(Photo by Eliot J. Schechter/Getty Images)
As all Seahawks fans know, the Seattle team picked up a second, first-round draft pick from the Broncos on what could be considered the most confusing offseason by the Broncos in recent history.
Denver's new head coach, Josh McDaniels, had given up on their young, talented quarterback by disenfranchising him on a play for Matt Cassel, who has one year as a starter of a team with great depth and Pro Bowlers across the field as well as a multiple Super Bowl winning coach calling his plays.
Add to that Brandon Marshall's request for a trade on a contract dispute amongst his personal reasons and the Broncos' refusal to trade him (holdout impending). Lastly, they recently named their starting quarterback for 2009 as—drum roll please—KYLE ORTON!
I could be totally wrong and Orton could have a breakout season. I also heard that pigs are growing wings in preparation for this event. This is a Broncos team full of problems that stem from an utter lack of cohesiveness brought in by their new head coach.
Enough about the Broncos, long story short, the Seahawks are salivating at the possibility the Broncos tank this season and Seattle finds themselves again drafting at the top of day one. With a few issues in their personnel and with two first-rounders, the Seahawks can fill holes with immediate impact players.
How about the quarterback of the future? The first round is a good place to find one, add to that Hasselbeck's injury prone body and age, it's clear it's time for Mora to find the quarterback he wants to groom.
Some have Tim Tebow ranked as high as the second best quarterback in the 2010 draft class. His highlights are impressive, but let's see how he performs from tape in one game.
What better game to evaluate his ability than in the 2008 SEC Conference Championship between the No. 1 and undefeated Alabama Crimson Tide and the No. 2 and 11-1 Florida Gators.
After a full half of play, it is obvious the differences between collegiate and pro play. I thought that the ideology that "spread offense" quarterbacks didn't translate to pro play was an insult to the athleticism of players everywhere.
Tebow shows great athleticism and toughness and is an elusive, bruising runner, but what about his arm and his smarts?
Alabama's defense proved disruptive in this game and forced Tebow to make many errant throws. In the second quarter, he was just 5-of-10 throwing the ball for 82 yards with 56 of those coming from a single play. When watching Tebow's eyes, he appears to focus on his No. 1 option heavily, often forcing the ball into coverage.
Tebow's release is quick and he throws the ball hard, but his vision lags a bit at times. As the game progressed, he began to look more at his second and third options and really hit his stride in the second half making a handful of phenomenal throws including lofting a ball over double coverage and into the extended arms of his receiver, placing the ball where only he could make the catch.
Why would the Seahawks consider Tebow? Look at Mora's other starting quarterback from the past, Michael Vick. Tebow has similar qualities but is more bruising than elusive with good, not great, throwing ability.
Consider Tebow's upside though. With a year or a few as understudy to a Pro Bowl caliber quarterback like Matt Hasselbeck, he could learn how to take the next step from spread offense, option oriented quarterback to a pocket passer that will always be a threat to break a huge gain with his legs.
The tools are there, but he has consistently been an option quarterback in a spread offense. The examples are all there as to why it is so desirable to find college quarterbacks that ran pro-style offenses (see Akili Smith or Andre Ware). The option is not fooling anyone in the NFL, so his status will rely heavily on personal performance next season and especially on his performance at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Tebow is a first-round talent and will slip a little due to the nature of the quarterback class coming out next year (Sam Bradford and Colt McCoy looking to be the first two quarterbacks off the board in 2010) looking ripe for the picking in the likelihood the Seahawks have netted another top 10 draft pick.
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