First Round Pick: Tim Tebow is No Risky Business

Published Apr. 28, 2010 6:02 p.m. ET

foxsports

Tim Tebow is not a NFL quarterback.

In the past four months, I’ve heard that statement almost as much as I’ve heard that Tiger Woods is not a family man.

Ah, the power of repetition.

I probably won’t shock any priests when I confess that I love quarterbacks. I’m an American, after all. My dad played quarterback, both of my brothers played quarterback, and I even played quarterback. Powder Puff counts.

My affinity for the long ball, however, caused me to disregard that “big white guy who’s always stealing Chris Leak’s thunder”. I loved watching Chris Leak. He was poised, confident, well spoken, and threw one of the prettiest balls I’ve seen in a while. Also, he was good looking. Hey, it helps.

When Tebow would come barging in on third and fourth downs and in the red zone, I felt like I was watching I Love Lucy in color. It just wasn’t right. Here’s this guy who looks like a fullback or a tight end running and jumping around like the pocket is for suckers. And what’s with the shot put? The Shawn Marion notion of “hey it’s ugly but it works” doesn’t sit well with me.

When Leak graduated, I wondered if Florida receivers would strike. Instead, Tebow won the Heisman. Fast forward one more year and the Gators are national champions. And so the obsession began. Tebow was everywhere.

Some things became virtual certainties: the Bible verses on his eye black would be top Google searches every Saturday, he would use the b-word at least five times in his press conferences (any combination of “bless”, “blessing”, “blessed”), and the football purists would say he’s a great athlete, but not a quarterback.

He didn’t fit the job description either. When he unabashedly told the media that yes, he was indeed a virgin, it was as if a politician said he never told a lie. Unbelievable.

The status quo says quarterbacks are cool. Cool guys party. Parties are about alcohol and sex.

Tim Tebow is not a quarterback.

During the 2009 season, Tebow had become such an anomaly, bloggers seemed determined to uncover Clark Kent. One picture of Tebow with a busty brunette surfaced on the Internet and skeptics let out a sigh of relief, “good, he’s just like us”. Unfortunately, that was all they could come up with; a picture, with someone he later explained was an acquaintance he never even dated.

Then came the Super Bowl. Mr. Marketable, Peyton Manning was up against the post-Katrina Saints, and everyone was talking about Tim Tebow. Go figure.

Quarterbacks can talk about gear, protein powder and occasionally a foundation, assuming it doesn’t offend anyone. Tebow went for the jugular… abortion. No precedent there.

Many feminist groups cried foul. They claimed the Super Bowl was no place for such a controversial topic; especially one they deemed offensive to women.

Commercials with a half-naked woman rolling around with a cheeseburger? No problem.

A Heisman winning quarterback thanking his mom for giving him life? That’s where we draw the line.

Once again, the experts, prognosticating upon limited information, ruled Tebow out, said he didn’t fit the mold and assumed that his walk off the beaten path would only damage his career. When the ad aired, it was noticeably more Joel Osteen than Pat Robertson. The critics returned to their bread and butter.

Tim Tebow is not a NFL quarterback.

It was time for pro combines, and the draft experts almost universally agreed: his throwing motion was ugly, his release too slow, and his tendency to leave the pocket too hasty. Still, it was impossible to deny his leadership. His “intangibles” as they would say, only became the precursors to the “but…”

“Tim Tebow is a great kid and an amazing leader with great character, BUT…”

The most asinine of qualifiers was that “you can’t lead from the bench”. The assumption was that since Tim obviously wasn’t capable of being a starting quarterback in the NFL, all of his leadership qualities would be in vain. Everybody knows that integrity is only valuable if it’s coming from your starters.

Wait, what?

Come draft day, that argument was irrelevant. Tim Tebow learned that finding a team who thinks you’re a quarterback is much like finding someone to marry you… it only takes one.

Interestingly enough, the coach who took a chance on Tim Tebow is a relative misfit himself. Thirty-four year old Broncos Head Coach, Josh McDaniels, garnered harsh criticism when he benched, and later traded, one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, Brandon Marshall. He also passed on the most talented receiver in the 2010 draft, Dez Bryant, who was accused of some of the same conduct discrepancies as Marshall.

McDaniels used his first round pick on Tim Tebow, the quarterback. Yes, it’s true that Tim improved some things in the months leading up to the draft. He worked on losing his fumble-inducing windmill throwing motion and increased the speed of his release, but I don’t think that’s what caused McDaniels to shock the experts with his faith in Tebow. This is, after all, the same guy who quickly shipped the prototype, Jay Cutler out of town: a guy with 25 touchdown passes and 4500 yards in 2008. He’s not afraid to go against the grain.

Mechanics are teachable. Leadership, not so much. Scouts didn’t like the way Aaron Rodgers held the ball. Scouts also questioned JaMarcus Russell’s leadership abilities. Take your pick.

Tim Tebow is much less of a gamble than the experts would lead you to believe. Some things are undeniable: he’s a winner, a competitor who doesn’t seem remotely interested in complacency. But, more importantly, he’s honest.

I remember being told that you can tell a person is honest when they willingly say things that they know may be detrimental to them personally or professionally. Tebow has proven that he is willing to do that in order to stay true to what he believes.

Here’s why that matters.

Tim Tebow is going to make more money for Denver than what they spent on him. Like it or not, people want to watch him. He may be polarizing, but sometimes that’s what sells. Tebow’s jersey is already the top selling jersey among all draft picks… ever. Second place isn’t even close.

Now that we’ve determined that it’s not about making good on their financial investment, let’s talk about performance. Everyone acknowledges that the NFL is about winning games. Josh McDaniels has made it clear that Tim Tebow is a quarterback who he thinks can win games. If they can’t win games with Tebow at quarterback, he will be used elsewhere. Although he thinks he’s a quarterback in the NFL, I’m confident that if anyone will admit when they’re wrong, it’s Tebow.

Recent stories of fallen sports heroes confirm that no matter how talented a player may be, betting your brand on a dishonest man is always a gamble.

Tim Tebow is a NFL quarterback.

If he finds that he’s not, I’m sure he’ll let us know.