The Tebow Effect - quantified?

Yeah yeah yeah I know, Tebow has been talked about more than any mediocre quarterback in the history of the game so why do you care what Ronnie T. has to say about him? Well listen up there dudes and dudettes and I'll tellya why..

Most media types are trying to get ratings or sell ad space.. so they go after the low hanging fruit when discussing not only Tim Tebow but really any topic. As I fancy myself a little more of a thinking man's sports fan, I wanted to take a deeper look into things. I have kicked this topic around in various forums.. but I really wanted, needed to just take some time and do my own analysis of "The Tebow Effect" or as I am now going to call it the "TTE"

First and foremost, let me begin by saying I don't think Tim Tebow is a "great quarterback" or is on his way to the Hall of Fame or anything. He's a 2nd year player trying to learn how to play in the NFL. Frankly the hype surrounding him is just plain stupid. But it exists so deal with it. As such I am compelled to analyze Tebow from a football standpoint. I don't care about his religious beliefs, though I share them and admire his dedication to them. What I am interested in, and what most who examine his play and his impact on his team and on the game of football should be interested in, should be football stuff. Period.

So let's get to it.. The first aspect of the Tebow Effect ( TTE) is obviously on his offense. The most obvious of which is on the running game. Denver was 24th or 25th in the NFL in rushing offense through 5 games. Now they are number one. and while it's easy to say "Well they run it a lot more often now because Tebow can't throw." That assessment would be short sighted. Not only do they run it more.. They also run it BETTER. Willis McGahee was averaging about 4.5 yards per carry through game 5, which is a nice average. In games with Tebow as a starter his average was 5.5 yards per carry heading into the Bears game. And that includes the KC game when he got hurt and Jets game where he played essentially on one leg and had 18 yards on 12 carries. The fact that defenses are having to account for Tebow has caused linebackers to have one more guy to be on the lookout for as a ballcarrier. It causes the defensive ends to play more disciplined because if they come crashing in looking for a sack Tebow escapes contain and makes them pay. McGahee averaged 17 carries and 76.8 yards per carry with Kyle Orton. He has averaged 14.2 carries and 67 yards per game since Tebow took over. So the argument that "Willis McGahee is carrying Tebow holds no water." Tebow has won games in which McGahee has had 17, 18 and 33 yards rushing. That's not to dismiss the importance of McGahee and the threat he poses to a defense but Tebow clearly has been a benefit to him as well. Had he not had the two injury marred games against KC and the Jets, he'd already be well over 1000 yards on the season. Take away the two one legged games in the middle there and McGahee 98 carries for 501 yards a Jim Brown like 5.1 yards per carry with Tebow as his QB.

Then there is TTE on the defense. Denver's offense went from just over 27 minutes time of possession per game with Orton to over 34 minutes time of possession with Tebow. In short, the defense now spends a good 7 minutes per game MORE standing on the sideline drinking Gatorade, looking at pictures of the opponents formations, making adjustments etc, since Tebow took the reigns. It may be a novel idea to some but I hear rested players play better. TTE also means fewer turnovers. 2 interceptions and 3 fumbles in 8 and a half games (he played most of the second half of the first meeting with San Diego) is remarkable for any quarterback but it's tremendous for a quarterback who still hasn't started a full season's worth of games in the NFL. Kyle Orton's Broncos committed 12 turnovers in 4 and a half games. Tebow's Broncos have committed 9 turnovers in 8 and a half games. So Tebow keeps it at about a turnover a game while Orton flirted with 3 a game. There is nothing more demoralizing for a defense than to force a team to punt, head over to the sideline and before you can get your first swig o Gatorade, the coaches are calling you back out onto the field because the friggin offense already gave it back to the other team. Tebow doesn't do that.. Credit his coaches for keeping the offense on a level he can handle at this stage of the game but if you think running the read option is easy for the QB, go pick up some tape on the Oklahoma and Nebraska teams of the 70's and 80's .. and look up their fumble numbers.

The last and perhaps most profound effect Tebow is having on his team is sort of danced around but not truly delved into as much as I think it should. "Ronnie you said you were going to focus on the football stuff. What does his faith have to do with anything?" Again allow me to educate you. Clearly he is a man of faith.. Now that doesn't mean God is reaching down and pushing Marion Barber out of bounds or causing kickers on other teams to miss field goals.. What it DOES mean is that Tim Tebow doesn't get down. Watch him on the sideline the next time you have occasion to watch one of his games. It doesn't matter how bad things are going, the kid remains as calm as if he was sitting in church on Sunday listening to the Pastor read scriptures. After Charles Tillman made an amazing interception against him last game Tebow went up and congratulated him on a great play. Who does that? His receivers have dropped a ton of passes on him this year, 6 on Sunday, and I have not seen a single instance where he has yelled at them, or called attention to the drop in any way shape or form. All he does is encourage and uplift them. Even salty veterans on the team have taken note of that aspect of his personality.. And you don't think that doesn't resonate with his teammates? You don't think his teammates aren't sitting there watching him handle the mounting pressure on him, watching him continually play his absolute best when things look bleakest and aren't thinking: "Maybe there is something to this whole faith thing? Maybe I should examine my own faith and relationship with God in search of that calm that Tebow has? So that I can be at my best when it matters most. So that I can handle adversity... deal with bad plays., bad calls, bad breaks, what have you with the same serenity that Tebow does, and still have the strength and the focus to take advantage of my opportunity to help the team win when it presents. "

To me this is why TTE is good for football.. Good for sports really. What he and his teammates have been able to accomplish is proving once again the power of the team greatly outweighing the power of the individual star. As an old school sports fan I have long been turned off by "me" players in all sports. Guys who place their personal glory above the good of the team. Let that not be confused with my not liking guys who demand the ball or believe they can be a difference maker in helping their teams win. I LOVE those guys.. But I don't care for guys who dance after scoring a TD to cut their team's deficit to 35 points. I also don't much care for guys who feel the need to disrespect other team logos, flip the ball back to other players or to coaches standing on the sidelines or stand over another player after a tackle screaming like a moron. Celebrations of great plays made are fine. Antagonizing other players? Getting in their face? Spiking the ball at their feet? Taunting in any way.. Why? I get that football is an emotional game and outbursts of exuberance are to be expected. But there are places where some of the disrespect some players show their opponents would get them shot.

Let me close by saying I am not a Tebow apologist by any stretch though it may appear that way reading this. I think he has a LONG way to go to prove himself as a legitimate NFL starting quality QB. I do think he is hamstrung to some extent by the conservative playcalling John Fox favors early in games but many a young QB has been brought along in similar fashion simply because they're not ready to execute an NFL playbook in its entirety. In that regard Tim Tebow is no different from just about every other young QB that has come into the league over the past 40 years. The biggest difference I see is that for whatever reason some fans and some mediots and even a well known team vice president, aren't willing to afford him that same luxury that has been afforded those other young quarterbacks. Time to grow. Tebow has had to earn that right by winning games. If the Broncos had continued to flounder with him under center the Tim Tebow story would already be over. If they were 2-6 with him instead of 7-1 Brady Quinn would be starting these last few games of the season and the talk would be about which of the stud young QBs in the draft Denver should target. And they still might draft one.. But whoever that kid is, he certainly has to know that he's not going to be handed Tim Tebow's job and even if does get it, the bar has been set pretty high in terms of winning with that team. Because the cat's out of the bag. If the team can go .800 with Tebow at QB. They're not going to accept 3-13 while YOU figure things out when the other guy already seems to be there. That probably goes double for the veterans on the team.