A Third String Controversy

One of the hottest topics heading into the 2011 NFL season surround a man fighting for the third string quarterback position on his team. Tim Tebow entered this season thinking he was going to be the starter for the Denver Broncos. The Broncos went as far as to look into trading last year's starter, Kyle Orton. But a trade with the Dolphins fell through during training camp and according to reports Orton came to training camp and out performed Tebow in practice. 

Then the dominoes began to fall for Tebow. He was then fighting to keep the second string quarterback position on the team with former first round pick Brady Quinn. Reports said that Quinn was outplaying Tebow in training camp as well. Last week, Tebow was demoted to third string quarterback for the Denver Broncos in their preseason game against the Buffalo Bills.

In one month's time, Tebow went from competing for the starting job to third stringer. Then Michael Silver of Yahoo!Sports reported that some officials in the front offices of the Denver Broncos believe that Tebow may be the fourth best quarterback in camp this year.

Granted, there has been a lot of change in Denver this offseason, both in the front office and on the sidelines. This is not the regime that drafted Tebow and therefore have no obligation to play Tebow in Denver. The team could seek a trade for the former first round pick, but the team would not get equal value from him at this point. The Broncos could just cut Tebow, but he is a fan favorite in Denver. Not to mention, Tim Tebow had the top selling jersey in the NFL last season, so he is bringing in money to the team.  

Many knew that Tebow would be a work in progress coming out of the University of Florida. Even when Tebow was in college, he did things to the beat of his own drum, not worrying what others had to say or thought about him. He was a man of his faith and just an all around good guy. But this man of faith had a hitch in his throwing motion and that was what he needed to fix entering the NFL. This hitch in his throwing motion made the delivery of his pass elongated and too slow for the NFL.

Tebow seems to be a genuinely good guy, not just faking for the fans or the media. Tebow probably can handle the negative attention coming from the media. All the experts telling him he will never succeed in this league. But it is probably hard for him to be stuck in an organization that doesn't have faith in him either.

For the media, it is like the popular thing to do these days to bash on Tebow and say he will not be successful in the NFL. He wasn't suppose to be a winner at the college either, but he proved everyone wrong and was a winner at the college level. So when does everyone begin to say that enough is enough with this guy? When does everyone quit piling on the negativity towards Tebow and just hopes he becomes a success story? He has been a winner every level he has played so far and what is to stop him, if given the opportunity, to win at the highest level. 

Who knows, Tebow may go on to be a bust in the NFL. But at some point, all the negativity and personal feelings for Tebow should be put aside. Let him do his thing and live his life the way he sees fit. Denver should do him a favor though and decide whether or not he is in their future plans and if not they should let Tebow go somewhere he is wanted. Who knows where Tebow's career might take him. Who knows if his future is with the Broncos or some other team. But one thing is for certain, his work ethic won't be the reason for an unsuccessful career. It would be a safe bet that eventually Tim Tebow will be on a winning team in the NFL. Afterall he is a winner. 

-Jake Ipson