4521

I think it strains credibility to call the offense successful. The offense scored basically 7 points in last night’s game (the field goal was a special teams deal, where they got the ball in field goal range and never really moved it offensively; one TD was made by the defense). When you have a defense that dominates the opposition and good special teams play, and their offense still outscores yours, you do not have a good offense.

4522

HAY.

I may drunk post, but I’m consistently a Saints fan, whether sober or three sheets in, and that certainly doesn’t change based on whatever set of titties are sitting next to me.

I’ve never rooted for the Cowboys, I root for the Rangers because New Orleans doesn’t have a baseball team, and for the Mavs because the Hornets don’t have nearly the same connection to my hometown that the Saints do (plus Cuban is the best owner in sports, period).

Also, you forgot the WOOOOOOOO at the end of my drunk posts.

GET IT RIGHT, BILL.

4523

My out-to-lunch prediction for the Broncos: unless Tebow looks phenomenal the rest of the season they will try to sign Matt Flynn. With 5 wins they are already out of the running for the best quarterbacks in the 2011 draft, and the rest of their schedule is reasonably soft. Their games against the Pats and the Bears are almost guaranteed losses, but their games against the Chargers, Chiefs, Vikings and Bills are definitely winnable, so they could be looking at a 9-7 season. Meanwhile the Colts, Dolphins, Redskins and Seahawks are almost guaranteed to be looking for a quarterback and the Browns, Cardinals and Titans could also be looking, so it’s unlikely that the Broncos will have access to any of the really good QBs in the upcoming draft, unless they trade up a bunch of notches. I think it’d be silly for Denver not to at least take a look at Flynn after this season; he’s likely to be the most promising QB in free agency next year.

I’m trying to withhold any praise or criticism for Tebow until the end of the season. I will say that his final play last night was really good. Good read of the defense on the line of scrimmage and great execution. I couldn’t help but feel happy for him afterwards.

4524

I am going to predict that Tebow is going to improve as a passer. He can’t get much worse.

I think Fox and his staff will figure out what passes he can throw and start to mix those passes in more. He had a lifetime 67% completion rate in college and threw for nearly 10,000 yards. I watched him in college and while he never looked like a pro QB when passing, he hit on a lot of throws.

Anyway, I think he’s fun to watch. It’s interesting to see a team try a different kind of offense.

4525

They’ll win one of the two. Tebow is a proven winner.

4526

OK. Can we say that the offense is good enough to let the defense and special teams win games for them? Cause that’s certainly not true for a lot of conventional NFL offenses. Or is this just a fluke and them managing to win NFL games mere happenstance? I certainly don’t know, I do find the subject intriguing though.

4527

As do I. The conventional football wisdom is that Tebow is not good at the skills a conventional QB needs and this should lead to losses. The first part seems well proven at this point, but the second part of that prediction isn’t playing out. I might have to start watching Broncos games at this point to see why.

4528

The Jets got to 2 AFC Championships that way. Sanchez is shooting them in the foot this year though. He must have learned that from Plaxico.

4529

Denver’s defense won that game last night, Tebow’s heroics aside. When you hold the other team to 13 and get a pick six to boot, you’ve made it pretty easy for your offense. All they need to do is put up 10 points, which they did.

And really, the offense was pretty bad for Denver. Four times they started drives in Jets territory and got no points. For Denver to be successful on a consistent basis they are going to need to get more production than that out of their offense.

4530

For my part, all I can say is the combination of the Broncos eating the clock on their weird drives (which is important because it robs opponents of potential possessions, tires out opposing defenses and keeps their defense fresh), the defense playing lights out, and Tebow being Tebow in the 4th quarter is winning them games. Yes, it’s stupid and not sustainable for likely longer than this season, but there’s more than that.

I think Tebow is getting incrementally better each week. There’s nothing that flat-out says he can never, ever improve as a QB. His passes already look like they have more zip and spiral than they did a month ago. He completed was it 2 passes two weeks ago and 9 this week. If he gets into the 15-17 range I can name you plenty of QBs who complete only that many passes and their teams win just fine. Defenses will keep daring him to pass and maybe he’ll keep taking that dare until they think better of it because he’ll be hitting receivers. Or not. Also he has 10 total TDs to one INT and a rating of 78.4 and he is already over 1000 yards combined passing and rushing. We can call him a sucky QB until the cows come home but tell me how those are bad numbers over 5 games pretending they are all passing numbers, because with Tebow maybe we should at least for this season. That’s 200 yards and 2 TDs a game.

On one over the middle throw the commentators were trashing Tebow because he threw it a little too in front of the receiver, missing the fact that Tebow was getting pressure and the throw had to get around a DT with his arms in the air. Other QBs make that same throw and they get excused, but not Tebow. The guy has his faults but every incomplete pass is not proof he sucks. I was surprised that on a 4th and short they didn’t call a QB sneak. Dude who the Hell else in the league is better suited for a QB sneak!

There is no doubt that team has rallied around him. I heard many wanted to give up after the Lions loss but he won them back over. Defensive players and O linemen prize toughness and guts and no one can say Tebow lacks those qualities. Last night at the end of that game, did anyone even doubt Tebow was going to score once they got into the red zone? I didn’t. How many QBs make you that confident? He is nimble enough to run around the edge and big enough to run it up the gut. DBs can talk all the shit they want but I bet you none of them want Tebow near the goal line because of what he can do.

Someone said it on SA and I have to agree, part of what is confounding about Tebow is not even that he plays so good in the 4th quarter, it’s like his opponents mysteriously play much worse. I have no explanation for it. That was the most inept play I have yet seen from the Jets defense this season, on that last 95 yard drive. Nick Folk, not exactly a money kicker I know, shanked 2 FG attempts. Sanchez with a pick 6. Complete implosion that is now characteristic of teams the Broncos beat.

Which reminds me of the last thing I want to say: we can all wave our hands at the Broncos’ wins because “they haven’t beaten anyone” but you know what, who has? Not to take anything away from what the Packers are doing, but they have played some real loser teams this season. Every team gets to do that. You can say “Well they haven’t beaten anyone” except they have, they have beaten other teams and if you want to call Tebow the worst starting QB in the league you are making a back-handed insult to the teams they beat. They destroyed the Raiders and that is their likely biggest competitor for the division unless SD finally wakes up and I doubt that will happen. Picture them winning the AFC West and hosting, I dunno, the Ravens…or the Jets again. The line for people betting the farm on the Broncos losing that game forms to the left, step right up and be the first.

I’m not saying I am a total convert but wins do matter and the Broncos are getting them and there is no way they’d be getting them with Orton.

4531

I think this is something people don’t mention, because it’s a reasonable explanation for why Tebow’s style might work (sample set’s still to small to say if it does or not). Is it coincidence that he’s staged big plays in the 4th quarter several times? Or is it a natural consequence of wearing out the opponents defense? It’s probably easy enough for the coaches and players to confirm if this is the case. How much would playing in Denver factor into this? (How much does the elevation factor into any game at Denver?)

4532

Some respectable analysts say it doesn’t matter all that much unless it’s say a multi-game series like you’d see in baseball or maybe a basketball tourney. That said, coming off a Sunday night game had an effect I think.

4533

Yeah, but three and outs don’t eat the clock. The Jets had the ball for 32:12 last night. Denver’s defense was on the field more than the Jets.

4534

Fair enough, but they did also punt the ball to the 6, 4 and 1 yard line on 3 of those punts. Furthermore, they led in ToP in all their other wins with Tebow. I’m not saying it’s a can’t-miss proposition but it could be part of the puzzle.

4535

I think it’s about when you score, not how much, when you judge an offense. The Denver defense did well, however at the end there it was still the Jets in the lead with the Denver offense 95 yards away from winning it.

The Denver defense is lucky the offense got the touchdown and not the field goal because it looked like the Jets were not going to have a problem coming back to win it with a field goal of their own at the end. Instead, the offense of the Broncos put the Jets in a touchdown or nothing position.

4536

They’ve also played crappier teams post-Tebow. Their only wins against teams with winning records were a Kyle Orton win against Cincinatti and a Tim Tebow win against a still rusty Palmer-led Oakland.

4537

Right. Does anyone think that Kyle Orton wouldn’t have beaten the Dolphins?

4538

Which just means Denver is not a crappy team. That is all that proves.

4539

I do. I don’t think that’s some kind of lock.

4540

I think the Denver defense played pretty well (and Von Miller is not getting the credit he deserves), but that was not a good throw by Sanchez. He also missed Holmes on a slant early that probably would have been a touchdown. It might be time to cut bait on the Sanchize after this year.