Tebowmaniacs

This whole Peyton Manning-Tim Tebow thing got me thinking yesterday.  With most NFL teams (excluding Green Bay, New Orleans, New England, maybe Pittsburgh), the idea of a future Hall of Famer taking over as your QB would be cause for celebration.  Not here in Denver.  Noooo, sir.  Here, you have the Tebowmaniacs, a loud and narrow-minded group of fans who are FURIOUS at the idea of anyone – even Manning, a “good guy” -- replacing Tebow.  From Twitter to Facebook to sports talk radio to local TV news, these people have not been shy about proclaiming their unhappiness.  Some have vowed never to watch the Broncos again.  Others have resorted to personally insulting John Elway and/or Pat Bowlen.  And if you actually have the audacity to disagree with these people, look out.  The invective really comes out.  One guy kept tweeting 850 KOA radio with comments like “Tebow is bigger than Elway ever was.”  He actually wrote that. I can’t even dignify such stupidity with a remark. 

What is it about Tebow that causes such extreme reactions?  To put it kindly, he struggles to do his job competently.* But have you ever seen a professional athlete get so much slack for doing so poorly?  I can’t recall one.

*Yes, I know he won seven games in a row, a playoff game, has an uncanny knack for making big plays, and so on. But in today’s NFL, if you complete 46% of your passes and your kicker is your best offensive weapon, something needs to change.

 

Here’s my theory: Tebow makes his fans feel better about themselves.  I don’t just mean your typical admiration of a pro athlete.  I mean that his fans literally think they’re better than other people.  MY QUARTERBACK IS BUILDING A HOSPITAL IN THE PHILIPPINES.  I root for him, so I’m building that hospital too.  DOES YOUR QB PRAY ON THE FIELD IN FRONT OF THE TV CAMERAS?  No?  Oh, well, God must love us more than you, er, him. Tsk tsk. 

I greatly admire Tim Tebow for what he does off the field.  But he’s a human being.  He has his share of character flaws.  He’d probably be the first to admit it.  So many of these Tebowmaniacs seem to be using him to make up for their own failings and inadequacies.  I’m not an expert on religion, but that doesn’t strike me as a very Christian thing to do, condescending to others and denigrating their opinions because they are different.**

**Oh wait, that’s exactly what some religions do. Silly me.

But I ask: what does all this have to do with winning the Super Bowl?

/waiting

//still waiting

Tebowmaniacs seem to think that by replacing Tim Tebow with Peyton Manning, the Broncos are rejecting Tebow personally, as well as his religious beliefs and off-field activities.  Separate heart from brain, folks.  The Denver Broncos are in the business of winning the Super Bowl and making money (though perhaps not in that order).  John Elway believes that Peyton Manning gives the Broncos a better chance to win than Tim Tebow. That’s it. No conspiracy. It’s a FOOTBALL decision. He might be right.  He might be wrong.  We don’t know.  It will be fascinating to watch.  Instead of lining up to say “I told you so” if Manning doesn’t work out, how about you Tebow zealots just see what happens and enjoy the ride? 

 

Bottom line: the Broncos are getting a Hall of Fame QB to lead the team. That’s exciting. All this other noise detracts from that. Oh, and by the way, the team is switching back to orange home jerseys.  It’s about time.  Isn’t that something on which we can all agree?