John Fox made no bones about it in the preseason — the Broncos’ new coach does not much care to play Tim Tebow.
Fox inherited someone else’s pet project as his incumbent starter, and demoted him as far as fourth string on the roster. He also tacitly allowed Denver’s front office to listen to offers for Tebow — no coach with Fox’s kind of juice would allow that possibility if he wanted to build around that player.
Now, though, he has no choice.
Ostensibly, Tebow was still the Broncos’ third string quarterback on Sunday, still fighting with Brady Quinn for playing time among the scrubs. But Kyle Orton fell apart in the first half, earning only 34 yards on 13 passes (Donovan McNabb calls that a pretty good day’s work), and Fox decided to make a switch.
Exactly what was going through the coach’s mind here is up for debate. Bronco fans have made no secret all season long who they preferred as their quarterback, going so far as to chant “TE-BOW TE-BOW TE-BOW” as the team entered the tunnel in the first half. But Fox has worked hard to keep a lid on Tebow-mania, knowing that fan hysteria could completely hijack his gameplan.
Fan uproar was loud after Fox failed to use Tebow in a critical goal-line situation — where he may be as dangerous as any QB in the league — in a 17-14 loss to Tennessee. Fox acknowledged that uproar somewhat cheekily by bringing Tebow in to run the ball on the Broncos’ second offensive drive of the next game. One snap. One run for -1 yard on a first-and-ten play. It was Fox’s one-fingered salute to Tebow fans: “You want me to play this kid so bad, I’ll play him how and when I please.” While Fox was busy celebrating this moral victory, his Broncos were getting dragged up and down the field by the Packers, losing 49-23.
With no help from Kyle Orton, Fox found yet another game rapidly falling out of reach on Sunday, this one in front of a deafeningly displeased home stadium. If Fox wanted to make a statement about who his backup was, he could have played Quinn. But instead, the coach tapped on #15, and sent him out to the lions.
Now, it’s been a long time since Fox had a quarterback he liked, but he is known for taking gambles at the position. In early 2003, he turned to the undrafted Jake Delhomme in desperation, down 17-0 at halftime, and watched in amazement as he Favred three touchdown passes in the second half. A miraculous Super Bowl run followed, and Jake was his QB until a gruesome elbow injury sent his career into a downward spiral in 2007. Fox stuck with Delhomme for two ugly years afterward, to the point that one had to wonder where his breaking point was. Eleven games and eighteen interceptions into 2009, we finally found out.
It’s possible that, down 23-10 to the Chargers, Fox was giving Tebow a chance to make a similar impression on him. It’s also possible that Fox was hoping Tebow would fail miserably in front of the home crowd, and let him go about his business of setting the depth chart without external influence.
However, the big cannon-armed quarterback wouldn’t make a decision either way very easy. Tebow completed only one of his first five passes as the Denver offense stagnated early in the second half, but the Chargers could only add a field goal to their lead. Then with two monster 12-yard runs, the second for a score, Tebow put a charge under the home crowd. A short field and a 28-yard touchdown pass (caught at the line of scrimmage) to Knowshon Moreno later, and the Broncos miraculously had a chance to tie. And at game’s end, thrilling catches by Brandon Lloyd and Daniel Fells put the Broncos in scoring position with five seconds left to play, but Tebow’s final pass could not steal the win.
For now, Fox is committed to his process, saying that he won’t name a starter until tomorrow, after he has a chance to gather his coaches and watch film. The film won’t look pretty. Tebow finished with only 4 completions in 10 attempts, and only two of those traveled beyond the line of scrimmage.
But Tebow also provides undeniable spark to the offense, and he sells tickets by the boatload. Most importantly, he commands belief from fans and teammates; at best, Fox earns a grudging respect for his past accomplishments. (And for his not being named “Josh McDaniels,” perhaps the most hated man in Denver Sports.)
The Broncos coach may want to take the patient approach with Tebow. He may prefer to hitch his new coaching job to his own horse, rather than someone else’s. He may not want to play him at all.
But after Sunday, he may not have a choice.
Photo art by TheCoverTwo.com.
