Imagine this dream scenario for your favorite NFL team: The most competitively decorated athlete in college football history is drafted to a non-rival, small market team. The athlete helps to rake in millions of dollars in revenue for the franchise, including having the most popular selling jersey worldwide.

He goes on to become a pop culture spectacle and by most accounts a national phenomenon after achieving varied success, highlighted by repeated late game heroics and inconceivable wins. After being supplanted by a once-in-a-lifetime free agent quarterback, the aforementioned athlete is traded to your very own hometown team for a throwaway draft pick to play backup quarterback and lead your team to football’s promised land. If it all seems too good to be true, that’s because it is.

I’m talking, of course, about NFL superstar Tim Tebow and his jettison from Denver, into the laps of the all too willing New York Jets. Call me a cynical Jets fan (a decade of inept offensive coordinators, failed quarterbacks, and AFC championship game losses has probably put me over the edge) but I’m still confounded as to why Tim Tebow is on my team. Sure, he’s an unbelievably, likable, hard worker and a beast in the weight room. So is Nick Mangold’s sister, but that doesn’t mean I want her coming off the bench to run a quarterback draw for a dozen snaps a game.

My main problem with Tebow in New York isn’t due to his ineffectiveness at quarterback; it’s the complete lack of logic the Jets’ front office displayed in handling the situation that makes the franchise look like a circus sideshow. First, futile flirtations with Peyton Manning questionably necessitated the contract extension of already shaky quarterback Mark Sanchez.

Whether this was in the cards for months or an attempt to assuage Sanchez’ defeated ego wouldn’t matter because weeks later, Tim Tebow would don the green and white. This trade would instigate a positional (and media) battle between the country’s most popular athlete and the unreliable quarterback of the future for the Jets organization.

In a perfect world, the competition that Tim Tebow brings to the quarterback position would light a fire under Mark Sanchez and propel him to a career-defining year. If Sanchez had the intestinal fortitude of crosstown rival Eli Manning, or even the gutty gamesmanship that coach Rex Ryan continues to emptily preach, maybe it would be a different story. Unfortunately for this Jets fan, it seems all the more likely that Sanchez will crumble under the pressure and cede an increasing number of snaps Tebow’s way, as the season falls apart.

As a rule of thumb I try to always reserve judgment on newly acquired talent, but the stats are hard to ignore. I don’t see how a quarterback with a 47.3% completion percentage and almost as many turnovers as touchdown passes could possibly help in the backup quarterback capacity. Judging by initial reports out of the Jets camp, Sanchez and Tebow are struggling mightily with their passing accuracy, a downfall that has plagued both quarterbacks in their short tenures in the NFL. Sanchez and Tebow are performing so poorly, that Jets fans may be clamoring for third stringer Greg McElroy by camp’s end.

New York Jets General Manager Mike Tannenbaum and Head Coach Rex Ryan continue to propagate the idea that Tebow was brought to New York to be an athlete, rather than an exclusive quarterback. Preliminary reports even had his number of snaps estimated between ten and twenty a game. Wildcat packages with two quarterbacks on the field at once had naïve Jets fans salivating at the creative possibilities under new offensive coordinator Tony Sparano.

How would defenses account for two passers and infinite rushing possibilities? Pretty easily actually. Tebow’s speed has never been a weapon in his rush-heavy arsenal. Defensively command the edges of the box- something the Jets couldn’t do when they lost to Tebow in Denver last season- and he’s forced to run into a questionable Jets offensive line.

Cover the short passing attack, and Tebow is forced into deep-outs and fades, undeniably the weakest part of his game. NFL defenses will be praying  (no pun intended to the Tebow-ing masses) for Sanchez and Tebow, two mediocre quarterbacks, to appear on the field at the same time.

Part of the phenomenon that is Tebow-mania, is that I actually feel bad to doubt his potential as a New York Jet. I respect how real he is with his fans, and I truly feel that the interviews he gives showcase his endearing and likeable personality. But smiles and charm don’t help shed the little brother complex the Jets and their fans face in their own city.

The acquisition of Tim Tebow has done nothing but create a mockery out of the Jets camp. A franchise in desperate need of a spark seems to have lit the wrong end of the dynamite. Now the world is waiting to see if it will blow up in our faces.

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When Taylor Swift made her grand appearance at the Country Music Awards Sunday night, she received the biggest award of the night, and took home her second consecutive “Entertainer of the Year” award. What Swift was not anticipating was the on-going  joke between hosts Blake Shelton and Reba McEntire about her dating Tim Tebow, leaving Swift shocked and baffled.

As the hosts mentioned the NFL quarterback they quickly brought up Swift, and McEntire said, “Well, how about the rumor that Tim Tebow went on a date with Taylor Swift?” Shelton added in, “Now we know what he has been praying for.” As the cameras zoomed in on Swift, she gave a startled reaction that practically confirmed the two were an item. Swift, with a shocked look on her face, merely shrugged her shoulders, and remarked, “What?” then put her head down as she attempted to laugh at the joke.

Rumors and gossip have been swirling about the two stars dating ever since they went on a date in February.

Viewers that tuned in to watch the Country Music Awards quickly turned to their Twitter accounts to remark on Swift’s reaction. One individual tweeted, “Taylor Swift looked extra salty after that Tim Tebow joke, ha,” while another Twitter fan wrote, “Oh T-Swift you’re just too cute.

And you so just confirmed that date with Tebow.” Another fan was not so fond of Shelton and McEntire’s wise-cracks stating, “He was making fun of Tim Tebow and Taylor Swift. It was just rude.”

Overall, Swift, a country music superstar, seemed to handle the situation as best to her ability and kept her head up. Later in the evening she presented Shelton with the award for ‘Male Vocalist of the Year.’

Yet the real question remains: are Tebow and Swift dating? Or is Hollywood sensationalizing a single date into a full-blown romance? Several relationship experts speak out about why the two young stars could be the next “it” couple. Experts tuned in to the two regarding several aspects including their levels of fame, personality, attractiveness and religion.

Cooper Lawrence, radio personality and author of “Been There, Done That, Kept the Jewelry,” believes that “Swift and Tebow have found untold amounts of fame at incredibly young ages.”

Which is a factor that could bring the two closer together. Andrea Syrtash, relationship expert and author of “He’s Just Not Your Type (And That’s a Good Thing)” says, ”Tebow and Swift were raised with Christian and strong family values. The fact that they are around the same age and both came into the public eye as teenagers also makes it more likely that they understand each other.”

As of now the two are not yet confirmed as a couple, and it seems that many fans of the beloved stars are rooting for them.

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Denver Broncos backup quarterback Brady Quinn apologized Tuesday for critical statements that he made in an article in the March issue of GQ Magazine, “The Year of Magical Stinking: An Oral History of Tebow Time,” concerning the man that stands between him and the throwing of his first NFL pass since the end of the 2009 season with the Cleveland Browns – the one and only, Tim Tebow.

The article, written by Michael Silver, consists mostly of quotes in reaction to the ‘Tebowmania’ frenzy that began back in Week 7 down in Miami when Tebow made his first start of the season. Broncos head coach John Fox, team president John Elway, teammates, players around the league, and others chimed in on a week-to-week basis.

There were varying opinions and throughout, but Quinn was the only one who made national headlines this week for several of his remarks; the first being the reason why he believed Tebow got the nod over him to replace the struggling starter, Kyle Orton.

“I felt like the fans had a lot to do with that,” said Quinn. “Just ’cause they were chanting his name. There was a big calling for him. No, I didn’t have any billboards. That would have been nice.”

Quinn went on to add that he felt that the team “had a lot of luck” during their unbelievable run and that Tebow did not seem “very humble” when it came to the way that he expressed his faith.

Once the article made its way to the public and Quinn realized his words were one of the biggest stories in the world of sports, he decided to take to Twitter to clear things up. In the fourth tweet, Quinn mentions that he has “reached out to Tim to clear this up” and apologizes “to anyone who feels I was trying to take anything away from Tim.” All of that is fine and well. He felt that his words might have been offensive and apologized for them. That’s what adults do.

But he also brings up the point beforehand that “That interview was conducted three months ago, and the resulting story was a completely inaccurate portrayal of my comments.” He goes on to say that he made Silver aware of his “disappointment” with him. Well that is where Quinn is dead wrong and should have no gripe whatsoever.

A lot of interviewees like to play the ‘I was taken out of context’ card when they say something that they realize they shouldn’t have in hindsight. Granted, Quinn did not use those exact words, but that’s basically what he’s implying.

And in no way, shape, or form does that seem fair to Silver. He did nothing wrong, yet Quinn is attempting to make him look like the bad guy for comments that he ultimately regrets. All Silver did was take his quotes and put them into his piece. Isn’t that the way good journalism always has and always will work?

If Quinn was misquoted, however, that’s a different story. But if he was, he would have said so, right? Therefore Quinn is still in the wrong. Maybe Quinn said a number of positive things about Tebow that were left out of the article and he felt that their absence made him look worse. That doesn’t matter. Silver isn’t required to use all of Quinn’s quotes.

Another thing to keep in mind is that this was not an off-the-record conversation between Silver and Quinn. Silver would not use such quotes in a published work. That would kill his reputation amongst both his potential interviewees and colleagues forever.

This was an interview with a sportswriter, which Quinn was obviously aware of when he used the word “interview” when referring to the discussion. Brady Quinn, you need to make one more apology, and it should be directed towards Michael Silver.

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The debate surrounding Tim Tebow is one that virtually every NFL fan is all too familiar with. Even those who have come to Tebow’s defense have acknowledged most of the flaws in his game, ranging from his shoddy accuracy to his obscene tendency to run with the ball, rather than being a traditional NFL quarterback.

Bashing Tebow is obviously nothing new or original, but there is some additional insight that should be noted. Most of this insight can be found when one goes back to the time when the Denver Broncos originally decided to name Tebow as their starter. At the time, the Broncos were 2-5 and found themselves at the cellar of the AFC West.

Many may also remember that naming Tebow as the starting quarterback happened to coincide with the Broncos trading wide receiver, Brandon Lloyd, to the St. Louis Rams. Although the Broncos deny it, the trade was presumably made due to the fact that Lloyd had previously been somewhat outspoken about his lack of confidence in Tebow.

It is reasonable to assume that such a trade would improve team chemistry, but the fact that the player they traded happened to lead the league in receiving yards last season might lead one to deduce that the Broncos are especially confident in Tebow as their franchise quarterback.

Going back to the status of the Broncos’ season upon making Tebow the starter, the Broncos found themselves at 2-5 and still a viable candidate in the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. With this in mind, the only rationale the Broncos’ front office could possibly have had behind trading a great receiver in order to start a bad quarterback is that they knew that both managerial decisions would increase their chances of finishing the season with the worst record in the NFL, allowing them to snag the first overall pick in the 2012 draft.

This may sound like a bit of a stretch, but it very well could be the only feasible explanation. It is safe to assume that the Broncos were and are aware that Tebow makes a poor NFL quarterback, considering they had all of training camp and the preseason, along with the two games he started last season, to catch on to his talent.

In spite of this, the Broncos elected to sit Tebow in favor of Kyle Orton, and no team is going to settle for mediocrity over their first round pick, unless they truly have no confidence in that first round pick’s potential. Obviously, at this point, with the Broncos in the hunt for a playoff spot at 6-5, the chances of obtaining the first overall pick in the 2012 draft have diminished for the Broncos.

However, at the time of the decisions to start Tebow and trade Lloyd, the possibility of finishing with the NFL’s worst record was well within range for the Broncos. Being able to possibly correct their mistake in the 2010 draft by giving themselves an opportunity to draft the highly touted Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck in 2012 makes this whole process a subtle act of brilliance.

It is not surprising that the Broncos continue to start Tebow, even after their chances of obtaining the first round pick have been replaced by chances of making the playoffs. It would be very difficult to justify trading Lloyd if they were to inexplicably bench him in the middle of a playoff race.

The fact that Tebow has managed to put together a few game-winning drives has only made it easier to justify starting him. What needs to be clear that Tebow has been given far too much credit for his clutch performances. One need not forget that Tebow still played poorly for three quarters prior to each of his dramatic comebacks.

While these comebacks have admittedly been impressive, they were still contingent on the much improved Broncos defense keeping the game close enough for Tebow to exercise his supposed ability to win against all odds. Unfortunately for Tebow, playing poorly for fifty minutes will not always allow enough time for the quarterback to carry his team to come from behind win.

Regardless of what the true intentions were behind starting Tebow, it should be clear that his style of play cannot adapt well to the NFL. When looking at things from a fundamental standpoint, anyone who watches Tebow closely enough can see that he makes several off-target throws throughout each game.

The only saving grace that he has is the zone read option that the Broncos have installed into their offense, which Tebow utilized to great success at the University of Florida. Tebow seems to have been running the ball very well whenever the option is called, but this should not be confused for any hint of potential to adapt his style of play to the NFL.

While the zone read has been a fairly decent change up to opposing defenses so far, the wildcat appeared unstoppable by comparison when the Dolphins started the fad in 2008. If NFL defenses can grow accustomed to stopping the wildcat, there is no doubt that they can do the same with the zone read.

It will interesting, not only to see what the future holds for Tebow as a Denver Bronco, but also what the future holds for Tebow’s status in the NFL as a whole.

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Tim Tebow was the definition of a star athlete during his four years at the University of Florida. He won the Heisman Trophy and three BCS Bowl Games. Two of them were national titles that came in just a three year span.

These are the facts that his supporters point out when they make their case as to why he will be a successful quarterback in the NFL. When labeled by many of his fans, both former and current teammates and coaches, peers, competitors, and even some of his critics as a football player, one simple word often comes to mind – winner.

He won in Gainesville and in 2011 he has won four of his first five starts as the Broncos quarterback. However, it would appear reasonable to note that Tebow’s inability to consistently throw the football at a high level is not enough to lead a championship caliber NFL team, no matter how much of the ‘it factor’ he may have.

So many people want to see him fail for a number of reasons – he is lowering the standards of performance at the position, he wears his religion on his sleeve, and he has this never-ending optimism about his job no matter what the critics say about him. A vast amount of viewers have also lost hope because — this is the NFL.

Not to say that FBS football is a walk in the park, but Tebow’s mechanical flaws at this level don’t display promise for translating into a great degree of success. Several NFL analysts such as former quarterback Trent Dilfer of ESPN agree that his throwing motion is severely prolonged and it’s an advantage to all eleven defenders he’s up against.

Lineman have that extra second or so to get to him, defensive backs have that slight moment to get a jump on the football, and linebackers will have that slim instant to either adjust in coverage or continue their pursuit of him. If that isn’t enough, his accuracy has been atrocious. He has completed only 44.8% of his passes this year, when an NFL quarterback is expected to be at the very least in the fifties, but more preferably the sixties.

He’s missed a number of wide open receivers, he’s constantly overthrowing those who have their man beat downfield, he’s throwing behind them when they create small windows that need to be hit, and for a young man with extremely muscular arms – he tends to underthrow and short-hop his teammates much too often.

‘He wins’ is what his believers always claim. They believe that that’s all that matters. But take a look at who the Broncos have beaten and the fashion in which they did so. The Dolphins couldn’t recover an onside kick late and gave up the game tying touchdown in a prevent defense, Carson Palmer was making his first start for the Raiders, the Chiefs allowed him to complete 2 passes the whole game, and the Jets had to fly cross-country on three days of rest coming off an emotional loss to the Patriots.

The competition will improve. And is it realistic to believe that this option-style offense will continue to win games?  The NFL has tended towarda a predominantly passing league over the last few years, and not only are defenses expected to catch up as they always do, but being a runner will also put Tebow in more situations where he is likely to get injured. Just look at Michael Vick and the numerous injuries he’s suffered throughout his career.

Even Tebow’s own bosses don’t show confidence in him. John Elway, former Super Bowl winning quarterback for the Broncos and current Executive Vice President of football operations for the team continuously denies that Tebow is the future of the organization when asked after every game. Head coach John Fox also admitted that the quarterback would be “screwed” if he had to run a traditional offense.

With all that being said, it doesn’t appear that Tebow will have long-term success in this league unless he finds a way to become a truly efficient pocket passer. People had the same doubts about Panthers rookie quarterback Cam Newton before this year’s draft, and now he is completing exactly 60% of his passes. The transformation is possible, but is all dependent on Tebow’s physical ability and mental commitment.

However, unless that happens, the future doesn’t seem too bright in Denver.

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There were just as many Tim Tebow fans in Miami on Sunday as there were Dolphin fans. Tebow’s fans were all very disappointed as he looked absolutely awful. It looked like Miami, to many fans’ dismay, were on their way to their first victory of the season. Then he did the unthinkable and led an improbable comeback.

Tebow led the Denver Broncos with two touchdown passes in the final three minutes of the fourth quarter in his first start of the season, which forced overtime. Matt Prater sealed the win with a 52-yard field goal in overtime to give Denver the 18-15 victory over Miami. Denver was trailing 15-0 with five minutes left in the game when Denver took over at their 20 yard line.

Tebow, who had been hearing it from fans all game, looked atrocious up to that point, and Denver had zero conversions on third down. “It was my fault we were in that position,” Tebow said. “Silly things kept happening. On the sidelines, we were still believing. We wanted it, and they believed in me for more than 60 minutes.”

Tebow managed to lead touchdown drives of 80 and 56 yards with a successful onside kick thrown in the middle. He scored the game tying two-point conversion untouched with only 17 seconds left on the clock. In overtime, it was Denver’s D.J. Williams who sacked Matt Moore, forced a fumble, and recovered it at Miami’s 36 yardline.

It only took three more plays, and Prater sealed the Dolphins’ fate as their winless streak continues extending the NFL’s longest streak to ninegames. If coach Tony Sparano wasn’t on the hot seat before, he sure is now after this disappointing loss. “Of course he’s the head coach, and he’s going to take a lot of heat,” receiver Brandon Marshall said. “But trust me, it’s not him. Not just him. It’s all of us.”

“I’m just discouraged for the players in the locker room,” Sparano said. “They work really hard, and we don’t have anything to show for it right now.” Tebow struggled for most of the game, suffering seven sacks, failing to pick up blitzes, and making several horrible throws nowhere near the intended receiver.

But this didn’t make him lose confidence, and he was able to lead an eight-play drive capped by a five-yard pass to Demaryius Thomas for the touchdown with three minutes left to make the score 15-7. The Dolphins failed to grab the ensuing onside kick, and Virgil Green recovered at their 44 with two and a half minutes left.

Tebow was able to find Daniel Fells for a 28-yard gain, brining them to the three yard line, Again, he found Fells for the three-yard score with time running out. As for the Dolphins, they are just looking for any sort of remedy to their season. “I’m trying to search for answers,” Miami running back Reggie Bush said. “I just keep coming back to embarrassing.”

This was a big win for Denver and Tebow. Midway through the third quarter, Denver had netted two yards on 10 pass plays, which is an average of seven inches a play. After that, Tebow went nine for 13 for 1,121 yards and finished 13 of 27 for 161 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 65 yards on eight carries.

Despite the salute to the Gators and Tebow mania, the stadium was almost half empty at the start — a sign of growing fan discontented with the Dolphins. The crowd was booing the home team before Miami’s first series ended, but Denver moved the ball no better. Together, the two teams failed to convert their first 16 third-down situations.

Miami is just looking for any answers as they fall to 0-6, and have to travel to MetLife stadium to square off with Big Blue.

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