Posted by Will Brinson

My poor colleague Ryan Wilson -- determined to see whether or not Tim Tebow could take over the top spot on the Broncos depth chart at quarterback, he fired up the "Tebow Tracker" for all of Denver's preseason games. It's turned out to be an exercise in futility, as Tebow quickly lost out on the starting job to Kyle Orton.

That's not the full extent of the bad news for Tebow, either. John Fox called the Florida product a "work in progress" and it seems as if he's getting beat out for the second-string spot by Brady Quinn. (You probably knew that, but read the sentence again anyway.)

But wait -- there's more! According to Yahoo Sports Mike Silver, Tebow might not even be the third best quarterback in Denver right now.

"If everything was totally equal, and this were a competition based only on performance at this camp, Tebow would probably be the fourth-string guy," a highly knowledgable member of the Broncos organization told Silver on Monday. "Kyle is far and away the best, and Tebow’s way behind Quinn, too.

"And I’m telling you, Adam Weber is flat-out better right now."

Can Tebow make it as an NFL QB?

Judge: Will hard work pay off? Wilson: Tracking Tebow's preseason NFL Podcast: Tebow vs. Hoge--Who ya got? Tebow laughs at 'U' bounty rumors Don't ask Orton about relationship with Tebow Hoge thinks Orton deserves job over Tebow LeBron takes to Twitter to defend Tebow

Adam Weber, for those that don't know, is the former quarterback of the Minnesota Golden Gophers who was signed by Denver as an undrafted free agent once the lockout ended. He is also pictured above, right.

He's the all-time leader for touchdowns passes in Golden Gopher football history and he passed for more than 2,500 yards in each of his four seasons with Minnesota. He compiled 72 touchdowns over that time to 51 interceptions.

On the other hand, Weber did not win the Heisman Trophy, nor did he win a BCS Championship. And he was not reached for in the first round of the NFL Draft just two years ago.

That's precisely why things are not "totally equal" -- Tebow cost the Broncos too much for them to relegate him to the practice squad, even if Fox feels like the most controversial quarterback in the NFL these days can't become a legitimate NFL quarterback.

Somewhere, though, Merrill Hoge is smiling.

For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter and subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Posted by Ryan Wilson

That's right, we're tracking Tebow's performance throughout the preseason because, well, like a slow-motion train wreck we can't look away. And who knows, maybe this experiment doesn't derail and it has a happy ending. Wait, what's that? You don't care about Tebow? Then what are you doing here?

Wow, that didn't take long, did it? After a decent showing against the Cowboys in Week 1 of the preseason (documented in great detail here), Tebow was relegated to mop-up duty behind Kyle Orton and Brady Quinn against the Bills in Week. Incidentally, Orton and Brady both played well (10/13, 135 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT and 10/16, 130 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT, respectively). Tebow, meanwhile, was 1 of 2 for a whopping 10 yards. He didn't get in the game until the fourth quarter and played just two series.

Now the conversation isn't about whether Tebow will be the Broncos' starter, but if he can beat Quinn out for the No. 2 job -- and perhaps most amazing -- if the team would consider trading or cutting him weeks after it appeared they were ready to install him as their franchise quarterback.

But hey, this in the NFL where fortunes can change in a hurry. As the old cliche goes, the backup is only one play away from being the starter. Which means that, as it stands, Tebow is two plays away from realizing his dream. With that in mind, it's the latest installment of the Tebow Tracker, where we chart every one of his preseason snaps, the result, and what it all means for him and the Broncos in 2011.

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                                                   Play by Play

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Preseason, Week 2: Buffalo Bills
Situation	Down/Distance	Result	Comment
1st series, 10:59 left in 4th qtr.	1st & 10, DEN 20	Tebow handoff to B.Minor up the middle to DEN 24 for 4 yards.	(Note: you can see the entire play-by-play log here.)
	2nd & 6, DEN 24	Tebow pass short left to B.Minor to DEN 34 for 10 yards	This would be Tebow's only completion of the night.
	1st & 10, DEN 34	Tebow handoff to B.Minor up the middle to DEN 37 for 3 yards.
	2nd & 7, DEN 37	Tebow pass incomplete deep right to D.Rosario.
	3rd & 7, DEN 37	(From the shotgun) PENALTY on DEN-Tebow, Delay of Game, 5 yards, enforced at DEN 37 - No Play.
	3rd & 12, DEN 32	(From the shotgun) Tebow sacked at DEN 26 for -6 yards.
	4th & 18, DEN 26	PUNT
2nd series, 4:08 left in 4th qtr.	1st & 10, DEN 6	Tebow handoff to  J.Johnson up the middle to DEN 6 for no gain.
	2nd & 10, DEN 10	Tebow handoff to J.Johnson up the middle to DEN 10 for 4 yards.
	3rd & 6, DEN 10	Tebow scrambles left end to DEN 17 for 7 yards.
	1st & 10, DEN 17	Tebow handoff to J.Johnson up the middle to DEN 22 for 5 yards.
	2nd & 5, DEN 22	Tebow handoff to J.Johnson right tackle to DEN 21 for -1 yards.
	3rd & 6, DEN 21	Tebow handoff to A.Sylvester up the middle to DEN 22 for 1 yard.
	4th & 5, DEN 22	(From the shotgun) Tebow pass short right to M.Willis to DAL 24 for 7 yards.	By the time this is over, he could be the greatest handoff specialist the league has ever seen.
	4th & 4, DAL 24	PUNT

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                                                          Quotes

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CBSSports.com's Mike Freeman: "The consensus in speaking with a handful of team personnel executives when it comes to one Tim Tebow is this: A trade could happen, but it's becoming increasingly likely the Broncos will keep or cut Tebow because the trade interest is dwindling rapidly. The executives portray the Tebow situation as a complicated one. They believe that while the Broncos are not openly trying to trade Tebow, they say that when teams have recently inquired about him, the Broncos haven't been saying he's off the trading block, either."

CBSSports.com's Gregg Doyel: "[Terrelle] Pryor strikes me as another Vince Young or Tim Tebow, and we all see what kind of success Vince Young and Tebow have had, so far, as NFL quarterbacks."

ESPN Analyst (and vocal Tebow critic) Merril Hoge, as paraphrased by ESPN.com blogger Bill Williamson: "On 'SportsCenter' Monday, NFL analyst Merril Hoge (who has been highly critical of Tebow’s ability this summer) said Denver should cut Tebow if it can’t work out a trade with St. Louis. Former Denver head coach Josh McDaniels, who drafted Tebow with the No. 25 overall pick last year, is now the Rams’ offensive coordinator. With budding star Sam Bradford quarterbacking St. Louis, Tebow wouldn’t be more than a backup and special-package player in St. Louis."

ESPN.com blogger Bill Williamson, in his own words: "Don’t expect Quinn to give up his backup spot in the coming days. Tebow played late and he didn’t do much. The fact that Quinn threw 16 passes and Tebow tossed just two shows the team is much more interested in seeing Quinn play than seeing Tebow at this point. Tebow’s arrow is simply not pointing in the right direction as we approach the start of the season."

Denver Post columinst Woody Paige: "Tim Tebow will be the Broncos' starting quarterback this season. ... But The Tebow Thing won't happen until Dec. 11."

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                                                   Action Shots*

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*Last week, there were real, live action shots of Tebow playing in a real, live preseason game (proof here). Against the Bills, Tebow did a lot of standing around, and when he got into the game he was either handing off or getting sacked. We think that is pretty well reflected below. We like to call it: "standing, standing, handoff, sack, fin."

Assuming Tebow is still in the league, please join us next week for another installment of "Tracking Tebow." You know you want to.

For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter and subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Posted by Josh Katzowitz

So much for Tim Tebow as the Broncos starting quarterback. So much for Denver trying to trade away Kyle Orton. While perhaps those were decisions former coach Josh McDaniels would have made, those scenarios didn’t interest John Fox.

Which is why he told reporters today, via the Denver Post, that Orton will be his starting quarterback for Week 1 of the regular season.

Broncos and Quarterbacks

More proof Tebow won't be starter Wilson: Tracking Tebow's preseason NFL Podcast: Tebow vs. Hoge--Who ya got? Tebow laughs at 'U' bounty rumors Don't ask Orton about relationship with Tebow Hoge thinks Orton deserves job over Tebow

This shouldn’t be a huge surprise, because it’s been clear since the first practice of training camp that Orton was many levels ahead of Tim Tebow when it came to performing as a legit starting NFL quarterback (and, you know, when Fox called Tebow “a work in progress,” that wasn’t great news for him either). In the second preseason game, Orton completed 10 of 13 passes to seal his spot.

Meanwhile, Fox said he wasn’t going to name a second-string quarterback any time soon, though it’s clear that it very well could be Brady Quinn, who played well in the second preseason game after he replaced Orton.

Another sign that Quinn could be No. 2 was when the Denver Post’s Jeff Legwold wrote, “The feeling is that if Orton got injured in a regular-season game, it would be Quinn who would go in for him because of his experience. Quinn has shown big-time improvement over last season when previous coach Josh McDaniels rarely worked him in practices -- Quinn called 2010 a 'very, very tough year' -- and may have the most raw arm strength of any Broncos quarterback."

For now, it seems like Tebow has fallen to third on the depth chart, and he’s got many miles to go to catch Orton.

For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter and subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Posted by Ryan Wilson

We joked about it on Friday's NFL podcast and at this point it's almost a cliche: you can't go more than a few hours without mentioning Tim Tebow. Sure, we sometimes bring it on ourselves (take this, for example), but most of the time Tebow news is thrust upon us.

Here's the latest in the unending melodrama that has become Tebow's life, courtesy of the Denver Post's Jeff Legwold: 

"The feeling is that if [Kyle] Orton got injured in a regular-season game, it would be [Brady] Quinn who would go in for him because of his experience," Legwold wrote Friday. "Quinn has shown big-time improvement over last season when previous coach Josh McDaniels rarely worked him in practices — Quinn called 2010 a 'very, very tough year' — and may have the most raw arm strength of any Broncos quarterback."

Tebow must reminisce about those halcyon McDaniels days, back when he was still considered the Broncos future quarterback. The problem: almost every personnel move McDaniels made was the wrong one, and that, along with all the losing, cost him his job.

It also cost Tebow his place in the QB pecking order. And now, weeks after it appeared Orton would be shipped out of town and Tebow would move to the top of the depth chart, there's a chance he could find himself at the bottom looking up.

In fact, Quinn's performance -- not only in camp but in the Broncos' first preseason game against the Cowboys where he outplayed Orton and Tebow -- hasn't gone unnoticed.

"I don't know why it is, or exactly how to explain it, but Brady is much better this year than he was last year," Broncos star cornerback Champ Bailey said, according to the Post. "He just seems much more confident."

Can Tebow make it as an NFL QB?

Judge: Will hard work pay off? Wilson: Tracking Tebow's preseason NFL Podcast: Tebow vs. Hoge--Who ya got? Tebow laughs at 'U' bounty rumors Don't ask Orton about relationship with Tebow Hoge thinks Orton deserves job over Tebow LeBron takes to Twitter to defend Tebow

Obviously, the coaching change has had something to do with that. It also helps that he's out of Cleveland where, let's be honest, quarterback are buried not born (although Colt McCoy could be the guy to buck that trend).

To help right what has been a disappointing career, during the offseason Quinn consulted longtime NFL and college offensive coordinator Paul Hackett.

"Paul went through process of where I was, what had happened, and why it happened," Quinn said. … "[He] believes in developing a quarterback first as a human being. How you live off the field is as important as what you do on the field. He was really good as far as helping me with the psychology of playing quarterback."

If living right is a critical ingredient to making a successful NFL quarterback then Tebow's halfway there. But Quinn sounds like he's up for that fight. And he's not the only one. David Lee, a noted quarterbacks coach who has worked previously with Tony Romo, and Peyton and Eli Manning, is wholly impressed. "I'm telling you what, I don't care what's going on up there, but Brady Quinn is ready," he said. "He's ready to play. Brady Quinn is not going to go away. He is hungry."

Depending on how the rest of the preseason plays out, the Broncos could elevate Brady to the No. 2 job. Stranger things have happened. Like, say, Denver drafting Tebow in the first round.

The saga continues Saturday when the Broncos host the Bills.

For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter and subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Posted by Ryan Wilson

The Broncos host the Bills Saturday in their second game of the preseason, and as has been the case for almost the entirety of training camp, Kyle Orton will likely be the starting quarterback. Orton gives Denver the best chance to win now, although this doesn't preclude Tim Tebow from maturing into a capable NFL quarterback down the road.

(Obviously, ESPN analyst Merril Hoge disagrees with this, but then again, he also thought Brian Brohm would be a better NFL QB than Aaron Rodgers. The takeaway: you can't predict everything; at some point you have to let guys prove they can't play. And while Tebow isn't better than Orton, he'll probably get a shot to be an NFL starter at some point in his career.)

For now, though, it's Orton's job. And while he's happy to talk about the mundane -- what training camp has been like, when things really started clicking for him, the burden of being called a "game manager", etc… -- Orton wanted no part of a discussion involving The Backup Who Shan't Be Named. Here's his response to a seemingly innocuous question about how much coaching and mentoring Orton does with Tim Tebow (via Sports Radio Interviews):

Can Tebow make it as an NFL QB?

Judge: Will hard work pay off? Wilson: Tracking Tebow's preseason NFL Podcast: Tebow vs. Hoge--Who ya got? Hoge thinks Orton deserves job over Tebow LeBron takes to Twitter to defend Tebow

“I don’t do any coaching, I take coaching," he said. "I’m a very coachable player so I take coaching. … I’ll answer any questions that anybody’s got and Tim’s asked me a lot of questions this camp. I’ve been there and can answer them for him and I’ll ask questions of Brady and he’ll ask questions of me. I think we’ve got a good quarterback group. I think a lot of the stuff is overblown. I don’t live any relationship through the media, so people want to come out and [ask], ‘How’s your relationship, how’s this?’ That’s nobody’s business but our own.”

That response is usually reserved for inquiries about a player's private life. In Orton's case, his relationship with a teammate is also nobody's business.

Fair enough. And truthfully, it's the right thing to say if for no other reason than to discourage others from asking it, too (although we doubt it will).

Orton has stated previously that "My first goal is to win over my teammates, to win over my coaches, and I think I'm well on my way to doing that. … My last goal playing quarterback is to win over the fans." And we believe him. Orton doesn't appear to care what fans or media think. And perceptions in August don't mean much anyway. If the Broncos win, Orton will be popular. If they don't, the calls for Tebow will intensify.

Either way, Orton ain't talking about it.

For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter and subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Posted by Ryan Wilson

Two weeks ago, ESPN analyst Merril Hoge took to Twitter to elucidate all the reasons that Tim Tebow was in no shape, form or fashion an NFL quarterback. Hoge's string of tweets ranged from belligerent to unhinged, and while his delivery lacked diplomacy and nuance, the message was pretty much spot on: Tebow isn't better than Broncos incumbent Kyle Orton -- at least not right now -- and Orton gives Denver the best chance to win in 2011.

Hoge followed his Twitter tirade with appearances on ESPN to defend his position, and Tebow was left to answer the same questions that have plagued him since the moment he left the University of Florida: is he an NFL QB? Should he play TE or H-back or even LB? 

After a stellar college career that included Heisman Trophies and national titles, Tebow has had a rough few weeks. This summer it seemed like the organization was set to trade Orton and install Tebow as the starter, but those plans were scrapped early in training camp.

Even after Tebow's preseason performance against the Cowboys (he was 6 of 7 for 91 yards and a TD), head coach John Fox called him "a work in progress."

Hoge has had a week to evaluate Tebow's efforts in Dallas, and much like his insistence that Vince Young would never be a legit NFL quarterback, Hoge is sticking to his guns on Tebow, too.

“You’ve got to look at a couple flaws that Tim Tebow had at Florida and still has in the National Football League that I don’t believe ever get better,” Hoge said, according to PFT. “First of all, his delivery is such an elongated motion that you have to have a complete, clear pocket for him to be successful down the field. If you don’t have that, you’re going to struggle.”

But what about the 43-yard Tebow-to-Matt Willis connection? It was as good a throw as you're going to see in the NFL, right, Merril?


Not so much, it turns out.

“Yes, he completes it, but that’s a perfect setting,” Hoge said. “In the National Football League, almost 50 percent of all throws are under duress. So you’re not going to have that every time.”

Hoge also reiterates that Tebow's long throwing motion is so ingrained at this point that it will be impossible to alter.

“That will never change — that will always be there,” Hoge said. “If they start Tim Tebow, players are not stupid. That coaching staff will have no respect from the players.”

Can Tebow make it as an NFL QB?

Judge: Will hard work pay off? Wilson: Tracking Tebow's preseason NFL Podcast: Tebow vs. Hoge--Who ya got? Hoge thinks Orton deserves job over Tebow LeBron takes to Twitter to defend Tebow

So, yes, Tebow remains a lightning rod for criticism, most notably from Hoge (which is saying something).

CBSSports.com's Clark Judge was at Broncos training camp this week and saw Tebow on the field working on his mechanics an hour after practice had ended. His instructor: John Elway.

"We kind of did everything in that period," Tebow told Judge. "Every type of drop. But more than anything, it was working on footwork and having the same footwork on every single drop. If you have the footwork, you have the same base. And when you have the same base every time, you can have the same throw every time."

While Tebow has heard Hoge's assessment of his abilities, he's not taking them to heart.

"I believe I can play at this level," he said. "I just have to go out there and show it and get consistently better. Every single day I try to get better and work as hard as I can on improving, and not worry about everything else, like what people are saying or what's happening."

Which, admittedly, must be hard to do. If Tebow is looking for a good laugh -- and evidence that Hoge doesn't always know what he's talking about -- he'll enjoy this clip from the 2008 NFL Draft. Hoge tells us that Brian Brohm, the Packers' second-round pick that year, would be better than Aaron Rodgers.

For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter and subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Posted by Ryan Wilson

Well, this is shocking. And by "shocking" we mean "quite predictable and sorta surprised it took this long."

Recently retired Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder might be out of football but he still has opinions. During his six-year career, he weighed in on everything from Ravens' running back Le'Ron McClain allegedly spitting on him to Jets head coach Rex Ryan's mental health.

Now that he's no long affiliated with the Dolphins, Chowder is free to speak his mind about his former club, too. And that's exactly what he did. Appearing on WQAM, Crowder was brutally honest about Miami quarterback Chad Henne.

“He hasn’t really proven anything to me while I played with him and now being on the other side, looking down as a fan, he’s not impressing me, either,” Crowder said, according to PFT. “So he can get on, he has all the tangibles, I want to say, the arm strength, his footwork’s funny, but [with the] arm strength he has, you know he can make some good throws, but the intangibles, the winning the game, the wanting to have everything on his shoulders, like the Bradys and like the Mannings, and wanting to have, be down by five with a minute left on the 20 yard line, let’s see what happens, he doesn’t have that in his heart yet, and I think it will be hard for him to win. But like I said the proof’s in the pudding, so if he comes out this year and going crazy, you know, I’ll have to put my foot in my mouth, but, if I was a betting man, I wouldn’t bet on him going crazy.”

(Note: As soon as the online sports books post the odds on "Henne going crazy" we'll report them here.)

This is similar to ESPN analyst Merril Hoge taking to Twitter to blast Tim Tebow. While it was hard to refute Hoge's message (basically: Tebow isn't a better QB than Kyle Orton, something most rational folks can agree on), the delivery was awkward and, well, sorta mean.

Could Crowder have been more diplomatic when talking about Henne's performance to date? Yeah, sure. Would it have made what he said any less true? Nope.

Now all that's left to do is wait and see if Henne goes crazy this season, either in a good way or by literally losing his mind and caving to the pressure.

In related news: no word on whether Channing was among the crowd heard chanting "We want Orton!" on Fan Appreciation Night.

For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter and subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Posted by Ryan Wilson

That's right, we're tracking Tebow's performance throughout the preseason because, well, like a slow-motion train wreck we can't look away. And who knows, maybe this experiment doesn't derail and it has a happy ending. Wait, what's that? You don't care about Tebow? Then what are you doing here?

When the Broncos selected Tim Tebow in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft, the plan, presumably, was to eventually make him the franchise quarterback. Even with his unconventional style and unorthodox throwing motion, Tebow arrived in Denver a Heisman Trophy winner and national champion. Plus, successful NFL teams aren't in business of drafting backups in the first round.

So it wasn't wholly surprising when word leaked over the summer that the Broncos would trade incumbent QB Kyle Orton as soon as the lockout ended, and the gig would be Tebow's to lose.

And then something happened. Not only was Orton still with the Broncos, he was outplaying Tebow in training camp and ultimately named the starter. In less than a week, Tebow went from "the guy" to "the guy battling Brady Quinn for the honor of holding a clipboard on Sundays."

But Tebow is no quitter. He'll unleash every cliche that pops into his brain when describing his love for the game and his hopes and dreams for the future. With that in mind, we've fired up the Tebow Tracker, which will chart every one of his preseason snaps, the result, and what it all means for him and the Broncos in 2011.

We've also added quotes, videos and photos because, really, you can never have too much Tebow. So let's get to it.

First up: a play-by-play breakdown of Tebow's performance against the Cowboys in the Thursday night preseason opener. He replaced Orton late in the first quarter, during the Broncos' second series. Tebow played the rest of the half and ended the night with some pretty impressive numbers: he completed 6 of 7 throws for 91 yards, and rushed two times for 15 yards.

Sometimes, however, there's more to the story than the box score…

Preseason, Week 1: Dallas Cowboys
Situation	Down/Distance	Result	Comment
1st series, 4:07 left in 1st qtr.	1st & 10, DEN 14	Tebow handoff to L.Ball up the middle to DEN 12 for -2 yards.	(Note: you can see the entire play-by-play log here.)
	2nd & 12, DEN 12	(From the shotgun) Tebow pass short left to D.Anderson to DEN 25 for 13 yards.	Worth pointing out that this was a screen pass. The ball traveled five yards in the air.
	1st & 10, DEN 25	(From the shotgun) Tebow up the middle to DEN 27 for 2 yards.	This was the patented Tebow Sneak made popular at Florida. The difference: he ain't playing Vandy.
	2nd & 8, DEN 27	Tebow handoff to L.Ball to DEN 28 for 1 yard.	Perfect form on the handoff, for what it's worth.
	3rd & 7, DEN 28	(From the shotgun) PENALTY on DAL-B.McCann, Defensive Pass Interference, 12 yards, enforced at DEN 28 - No Play.	Yes, it was PI, but it was an awful decision by Tebow to throw the ball as he got hit. It was a fluttering duck -- he should've taken the sack.
	1st & 10, DEN 40	Tebow handoff to L.White to DEN 42 for 2 yards.
	2nd & 8, DEN 42	Tebow sacked at DEN 32 for -10 yards.	Bobbled snap and about 2.8 seconds later, Tebow was crushed. Timing thrown off from the start but he didn't have a chance.
	3rd & 18, DEN 32	Tebow handoff to L.White up the middle to DEN 36 for 4 yards.
	4th & 14, DEN 36	PUNT
3rd series, 11:19 left in 2nd qtr.	1st & 10, DEN 10	Tebow handoff to  L.Ball left guard to DEN 15 for 5 yards.
	2nd & 5, DEN 15	Tebow pass deep middle to M.Willis to DAL 42 for 43 yards. Pass complete off play action on a "Go" route.	SEE VIDEO BELOW! Nice play-action fake and Tebow's throw beat three defenders.
	1st & 10, DAL 42	(From the shotgun) T.Tebow pass short left to L.Ball pushed OB at DAL 30 for 12 yards.	Another screen pass. (The throw didn't even make it to the line of scrimmage.)
	1st & 10, DAL 30	Tebow handoff to L.White to DAL 29 for 1 yard.	Just wanted to point out that LenDale looks less chubby standing next to Tebow.
	2nd & 9, DAL 29	Tebow handoff to L.White up the middle to DAL 26 for 3 yards.
	3rd & 6, DAL 26	(From the shotgun) Tebow scrambles up the middle to DAL 21 for 5 yards. PENALTY on DEN, Illegal Shift, 5 yards, enforced at DAL 26 - No Play.	Tebow drops back and promptly tucks and run. Takes a good lick from a Cowboys defender.
	3rd & 11, DAL 31	(From the shotgun) Tebow pass short right to M.Willis to DAL 24 for 7 yards.	One-step drop and he hits Willis a little low and behind him. Not awful, not great.
	4th & 4, DAL 24	FIELD GOAL
4th series, 4:34 left in 2nd qtr.	1st & 10, DEN 13	Tebow handoff to L.Ball right tackle to DEN 14 for 1 yard.
	2nd & 9, DEN 14	Tebow handoff to L.Ball left tackle to DEN 17 for 3 yards.
	3rd & 6, DEN 17	(From the shotgun) Tebow pass short right to D.Anderson to DEN 27 for 10 yards. Pass complete on a curl.	Tebow stands tall in the pocket, steps into it, takes a hard hit but completes the pass. Best throw of the night.
	1st & 10, DEN 27	Tebow handoff to L.Ball right tackle to DEN 28 for 1 yard.
	2nd & 9, DEN 28	Tebow pass incomplete short right. PENALTY on DEN-L.White, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at DEN 28 - No Play. Pass was thrown away out of the bounds.
	2nd & 19, DEN 18	Tebow handoff to L.Ball left tackle to DEN 21 for 3 yards.
	3rd & 16, DEN 21	(From the shotgun) Tebow scrambles left end to DEN 34 for 13 yards.	Three-step drop, goes through progressions, and runs up the middle. Reminiscent of halcyon college days.
	4th & 3, DEN 34	PUNT
5th series, 1:00 left in 2nd qtr.	1st & 10, DAL 7	(From the shotgun) Tebow left end for 7 yards, TOUCHDOWN NULLIFIED by Penalty. PENALTY on DEN-C.Clark, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at DAL 7 - No Play.	Another Tebow Sneak. He walks into the end zone untouched but it's called back.
	1st & 17, DAL 17	Tebow pass incomplete short left to B.Davis. Pass incomplete sideline.	Play-action fake, he sits in the pocket for a few beats, rolls left and throws a 14-yard out route 12 yards. Pretty ugly short-hop.
	2nd & 17, DAL 17	(From the shotgun) Tebow handoff to L.Ball left tackle to DAL 14 for 3 yards.
	3rd & 14, DAL 14	(From the shotgun) Tebow pass short right to B.Davis pushed OB at DAL 8 for 6 yards. Penalty on DEN-J.Thomas, Illegal Block Above the Waist, declined. Penalty on DEN-T.Tebow, Illegal Forward Pass, declined. Penalty on DEN-M.Ramirez, Illegal Receiver Pass, declined.	Doesn't give play a chance to develop. Tucks and runs, bounces off a few would-be tacklers, and then tries to throw a pass. He's called for illegal forward pass. This play is a microcosm of his night.
	4th & 8, DAL 8	FIELD GOAL

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                                                   Audio & Video

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Tebow is a lot like Tiger Woods in that no matter how he's playing, he's always the story. Tebow's diametrically different from Woods in that he's never accomplished anything professionally, much less dominated his sport. But golf fans -- and even Tiger supporters -- will tell you that the media coverage can be a bit much. And that mentality (of which we are most certainly guilty) explains why we at CBSSports.com recorded not one but two Tebow-centric podcasts last week:

• Tim Tebow vs. Merril Hoge -- Who ya got?
• AFC West Podcast Preview: More Tebow 

Here's Tebow's 43-yard completion to Matt Willis, during the Broncos' third series. We saw this play live and our first thought was that Tebow fans will be talking about this throw 20 years from now. "Remember than BOMB Tebow threw against the Cowboys in preseason? Man, that was awesome."

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                                                          Quotes

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NFL Network's Albert Breer: "One scout, charged with studying the Cowboys-Broncos game, texted that Tebow 'looked like a No. 3.' He went on to compare Tebow to Charles Barkley. Not Barkley the basketball player. Barkley the golfer. The scout explained, '[Noted golf teacher] Hank Haney couldn't help Chuck's swing. Hell, Johnny U couldn't help Tebow's throwing motion."

Cowboys television announcers before the game: "We were watching Tebow in warmups and I don't know that I've ever seen a guy throw the ball more inaccurately at this level. And I'm not talking starters, I'm talking (No.) 1, 2, 3, 4 (on the QB depth chart). I'm not being unkind here but he was throwing the ball against air. Just receivers, throwing routes, and skipping balls, and high ... his accuracy is really in question."

CBSSports.com's Mike Freeman: "Now, I don't think Tebow is an NFL quarterback, but to rip him for his throws during freaking warmups is pretty insane. The Tebow bashing has reached DefCon levels when that happens. But again, he's not a pro quarterback, and based on what I've seen, he won't be anything more than a backup, if that. It's easy to see why and it leads to a difficult truth and problem: Tebow was extremely ill-served by his college offense and coach."

And to refresh your memory, here's what ESPN analyst Merril Hoge tweeted about Tebow back on August 3 (all sic'd):

"Sitting watching tape off bronco offense from last year! Orton or Tebow? It's embarrassing to think the broncos could win with tebow!!" ...

"QB play is not just about who works hard gives rare rare college speeches or who is a good guy!! Because orton works hard And is a good guy as well. It's about who can play!! I just watched Tebow throw 5 out routes to a wide open WR! He was 1 for 5!" ...

"College credentials do not transfer to NFL raw raw speeches do not work! You must poses a skill set to play! Tebow struggle with accuracy!"

And just so you know that Tebow has supporters in the media…

ESPN analyst and former NFL coach Herm Edwards: “Personally I hope so because I think he’s good for football [with] everything he brings to the table. What he has to do is help himself and become a better player inside the pocket. As rugged as he is, as tough as he is, the leadership skills he has, you have to play inside the pocket because if you continue to play outside the pocket you’re gonna get hit and these are big guys hitting you defensively. He showed some things last night you liked. He moved the team, he moved the chains, and at times he looked like a rookie. And that’s what he is, a rookie quarterback with not a lot of experience.”

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                                                   Action Shots

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(click on images to enlarge)

Please join us next week for another installment of "Tracking Tebow." You know you want to.

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