Tim Tebow: Jets Should Continue to Limit Polarizing QB's Playing Time

As expected, Tim Tebow became a popular name at the first sign of Mark Sanchez struggling against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Even though that will be the case throughout the season, the New York Jets are right to limit the backup quarterback's snaps.

Jets head coach Rex Ryan has stood behind Sanchez even when few others have been willing to during the ups and downs of his young career. Part of the reason for doing that is trying to help him gain confidence.

That's why Ryan had quickly shot down any talk of Tebow's playing time being impacted by anything said on the outside. The Associated Press passed along a comment about the situation from the outspoken coach, who said "We control it. The media's not going to drive it."

It's the right approach to have.

Far too often, coaches are influenced by pressure from the media and fans, which leads them to make poor decisions that ultimately have a negative effect on the team.

Rotating quarterbacks more than the Jets already do would fall into the category. If the Jets are going to have any sustained level of success this season, Sanchez needs to play a key role on offense like he did against the Buffalo Bills in Week 1.

Even though New York would love to run a ground-and-pound offense for four quarters, Shonn Greene has illustrated he's not capable of handling that type of load. He's nothing more than an average running back, so a passing game is vital.

Tebow isn't going to provide that. He completed less than 48 percent of his passes during his time with the Denver Broncos and still hasn't attempted a pass with the Jets. He's a gimmick QB and the Jets are using him as such.

Although Sanchez did struggle at times against the Steelers, he didn't turn the ball over as has often been the problem during his time as the Jets starter. He has made strides since last season and needs to remain the starter.

The more involved Tebow becomes in the offense, the bigger distraction it will become. The last thing the Jets need is more distractions, but they knew what they were getting into before bringing him in from Denver.

For the Jets sake, hopefully Ryan stands firm and doesn't give in to the outside pressure.