’s read this and forwarded it around. The overall poor QB play in the NFL continues, yet still no Tebow. Amazing. I wanted to share this stunning website that a reader created and focuses on how Tebow’s 1st 16 games compare with other past and present NFL stars.
The numbers are remarkably in Tebow’s favor. Again, for those who still think Tebow can’t make it or wasn’t very successful, you may want to look at these revealing stats of others relative to Tebow’s. Such a big deal is made of completion percentage, but just how important is that figure? Yards per completion and scoring is much more indicative of a team’s success than how many total balls have been caught.
http://www.tebowsfirst16.com/rankings.html
And because many asked me to start this….I have….if only to prove my sincerity.
another tebow fanboy. he's the reason teams don't want tebow. i watched most of those tebow games and it was like pulling teeth. sure he came to life with 5 minutes left but you can't count on that to run a team.
so he got a few fluky wins, doesn't mean he will keep getting them. everything went right for the broncos that year. everything is not always gonna go right though. and no team wants the circus surrounding tebow to come to their town for that kind of play. except the jets who are a circus themselves. they had no plan for him except roll him out at press conferences to get attention.
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