Why Starting Tim Tebow Gives Denver Broncos Shot at Andrew Luck

After leading Denver to an improbable comeback win over the Miami Dolphins (if any win over the Dolphins can be called improbable) quarterback Tim Tebow and the Broncos turned back into a pumpkin on the day before Halloween, getting drubbed 45-10 by the Detroit Lions at home on Sunday.

Tebow did manage 235 total yards and threw a touchdown pass, which should make his fantasy owners relatively happy, but his woeful 18-for-39 passing line and the report by Jay Glazer of FOX Sports that the Broncos are revamping their offense to accentuate Tebow's strengths in college again raise serious doubts about Tebow's viability as an NFL signal-caller.

That said, I still applaud the Broncos' decision to start Tebow, and don't have major issues with changing the offense to suit him, although trying to run a college offense in the National Football League is more often than not going to end, um, badly.

The Broncos weren't going to contend for a playoff spot with Kyle Orton under center any more than they will with Tebow, and Denver knows what they have with Orton. A decent, if unspectacular quarterback who would be hard-pressed to lead a squad to double-digit wins.

Tebow, however, is a bit more of an unknown, and given the rabid support he has received from many Broncos supporters, it's a shrewd move from both a football and public relations standpoint to give the kid a shot. If, by chance, he grows as a passer and becomes a viable starter, then the Broncos have a wildly popular face for their franchise, which can only help the all-important bottom line (last I checked, the NFL is a business, and businesses are about making money, as much as such a concept may horrify some).

If he bombs (which is much more likely than him throwing an accurate one), then the hordes of Tebowphiles will be left with nothing to moan about, and the Broncos may accomplish an even more important goal.

Getting back in the "Suck for Luck" sweepstakes.

It's going to be awfully hard to be more awful than the Indianapolis Colts and Miami Dolphins, who the Broncos have already staked to a lead by stupidly winning two games, but Tebow easily gives the Broncos the best chance of the sort of victory by defeat that could land the best quarterback prospect of the last decade in the Mile High City.

So keep Timmy under center (or in the shotgun, or the pistol, or the catapult, or whatever), run that flexbone variant right into the ground, and let's get down to the business of being bad, Broncos!