Irony in Denver

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com.

By Josh Kramer

Earlier today, Merril Hoge gave an assessment of Tim Tebow that was not shedding Urban Meyer’s favorite son in the most positive of lights.  Hoge gave his honest opinion, and his opinion was not exactly complimentary regarding the former Gator star.  And to be entirely honest, I got to side with Hoge on this one.  He is an NFL Analyst.  His job description is to give his opinion and share it with the public.  This is the real world of media.  There is no sugar-coating involved in this business.

I will admit that I have never been the biggest Tim Tebow fan.  This in large part was because he laid one of the most vicious beatings I have ever witnessed in person on my favorite college football team a couple of years back in the Sugar Bowl. Tim Tebow seems to be a great person.  Or at least from what I can tell.  He appears genuine, philanthropic, intelligent, and just an all around awesome guy.  And these are all important qualities.  It is good to know that Tim Tebow is a great person.  But none of that directly translates towards being a good quarterback in the NFL.

Words that have been used while discussing Tim Tebow today from various media forums:  “Awful, worse, half back, tight end, and project.”

I am sick and tired of hearing people mouth off that the media is being too harsh on Tebow.  They are doing their job.  They are paid to report on what they see.  And go figure, in one of the most ironic acts in recent memory,  one of the world’s most hated athletes LeBron James, came to the defense of one of the most beloved athletes, Tim Tebow, via Twitter.  Of all people, this makes no sense to me.  Nobody gets more scrutiny from the media than LeBron James.  And sometimes, the criticism the King receives is unjustified.  This criticism regarding Tebow is entirely valid, yet the King is sticking up for Tebow.  Talk about an ironic scenario.

Tebow was arguably the greatest college football player of all time.  He put the Florida Gators on his back for four years and willed his teammates to victory time and time again.  In the NFL, the majority of the guys have the will to win, or they would not be playing at that level.  The NFL is the highest level of football in the world.  All of the players are supremely talented.

Apparently Kyle Orton, who is a solid quarterback in his own right, is thoroughly outplaying Tebow in every sense of the word. Tebow’s jersey sales were tops in the League last year.  Popularity is nice, but it does not garner a starting role.  If Kyle Orton will give the Broncos a better chance to win come Sundays, he deserves to be the starter.

Tebow is a project.  I know that he was a first round draft pick, which still surprises me to this day.  But he is not mechanically or mentally there yet.  It may take years.  Acting as a backup for another year could be a great thing for Tebow in the long run.  Because if he goes out there, and vastly disappoints, it could ruin his confidence and the confidence his very large fan base has in him.

Kyle Orton should be the starter come Week 1 in Denver.  I wish Tebow the best of luck, but he apparently is nowhere near being ready to start at quarterback in the NFL.

The media does not need to lay off of Tim Tebow.  People need to think about laying off of the media.

Stay tuned for the next edition of TheSportsKraze.