Get Off His Back Already

     I am still trying to figure out what everyone in the known universe has against recently drafted quarterback Tim Tebow. I am not naïve enough to believe that the religious barrier wouldn’t prevent some fans from fully embracing the Mile High City’s  newest high profile resident but it should only discourage a relatively small minority according to most polls I’ve seen. No matter whom you trust as your primary news source, each has done their own research and has found that most Americans (anywhere between 80 and 90 percent) believe in God and that he is active to some degree in their everyday lives.

     So why on God’s green earth would dedicated sports fans, most of whom are “fed up” with the T.O.’s and Chad Ochocino’s (or Brandon Marshall’s, for that matter) of the world, not cling to a player with the stellar moral record of Tim Tebow? Fans and even a few radio personalities (one of which is heard on this station) have come right out and said exactly what they think: “I hope he fails.”

     Tim Tebow isn’t an ideologue or even a demagogue for that matter. He isn’t trying to push himself on anyone; to the contrary, the media has pushed themselves on him. Some have called him an attention whore, probably just to try and smear his character with a word you would use for those among us who practice situational ethics. Others think his on the field behavior is more along the lines of egotism than leadership. Maybe, just maybe there is something a little more base in our observation of Tim Tebow.

    Maybe it has less to do with his low delivery and inability to take snaps from underneath the center and a little more to do with old-fashioned, sophomoric, green-eyed jealousy. I mean, look at everything he has accomplished in 22 years. He is a two-time national champion, a Heisman Trophy winner and now a multi-millionaire. Not to mention he has a nice piece of arm candy to boot.

     Look, I get that OU fan has a chip on his shoulder and probably dislikes Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart for the same reasons that some of them can’t stand Tebow. And just in case some Sooner-rooters want to leave a nasty little comment saying that I “must be a Poke fan” because of my defense of the “chosen one”, I’ll defuse that bomb before it can explode: I am one of you, too. That’s right. I am Sooner born and Sooner bred. That doesn’t mean I hate Pistol Pete or Captain Cane, it just means my dad was a Sooner fan and that his crimson DNA was passed along to me.

     So, in short, don’t hate Tim Tebow because he would rather wear a WWJD bracelet than a Rolex. Just judge him for his performance on the field in the NFL. If anything, maybe Chiefs, Raiders and Chargers fans should fall in love with Tim Tebow. I mean if he is as bad as everyone hopes, maybe Oakland and Kansas City might sniff a Wild Card this season.

 

Justin Loomis manages production and imaging for the Sports Animal as well as various on-air duties.