Tim Tebow Is Not Just Another Rookie For The Denver Broncos

Tim Tebow is not your average NFL rookie; no player in NFL history has ever played less and been talked about more than Tebow. The question is whether or not Tebow deserves all of the hype he is getting. I believe he does.

Here is why.

Tebow may not be blessed with the speed of Michael Vick, or the cannon of an arm Brett Favre has, but Tebow has something that every NFL player should have, heart and toughness.

The NFL is a league full of hard workers, and it is evident that most of the players at the top worked hard to get there. Tebow works as hard as anyone, and his desire to learn and get better may be rivaled by only a few players in the league.

Tebow didn't get this far without possessing the physical talent to succeed as an NFL quarterback. He has the physical tools necessary to be a difference maker in the NFL. Tebow has above average speed for a quarterback, but that doesn't mean he will be running by Ray Lewis on Sundays anytime soon. Tebow does have the ability to be an efficient runner when he needs to be for the Broncos offense and pick up yards when he can't find an open receiver and the play breaks down.

Tebow knows how to put his head down and get the extra yard, which many quarterbacks are unwilling to do for fear of injury, and rightfully so, but Tebow has the strong and sturdy stature to make it happen.

Tebow will not be called upon to be a run-first quarterback even though he possesses the skill to be an effective runner at the position, as he will be counted on to lead the Denver offense down the field.

Tebow doesn't have the strongest arm in the league, but by no means does he have the weakest, either. Tebow showed that he has the tools to complete passes at the next level while lighting up defenses in the SEC to the tune of 2,895 yards and 21 touchdowns during his final season in Gainesville. Tebow also completed 67.8 percent of his passes during his senior season while throwing just five interceptions.

The one area that Tebow holds the edge over all other rookies in is his leadership abilities. In Tebow's four season at Florida, the Gators held a combined record of 48-7, and Tebow lost only two games in his final two season at the school. Following the Gator loss to Ole Miss in the fourth game of the 2008 season, Tebow made his famous press conference speech about how "you will never see any player in the entire country play as hard as I will play the rest of the season, you will never see another player push his team as hard as I will push everybody the rest of the season."

Tebow went on that season to lead the Gators to the National Championship and made good on his promise.

There are few quarterbacks who demand the huddle and have the type of presence that a player like Peyton Manning has, but Tebow can be that type of player in the NFL. Manning is able to do it because everyone knows what kind of work he puts in after practice, studying film on his opponent and learning the game.

I believe Tebow will put in the same level of effort that Manning has put in over the years, and even though he doesn't have the arm that Manning does, he has the smarts to win the way Manning has over the past decade.

Tebow will get some playing time this season in different packages the Broncos may use, but barring an injury to starter Kyle Orton, Tebow will spend most of this season on the sideline learning and waiting for his chance to take over the Denver offense in 2011.

While Tim Tebow was not the first quarterback selected in this year's draft, he will turn out to be the most successful one; and this is coming from a Chiefs fan.