As Tim Tebow continues to win, he is starting to win over some of his harshest critics, maybe even those in his own organization.
John Elway, Broncos vice president of football operations, has been very reserved about jumping on the Tim Tebow bandwagon, but he had more positive comments than he has made to date after Tebow’s performance in the Broncos latest victory – another come from behind victory, this time a 13-10 victory over the Bears in overtime.
“I think when you look at it, I guess I just believe everyone believes that something good is going to happen,” Elway said Monday during his weekly radio spot on KDSP-FM.
“Tim’s been the guy that has led that thinking and he’s just such a strong believer. He’s got everyone else believing that if you stay strong, stay positive, that something good is going to happen.”
During recent weeks, Elway has adopted a wait and see attitude, not wanting to commit to Tebow beyond the next game. But since the Broncos 1-4 start under Kyle Orton, they have gone 7-1 under Tebow (including 3 overtime victories, and 6 fourth quarter comebacks).
They have gone from last place in the AFC West, to first with a solid shot at the playoffs. They currently hold a 1 game lead over the Oakland Raiders, plus they have the tiebreaker over Oakland right now, making it a virtual game-and-a-half.
When Elway was asked if he’d ever seen a player like Tebow before, his answer was more telling.
“No, not to this point,” Elway said. “If you look at where we’ve been just this season and look at the impact that he has had this season, not only athletically with him running around and throwing the football, but I think that his presence has been just huge and his confidence and his competitiveness that he has, especially if you look about when we’re coming off 4-12 last year.”
There’s no denying that the Broncos players are believing in Tebow and rallying around him, so the entire team is playing better than they did the first five games. And although Tebow looks “rough” in great stretch of the game (and that’s being kind), he is always effective during crunch time.
His numbers aren’t bad this season – 8 starts, 7 wins, 48.5 percent completion rate, 11 TDs and 2 INTs, . While the completion percentage is very low, it always seems to improve in crunch time. His 48.5 percent completions and 83.9 passer rating improve in the fourth quarter to 61.3 percent completion and 111.0 passer rating.
And that is something that no one has seen before, not even an old pro like Elway.
