So Pat Robertson has decided that the Denver Broncos treated Tim Tebow poorly. They cast him off when they signed Peyton Manning. They traded him for cash and fourth- and sixth-round draft picks. Honestly, the only reason Robertson even cares about this is because of Tebow's over-publicized Christianity. If this were any other player, let alone quarterback, in any sport, Robertson wouldn't have a clue. Looking at the deal, the Broncos let Tebow have a say in where he was traded. He chose the New York Jets. Most players, when they are traded can usually veto a trade if they don't like it, but don't get to choose where they go. The Broncos treated their sub-par quarterback better than most other players get treated in any sport.
Robertson also said that it would be fitting if Manning were to get injured. This from a religious leader. However, as with most religious leaders, they don't exactly practice any of the real tenets of Christ. At least Robertson is consistent.
Was it because they traded him to a team that they knew would put him on the bench? Tebow wouldn't start for any team in the league once Denver got Manning. He ranked last in completion percentage, the only quarterback with 200 or more attempts to complete less than half of them. His completion percentage last season was 46.5%. His QB rating was 72.9, good enough for 28th of the 34 qualifying quarterbacks. Yay, he went 7-4 in the regular season and 1-1 in the playoffs, which in and of itself is ridiculous. As for the 7-4 part, let's look at the games: Overtime against an as of yet winless Dolphins team; a win against a .500 Oakland team still orienting a new quarterback; a 7 point win over a Kansas City team that would lose a starting quarterback, lose to a winless Dolphins team, and fire their head coach by seasons end (Tebow would complete 2 passes that whole game); a .500 Jets team, a 4-7 Chargers team; the 2-10 Vikings by 3 points; and the only team in the regular season with a winning record to lose to Tebow, the Cutlerless Chicago Bears, who would also lose to the anemically scoring Chiefs. All of those victories except the win against Kansas City, the Broncos had to come from behind, scoring in the fourth quarter. Once teams looked at Tebow and realized that he was just running on them, not so much beating them with any sort of air game (Denver would finish 31st out of 32 teams in passing, but first in rushing), the Broncos were beatable. Even the quarterback who everyone called for Tebow to replace, Kyle Orton, got revenge when the Chiefs beat Denver in the regular season finale.
The Denver defense, inconsistent as it was, kept the Broncos close enough and stayed energized enough to lock down the fourth quarter. They'd make big plays after adjustments in the second half. In games where the Broncos lost, the defense didn't play well. New England just flat out exploited them. Detroit moved the ball at will, as did a late-season Buffalo team. The defense played poorly those games; Tebow played like Tebow in every game. In some games, the defense had kept them close enough to come back. They couldn't do that against strong teams like the Lions, Patriots, and, lesser extent, Bills. The Kansas City defense came alive for new coach Romeo Crennel and locked down on Denver for the entire four quarters. The key was when Tebow would get out in space, the linebackers would rush him and he'd pass over them. Once teams realized that Tebow couldn't throw, they'd let him run, get across the line of scrimmage, and then drill him for little or no gain. Once defenses started playing this way, and loading 7-8 men in the box, but not blitzing, Denver started losing. Pittsburgh's blitz wacky defense leads to some entertaining plays, but big blitzing also gives up big plays (like an 80 yd touchdown pass to open overtime).
Going back to why Robertson even cares. Tebow is Super-Christian. He wears his religion on his sleeve but we can't talk about it if it is negative. Charles P. Pierce does a good job looking at it for Grantland.com. Robertson is another Christian who likes to beat people over the head with his religion. Where was his outrage when Kurt Warner (a Christian who would tell you if you asked but not flaunt it) was let go by the St. Louis Rams? Or Emmit Smith being traded to the Arizona Cardinals with very little fanfare? Or Reverend Reggie White going to Green Bay? Or San Francisco firing Christian coach Mike Singletary?
The only reason that Robertson even cares was because it really was miracles that provided Denver with wins. Now they have a legitimate shot at real victories over teams with better records that .500. They don't need miracles to win; they have a quarterback with skill.
As a Chiefs fan, I was really disappointed that Manning chose Denver. KC now has to play him twice a season and compete with him for the division. I was kind of rooting for KC's young defense to get in and hit him around Denver's weaker defensive line. However, I despise Robertson more than I despise the Broncos. I don't want Manning to get injured. I'll actually find myself wanting to root for Denver (when they're not playing KC or going for the same playoff spot). And really, Manning is aging for an NFL quarterback. Chances are, unless he goes Favre on us, he's only got 3 years, tops left in him. With a surgically repaired neck/spine, combined with his age and weak offensive line, an injury isn't entirely out of the question. For Robertson to call for one, if it does actually happen, he'll chalk it up to God. Honestly, the God I worship doesn't work that way, Pat.
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