Do you see what I see?
“John Elway and company must not move forward with Tebow as their starting quarterback for reasons both sound in logic and unyielding in clarity.” – Avi Wolfman-Arent, Bleacherreport.com Jan 4, 2012
“Tebow made throws on Sunday night that he’s not supposed to make. “ – NFL Today, January 8, 2012
“To all those who are up in arms about Tebow making the Pro Bowl even as an alternate, I can feel your pain. The game has strayed from its intended purpose when it was first created.” Bearsbeat.com, December 29th, 2011
“I never saw such fighting,” Cornwallis later declared, “since God made me.” – British General Charles Cornwallis, 1781
“Morgan’s dizzying hit-and-run strategy so badly befuddled Burgoyne, the British retreated to regroup.” – Battle of Saratoga, 1777,”The American Revolutionary War” reported by Robwrite
I’m as wary as anyone of the potential for Tim Tebow to be like a Pharisee, praying in public as the Christ he says he follows instructed him not to:
“Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray while standing in synagogues and on street corners so that people can see them….But whenever you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. ” Matthew 6, v.5-6
Human pride and frailty what it is, even with the best of intentions, he might be wandering into dangerous territory for himself by his practice of praying in public.
Do I mind that someone in a field of riddled with felons (yes, the modern NFL) displays his Christianity in a way we might not otherwise see? Not so much. I am glad he believes in God, follows Christ and prays.
But there’s a narrative unrelated to his public religiosity I hear on Sports Center and in the newspapers and is likely going on in talk radio (to which I listen rarely), springs a comparison to mind that made me chuckle when I first had the the thought.
I’ve heard it said many times lately: “Tebow’s not a real NFL quarterback, he can’t pass, he can’t read defenses.” Translated back to the revolutionary war, the same Greek chorus of conventional wisdom was protesting: “Those colonial savages fight hiding behind rocks and bushes and trees. They can’t possibly win this war.”
The methods of guerilla warfare the coloinsts learned from the native American indians, changed the war. Tim Tebow may change the position of quarterback.
This Sunday, January 8, the first and final play of overtime between the Tebow-driven Denver Broncos and the Pittsburgh Steelers with their version of “The NFL Quarterback” could not be a better example. The British troops were all lined up…I mean…the Steelers were all lined up expecting the run that EVERYBODY knows you do on first down in overtime. And with Tebow a third running back, it takes a little more concentration to contain that running game.
Instead, Tebow connected to Demariyus Thomas with a perfectly thrown pass that hit Thomas in stride who then ran the ball, stiff-arm and blazing speed aided, in for the winning touchdown.
Recently even more rules protecting NFL Quarterbacks were issued by the NFL to protect their precious princes. The Favres and the Roethlisbergers can play a whole game without running more than a few yards or even getting hit – so much so, the statisticians track “Sacks” of the quarterback and it’s noteworthy for a defensive player to get even one in most games. That’s in the template describing a real “NFL quarterback.” Criticisms of those quarterbacks swirl around their strengths and weakenesses at being a real “NFL Quarterback,” that analysis just doesn’t include ground yards run as an important factor – yet.
So what happens when every NFL quarterback is also a running back who can throw and read defenses. We’ve already got hints of that in reverses where the crossing back throws downfield or even “flea flickers” where the QB himself may need to catch a pass. You know the original version of the real “NFL Quarterback” was not supposted to leave the pocket. Kids in football programs emulated Bart Star and Len Dawson…until Fran Tarkenton came along and then everybody was scrambling as an intentional play.
Folklore of the American Revolution credits the hit-and-run tactics of guerilla warfare the Colonies employed for the American win. However, those tactics didn’t win the war, or even any significant battles. It wasn’t until Washington got his regulars to stand toe-to-toe with the British line and defeat them, did the American’s start to win any battles.
Tebow will need to complete more passes, throw fewer interceptions and learn to read defenses to do Brees and Brady quality audibles. But Tebow may change the position of quarterback if he does so. Teams will need to come up with whole new defensive strategies and find their own running back who can throw and read defenses.
Having set the new template for what makes a real “NFL quarterback” back in the old days (now), Tim Tebow, during his Hall of Fame acceptance speech (sometime in the future), can take issue with that new guy playing for that other team that does that thing that shows he’s clearly not a a real “NFL Quarterback.”