Tim Tebow: Grading His Return To Denver Broncos QB After the Rib Injury
Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Tim Tebow returned to the lineup Sunday after being held out of the team's last preseason game with bruised ribs.
This week, Tebow took over for starter Kyle Orton at the start of the second half, giving us plenty to analyze and grade.
How well did he play? Did he look sharp?
I've broken down Tebow's play by possession, analyzing his ability to find the open man, his poise in the pocket, and his overall play.
Let's begin at the start of the third quarter, shall we?
First Possession: Could Tebow Hit His Receivers?
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Tebow threw a pair of passes on his first possession under center, on a drive that lasted just three plays.
First, facing a second-and-16 situation, Tebow dropped back and fired a strike to wide receiver Brandon Lloyd for a 14 yard gain.
On the ensuing play, Tebow missed Eddie Royal on a short pass play, forcing the Broncos to punt the ball away.
Tebow looked good on the pass to Lloyd, hitting the open man quite well. On the pass to Royal, he needed a first down to keep the drive alive, and didn't get it.
Grade: B.
First Possession: How Was He Under Center?
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Tim Tebow has struggled all preseason with his ability to receive the football under center, rather than in the shotgun position.
Sunday was no exception, particularly on his first possession. Tebow bobbled every handoff from center, and seemed to still lack the kind of timing needed to take snaps from that position. While he didn't fumble the ball, it sure looked like he came close a couple of times.
Still, he managed to complete a pass, and got passes out on both attempts, despite the shaky handoff.
Grade: C.
Second Possession: Could Tebow Find The Open Man?
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On Tebow's second drive of the game, Broncos head coach Josh McDaniel opted to work through the running game, using play action to buy Tebow time to make his reads.
Much like his first drive, Tebow started his second one extremely well, hitting Matt Willis for a 19-yard gain, then a 12-yard gain on his first two throws. The second throw was particularly strong, as Tebow showed both patience and poise in the pocket, waiting for Willis to run his route through.
But, after three straight runs, Tebow's accuracy waned once again, as he missed Eric Decker twice, on consecutive plays, forcing the punt.
The first two passes from Tebow were excellent throws, but the last two throws showed that he needs to work on his consistency after run plays.
Grade: B.
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Second Possession: How Did He Look In The Pocket?
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Tebow's play on the second possession was largely based in the pocket. He stood and made the throws that needed to be made, rather than scrambling away under pressure. While his scrambling ability is one of his biggest assets, he needs to show he can take a hit and stay in the pocket, and he did that on this drive.
Grade: A-.
Third Possession: The Pick
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On Tebow's third possession, he misfired his first pass, and saw his second one picked off by Cresdon Butler.
Tebow didn't look good on this drive; the object for a quarterback is not to throw interceptions, and this one was a bad one. He looked at wide receiver Britt Davis the whole way, and Butler just jumped the route. It was a bad mistake, but not an uncorrectable one.
Grade: D.
Third Possession: Missing The Mark
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As a whole, Tebow's third possession didn't go well. He missed on his first throw, and telegraphed his pass on the second. Whether the second pass was on target or not remains to be seen; the fact is, he struggled to find his rhythm on this possession.
Grade: C-. He gained points for making the tackle after the pick.
Final Possession: Hitting His Target
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For as inconsistent as he looked on his first three possessions, Tebow looked that much better on his final chance to impress.
First, he hit Eric Decker up the middle for 24 yards. Then, after a pair of Lance Ball runs that put the Broncos in scoring position, Tebow fired a perfect pass to Decker in the end zone.
Tebow hit his receivers in stride on both of his pass attempts on this drive, showing good accuracy and touch on the touchdown pass. He flashed the ability that made the Broncos take him in the first round of this year's draft.
Grade: A.
Final Possession: Poise
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Coming into the season, one of the big knocks on Tebow was that he was too mobile. There were pundits who claimed that when he stood in the pocket to deliver his throws, he became ordinary.
On this drive, the rookie showed that he was more poised in the pocket than many gave him credit for.
On the 24-yard pass to Decker, Tebow stood and delivered a strike, ultimately absorbing a decent hit on the play. On the touchdown, he showed his ability to deliver the ball well with a big blitz coming.
Grade: A.
Overall Performance: Accuracy
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Tebow finished the game 5-of-10, for 72 yards, and threw both a touchdown and an interception.
In short, it was pretty much what you'd expect from a rookie quarterback. The former Gator did improve his accuracy noticably by the final possession, but he was rather scattered (3-for-8) before it began.
Grade: B.
Overall Performance: NFL Quality?
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Tim Tebow's game on Sunday told us a bit about his NFL readiness. After the game, it was clear that he's got some work to do still, as he struggled with his snap-taking under center, and his accuracy was a bit wonky on occasion.
Still, he performed much better than Brady Quinn did, and looks to be the second best quarterback in Denver, and certainly the one with the highest ceiling.
Grade: B-.
Overall Performance: Final Grade
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Tebow's purpose on Sunday was simple: prove he can be a traditional dropback passer in an every down offense. Can he do it? Yes.
He struggled a bit throughout, but that's natural for rookies at his position. He didn't flash his mobility as much, but he showed good poise throughout his appearance.
Overall grade: B. Tebow looked decent, but not great yet. He's got work to do, but it appears he's coming along pretty well.
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