I like Tim Tebow

With the possible exception of the undefeated Green Bay Packers and about ten quarterbacks threatening to break the single-season passing yards record, no story in pro football has captured the sporting public's imagination quite like Tim Tebow. To recap for non-sports fans: Tebow was a wildly successful college and quite overtly evangelical Christian quarterback at Florida who few thought could succeed at QB in the pros. Since being installed as the starting QB of Denver (1-4 at the time) in his second pro season, he's gone 7-1 and led a host of improbable fourth-quarter comebacks.

The combination of his unorthodox playing style and his being almost certainly the league's most high-profile and outspoken Jebus fan has made Tebow an almost singular focus of the league's media and fan outlets. ESPN recently did 20 minutes of Tebow coverage during a recent Sunday NFL Countdown; an ESPN blog article about Tebow inspired the comical "Occupy Tebow" movement, and, of course...Tebowing.

Naturally, there's been a lot of backlash to all the spotlight Tebow has enjoyed, and a lot of anti-Tebow invective has sprung up. Some of it is quite plainly a reaction to his plaintive and vocal Christianity (Tebow sported bible verses on his eye black while at Florida), but even allowing for the passions religion can inspire, I'm surprised at how much some people seem to hate Tebow.

Personally, I really like the guy.

You might be surprised by that, given how directly our perspectives on the supernatural collide, but to that I say: so what? Yes, I find his religious delusions silly and quaint, but he also seems like one of the most genuinely nice guys in sports, is a truly inspirational leader to his teammates, and a really exciting player to watch. Other than him not playing on my favorite team, why wouldn't I want to get on the Tebow bandwagon? I imagine most atheists take this view - a person's worth isn't defined by what they believe, and Tebow has used his platform in an overwhelmingly positive manner. He's still wrong, but that shouldn't in any way hinder one's ability to admire his success as a person and a football player. Look across the landscape of unsavory characters populating the rosters of the nation's professional sports teams, and decide if it's worth "hating" (realizing that sports hate and actual hate are different entities) a guy like Timmy Tee. It's not, trust me.

Plus, I think a lot of the backlash is secondary, by which I mean aimed at outlets covering or commenting on Tebow, rather than the player himself. It's not his fault ESPN devotes so much screen time to covering him, or that his moronic pastor credits god with Bronco wins (something Tebow has been smart enough to avoid). It's not fair to hate Tebow because of Tebow the Phenomenon, and I won't fall into that trap. I will, however, spend the rest of this article tearing apart writers who have made stupid comments about the Tebow situation, reminding you once again that these are not to be taken as criticisms of #15 himself.

Washington (CNN) – Tim Tebow led his team to another come-from-behind victory Sunday, this time against the Chicago Bears. He has now won seven out of eight games as the Denver Broncos’ starting quarterback, all the while unabashedly preaching his devout faith in God.

"If you were not a believer coming into this game,” said Fox's Daryl Johnston after the Broncos win, “you have to be now.”
Believer of what? Denver's offense hasn't exactly been explosive since Tebow took over, just timely. They're averaging 20.5 ppg since he took over (21.0 before), and it's still not unreasonable to question his long-term viability as a pro QB while still enjoying the ride. Sorry, Moose.

While Tebow’s unexpected success on the field has perplexed football commentators and fans alike, his faith and on-field success have led people to talk about belief, miracles and their impact on the sports world.
Too bad, because such discussions are a total waste.

Tebow has even convinced some nonbelievers that more is going on than just football.
Not this one.

Les Carpenter of Yahoo Sports, after ensuring readers that he believes in evolution, dinosaurs and the big bang, writes this:
But I also believe in Tim Tebow because there is no scientific explanation for what is happening to the Denver Broncos. There is no other plausible way to make sense of these games and the amazing, miraculous way with which they win week after week. … It just happened.
There is absolutely a scientific explanation for every single thing that has happened to the Denver Broncos, and there is a plausible way to make sense of their success. Not one thing Carpenter says here is correct except the final three words. It did happen, as have countless more improbable things.

The question is this: Does Tim Tebow’s unexpected success, with his awkward scrambling style and his shotput-esque throwing motion, have something to do with a higher power?
Nope.

Does Tebow really have God on his side?
Nope. Just made some remarkable plays late in games. Tremendous athlete.

The answers to that question run the gamut, and while the general consensus is that something special is happening in Denver, there are just as many who believe Tebow is benefiting from a good team as those who believe God sports the blue and orange on Sunday.
He certainly doesn't sport the brown and orange.

Bronco fans are not shy about discussing faith and their team.
In an article titled “Tim Tebow has the Broncos believing they can’t lose,” Mark Kiszla exhibits an overt belief that Tebow is getting help from upstairs. He writes:

The magic of Tim Tebow is bigger than football and grows larger with each late-game miracle by the Broncos. Logic fails to explain this no-way-in-heaven, overtime victory against Chicago, unless you consider: Denver played as if victory were preordained.
Logic explains the Chicago victory fairly easily. It mostly has to do with Marion Barber playing poorly and Matt Prater making some crazy-long kicks in the thin Denver air. And Tebow shaking off a horrible three quarters to play well down the stretch. Go logic!

Looking for religion in that paragraph (between the uses of miracle, heaven and preordained) doesn’t take reading between the lines. And that wasn’t even as blatant as when Rick Telander of the Chicago (the town Tebow just defeated) Sun-Times appealed to God directly.

And God, if you’re reading, doing some Monday-morning quarterbacking, would you mind telling the rest of us what’s up with this proselytizing young minister who did nearly a full minute of his famed “Tebow-ing” on the goal line, balancing motionless on one knee, chin on fist like Rodin’s “The Thinker,” while the rest of his team lined up for the opening kickoff?
What do you mean, what's up with him? He's a really good runner, generally inaccurate passer, and very religious quarterback. What more can I help you with?

But not everyone is a believer.

In post-game interviews, Bears players told the Chicago Sun-Times that “It’s not really what he is doing” and that no one was panicked because it was “Tebow Time.”
It's part what he's doing and part the Broncos' strong defense. This article could have been like one paragraph.

People online were equally skeptical.
A fake Jesus Christ account, @Jesus_M_Christ, tweeted: "I think Dad loves @TimTebow more than me
Too bad this guy didn't snap up @Jesus_H_Christ

With all of this talk on Twitter, including from the Tebow doubters, four topics relating to Tebow, including #tebow and #themilehighmessiah, were trending worldwide on Twitter.
"Mile High Messiah" is an awesome nickname.

But not all football fans are ready to ordain Tebow. The New York Times’ Frank Bruni, who did acknowledge that he was a believer in Tebow, writes about this disbelief:
Tebow performs a sort of self-righteous bait-and-switch — you come for scrimmages and he subjects you to scriptures — and the displeasure with that is also writ colorfully on the Web, in Tebow-ridiculing Twitter feeds and Facebook pages, one devoted entirely to snapshots through time of Tebow in tears.
Seems a little mean-spirited. I'm sure if you asked him to set aside the bible stuff he would oblige.

“We’re a team that keeps the faith,” Tebow told Fox sideline reporter Tony Siragusa after Sunday’s game. “We just kept believing.”
That's cool - even an atheist QB could say that. A lot of success in sports is confidence and self-belief, and the Broncos are clearly brimming with it. As cliche as it is, really thinking you can win absolutely makes a difference. Has nothing to do with Jesus, and Tebow isn't necessarily bringing that into the argument here.

And maybe that is Tebow’s biggest accomplishment. In a year when the sports world has been rocked by scandals both on and off the field, Tebow has people interested in a positive sports story.
Good point.

So whether they are watching because they believe in miracles or because they just like football, does it really matter?
I guess not, though the latter is a better reason. As Douglas Adams wrote, isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?