First, let me clarify; Tim Tebow does not deserve to be the Most Valuable Player. He does, however, deserve to be in the conversation.
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| Photo by: Getty Images |
Sure, Aaron Rodgers is more than likely set to win this award already. Sure, Tom Brady's stats look great, as do Drew Brees'. Even Cam Newton's numbers are off the charts, for that matter. But putting a team on your back, working your tail off to prove everyone (even in your own organization) wrong, while earning the respect of the veterans of your own team - man, that doesn't just happen because you're the quarterback. It happens when you're a valuable QB. Watch Tebow's teammates after a win or after he leads a scoring drive. Brian Dawkins and Champ Bailey, two captains who are hard to please, are the first players to celebrate with Tebow when he reaches the sidelines. That's a valuable player.
The most valuable player? Why not? Since the Broncos started the season 1-4, Tebow has done nothing but prove his doubters wrong. In seven games, he's rushed for nearly half Willis McGahee's rushing total and is just one touchdown behind Willis' season total. And Willis is having a solid year. Tebow's only thrown 10 touchdowns, but who cares? The Broncos are winning. Plus, if you compare his 10 touchdowns to only 1 interception, his touchdown to interception ratio is the best in the league!
Rodgers, Brady and Brees have to throw the ball to win, but the Broncos don't. So what that the team is last in passing yards, the Broncos now lead the NFL in rushing. Last I checked, if you can win the battle in the trenches, you can win almost any game, plus you get to keep your defense off the field. It's genius, and Vince Lombardi would be proud.
As someone who played football at the collegiate level, I can say that defending a versatile quarterback is just as difficult as defending any offensive scheme. How do you stop him? Well, you don't - you just try to manage him. When Tebow drops back to pass, defenders have to honor his arm because he can throw. But when those defenders drop back, it gives Tebow just enough space to run if he wants. He doesn't have to force throws, he just does what he can. And what he's done so far is win.
Sure, it isn't just Tebow who has helped the Broncos. Willis McGahee is having a great season - but even he hasn't surpassed 900 rushing yards. Eric Decker looks great with 8 touchdown receptions, but he only has 39 total receptions. However, nobody complains about Rodgers having help from the fifteen or so awesome receivers he has to throw to when he accepts the MVP trophy. Nobody cares about Wes Welker catching 110 of Tom Brady's passes when he wins the MVP trophy. So don't give me all that "team effort" crap.
Tebow led two (FREAKING TWO!) 4th quarter drives this Sunday to beat the Vikings. Did he throw the whole time? Nope. However, did the Broncos have any issue moving the ball down the field? Nope.
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| Photo by: Steve Dykes |
The majority of you who hate him can't even come up with any intelligent reason as to why you hate him. The response I typically get on Twitter is, "He's not a traditional QB". Great. Neither was Hall of Famer Steve Young, who rushed for over 4,200 yards in his career (also see Randall Cunningham and Michael Vick). Next? "He's too outspoken about his faith". And? This keeps him from being a good player? Young was an outspoken Mormon, but nobody cared about where he stood with his beliefs. Leonard Little took a person's life and fewer people hate him. And, last I checked, Tebow can play on Sundays which means this isn't actually hindering his game. Next?
Seriously, next? Bueller?
The reality is, most of you don't like Tebow because of his outspoken faith and you're just waiting like a vulture to pounce on him if he ever screws up. That's pretty sad. In fact, I bet if he were Muslim or Buddhist or Jewish, you wouldn't care. I bet if he acted like Ndomukong Suh, you wouldn't bat an eye. But hating on a guy who is great for society? Who also funds a freaking hospital?!
Yeah. That's just ignorant.
I agree Todd. He won't win it, but he damn sure deserves to be in the conversation. He's put the entire team on his back and willed them back into contention. Amazing.
ReplyDeleteThis is a joke, right? Denver is winning because or their defense and Willis McGahee, not because of Tebow. Sure, he's led some 4th quarter drives, but hell, so has Mark Sanchez. He's not in the MVP race too is he? No way Tebow should be be considered an MVP candidate.
ReplyDeleteDenver's defense that ranks in the 23rd in pass defense and 20th in rush defense? Must be the reason they held the high-powered offense of the Vikings to 32 points, right? And only letting Christan Ponder throw for just shy of 400 yards, that too is very impressive! And, that stacked defense only allowed Toby Gerhardt to amass nearly 100 yards.
ReplyDeleteYou're totally right about that defense, man.
And, like you obviously failed to read, you can see that Tebow is also running the ball amazingly well. In fact, he's only 10 rushing yards and 2 rushing TDs behind Ahmad Bradshaw. In about half the games played, Tebow has just over half the rushing yards Willis has. So, just how much is Willis responsible for?
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of people hate on Tebow mainly because they don't know what to make of him from a quarterback stand point. There's really never been a guy with his specific skill set star in the NFL. And I don't mean as far as him running the ball, I mean he breaks the mold from what we've come to expect from the position. I love the way he plays though. Hope he can keep Denver moving in the right direction. He's great for the league, love him or hate him.
ReplyDeleteHe's completing less than HALF of his throws on the season, and even had one game where he only completed two passes the ENTIRE GAME. He's a nice story and all, but MVP? Please.
ReplyDeleteWhen did "completing a set amount of passes" or "must complete 25 passes a game" become qualifications for being an MVP candidate? You're failing to see the point of winning over statistics, Josh.
ReplyDeleteTebow would get my vote for greatest human being that ever lived, but not my MVP one. That has to be Aaron Rodgers. Still, I don't have a problem with Tebow being in the conversation. There's more to being a winning quarterback than just numbers. Numbers don't always tell the whole story. Tebow knows how to win, and that's what really matters.
ReplyDeleteI'm not failing to see anything Todd. Numbers play a part in it, regardless of if you think they do or not. His numbers are not good enough for him to be considered an MVP candidate, nor has he even played in enough games to be in the conversation. He hasn't even attempted enough passes yet to qualify on any of the league passing stats (rating etc.) Also, you pointed out where Denver's defense ranks, FOR THE YEAR. But obviously they've improved. Sure, they had a bad game against Minnesota, but before last week, they held the Chiefs, Jets, and Chargers ALL under 14 points. So way to try and manipulate the stats to make it look like it's all happening because of the "great" Tim Tebow. Absolutely ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteIf you're going to base the MVP award off a players VALUE to his team rather than his NUMBERS, you should just give the award to Peyton Manning. Colts were 10-6 with him last season, 0-12 without him this season. That sounds crazy right? So does having Tebow in the MVP conversation.
ReplyDeleteEveryone needs to stop hating on Tim Tebow. He's a good kid, and he's managed to save the Broncos season. He definitely deserves to be in the MVP conversation. No doubt about it.
ReplyDeleteIf Tebow were named MVP, it would tarnish the validity of the award from here on out. Basically, it would become the Heisman. Anyone that thinks Tebow should even be in the running is a total moron.
ReplyDeleteHe's done enough to be in the conversation. The Broncos have gone from worst to first in the division since he became starter. It's not always pretty, but Tebow gets the job done. Besides, it's football. It's not suppose to be pretty.
ReplyDeleteAll I know is Tebow's a winner. Stats don't win games, players win games. He has motivated his team to a level of play that champions play at! Does that make him an MVP candidate? Definitely.
ReplyDeleteWho else thinks it would be awesome if Tebow won a Super Bowl on an entire season of horrible QB statistics, punctuated by an unheard of number of inexplicable comebacks? I'm just waiting to see the guy walk on water.
ReplyDeleteNice post Todd. Couldn't agree more.
ReplyDeleteJosh - you just proved another point for me by saying that the Broncos held the Chiefs, Jets and Chargers all under 14 points. Only 7 other teams in the league have held the Chiefs under 14 points. WHAT A FEAT BY THE BRONCOS!!
ReplyDeleteDo you also dispute Tom Brady's stellar 2007 campaign because his defense was a brick wall? Sure, Brady's numbers were off the charts that season, but they didn't have to be because his defense was killer. The Pats D only gave up 332 points while Brady and his offense were hailed for scoring 652 total points.
Stats only matter when you want them to. Winning matters all the time
He deserves Pro Bowl consideration, but not MVP. Not with the numbers guys like Rodgers, Brees, & Brady are putting up. Numbers aren't everything, but they still have to mean something.
ReplyDeleteTroy - you're right there regarding the Pro Bowl instead of MVP talk, but it's definitely worth the look. However, number don't have to mean anything with Tebow. Rodgers, Brees and Brady have weapons and are expected to win while putting up big numbers. Other than McGahee and Decker (who?!) name Tebow's weapons.
ReplyDeleteSuperman wears Tim Tebow pajamas.
ReplyDeleteStats only matter when you want them to??? You can't be serious dude. Hitting .400 for the season or Joe D's 56 game hitting streak doesn't mean anything? Brett Favre's 297 consecutive starts or Tom Brady's 50 touchdown season don't matter? Wilt Chamberlain's 100 point game is completely irrelevant? Because that's basically what you're saying. Numbers mean EVERYTHING in sports. EVERYTHING. They're what we judge players by. They're what we hold standards to. I hope you're just saying some of the crap you're saying on here strictly for the sake of stirring up the conversation, because if you actually believe everything you're saying, something's seriously wrong with you.
ReplyDeleteAaron Rodgers is the league's best player, but Tim Tebow is the most valuable. The Packers would still be alright if Rodgers went down because they're loaded from top to bottom. We've already seen what Denver is without Tebow. Awful.
ReplyDeleteFunny how quickly you went against your last rebuttal when I shot it down.
ReplyDeleteWhat difference does it make how many yards he throws for this season? Or how many completed passes he has? WHO CARES?! He's winning games and that means more to me than nerding out about statistics.
What you've listed are season/career achievements that nobody may catch. Ever. EVER. But Tebow needs to reach those heights for you to take his game seriously?
But you're right, maybe there is something wrong with me. Wait. Nope. It's your blinders that are wrong.
What exactly did you shoot down dude? I mentioned THREE TEAMS, you pull the sorriest one out of the bunch in Kansas City, and make an argument based on ONLY THEM. Guess the fact that Denver's D shut down the Jets and Chargers was just luck huh? Also, at NO POINT did I say I didn't take Tebow's game seriously. I said his numbers weren't good enough and he hadn't played enough to be in the running. I even said he was a nice story. It's not like I'm on here bashing the guy. Clearly you're just wanting to argue with someone.
ReplyDeleteThis Tebow for MVP nonsense needs to stop. Everything Josh has said is spot on as far as I'm concerned. And aside from his comments, it's not like Denver was getting killed in the games Kyle Orton started or something. Besides the beatdown Green Bay gave them, in Orton's other 4 starts Denver lost by a COMBINED TOTAL of 13 points. Everyone acts like they were just soooo bad and Tebow has just miraculously turned an awful team into a powerhouse or something. Bottomline, if they do make the playoffs, they've got no chance of getting by Baltimore, Pittsburgh, New England, or Houston. ZIP. ZERO. NONE.
ReplyDeleteTebow is great for the NFL! If the world had more people like Tim Tebow in it, it would be a much better place. :)
ReplyDeleteJeff - nobody ever said they'd make the playoffs, let alone beat any of the teams you mentioned. I also said Tebow doesn't deserve to be the MVP, just that he should be considered. I'm also not against considering Peyton Manning, as has been mentioned.
ReplyDeleteOriginally, I planned on being the first person to comment on this post. Then, I decided I'd just wait a day or so, just to take in all the other comments that I knew would pour in.
ReplyDeleteThey've definitely poured in.
Now, this is the part where I step in and become the voice of reason.
It isn't very often where people can argue two totally different views on a particular subject, and both sides of the argument be 100% right.
However, with Tim Tebow, that's the case.
People that love him argue that while he's not always pretty, he gets the job done.
They're correct.
People that hate him argue that he looks like nothing that comes even remotely close to resembling an NFL quarterback.
They too, are absolutely right.
In the past, I've been called a Tebow-hater many a time.
That's not accurate.
As far as a person goes, I think Tebow is awesome. If I had a daughter, I'd want her to bring someone just like him home. Just go to his Twitter and read some of his stuff. How can you NOT like this guy? He's actually a genuine person, which is extremely rare to come across these days. You may not share his views, but you can't help but like the kid regardless.
Still, I have been critical of Tebow THE QUARTERBACK in the past, with my argument always being, "he's not showing signs of improvement."
Then the Vikings game happened.
I'm not sayng he grew by leaps and bounds. I'm not even saying he looked much better than average. However, at the end of that game, I realized I was doing something that I hadn't noticed myself doing before.
Expecting a Denver win.
It started with a conversation between myself and Brian Harrington, as the game was still in progress.
The convo basically went like this:
Brian - Vikings lead by 3, 4 minutes left, Broncos have the ball.
Me - You know the Broncos are going to somehow score and win it man.
That pretty much sums it up. Both our convo, AND why Tebow should be considered an MVP candidate.
See, Tebow's never going to post a rating of 110 for a season. He's never going to throw for 4,500 yards, or even throw for more than 30 touchdowns in a year.
BUT, Tebow has "it." The "it" factor. The same "it" that Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees have. The "it" that's impossible to define, but a necessity to have in order to be a winner. His guys believe in him. They believe that in the end, he can get the job done. And in most cases, he does exactly that.
My "you know the Broncos are going to somehow score and win it," is usually the type of statement I reserve for New England games, with Brady marching the Patriots downfield for the inevitable win.
The fact that I have now noticed myself using it during Denver games, speaks volumes for what kind of leader Tim Tebow actually is.
Do I think Broncos can make the playoffs? Possibly. Do I think they can win a playoff game if they do in fact qualify for the postseason? Probably not. Do I think they'll win the Super Bowl? No.
BUT, would I be surprised if any, or ALL of those things happen? At this point, not in the least.
So, is Tim Tebow worthy of MVP consideration? You bet your ass he is.
Great post Todd. Enjoyed reading the comments as well.
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