Tim Tebow: Denver Broncos Cannot Afford to Ignore Fanbase's Love of No. 3 QB

Tim Tebow didn't take the field for the Denver Broncos last night.

However, if you listened to the crowd at Sports Authority Field at Mile High, you would never know it.

The Broncos went on to lose their home opener to the division-rival Raiders and the crowd made it known that Tebow, not Kyle Orton, was who they wanted under center.

The new-look team looked much like the same team we remember from a year ago.

New coach John Fox was supposed to bring an edge to stopping the run and put pressure on the quarterback. The Broncos gave up 190 yards on the ground and sacked Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell only once.

Offensively, things didn't go as planned, either. Instead of gravitating more towards the run, the Broncos ran the ball only 13 times for an anemic 38 yards. Their longest run of the night happened to come from Orton himself on a 13-yard scramble.

Instead, they threw the ball another 46 times, just like a Josh McDaniels offense would, and wound up losing the game. Orton certainly wasn't awful—304 yards, one touchdown, one INT, one fumble lost—but much like last season, he isn't winning football games.

The offense needed a 90-yard punt return from Eric Decker to even make the score look presentable after faltering numerous times in Oakland territory.

Orton was sacked five times, was responsible for two of the Broncos' three costly turnovers and was part of another ugly game we have come to expect these two teams to play. 

He can throw for 300 yards as many times as he wants, but it is hasn't yielded good results for the Broncos. Another 20-touchdown, nine-interception, three-win season is not what this organization needs.

I maintained throughout the summer that the Broncos were in a unique position to fail with Tebow at the helm this year. From a fan's perspective, Tebow instills hope for the Denver Broncos; Orton fails to do that.

With a new coach, new decision-maker (John Elway) and new offensive and defensive philosophy being brought in, there is an expected "transition period" before the Broncos will actually be able to compete in the division.

With Tebow, the fans at least get what they want while the team gets to see exactly what Tebow has. Even if he is losing, the fans will be in the stands and the Broncos will have time to work on his flaws or let it be known that he is not their long-term solution.

Rather than telling the fans Tebow isn't the one, they can show it.

These fans are starving for some form of change. The last time the Broncos were in the postseason was 2005. Five years without a playoff berth is the longest postseason drought this organization has experienced since joining the NFL in 1970.

No team wants to admit to the fans, or to themselves, that the current season is going to be a rebuilding year and better things are coming down the line. But how much longer can the Broncos justify the decision to keep Tebow on the bench without turning off the fans that are still loyal to the team?

Losing with Kyle Orton is a lose-lose situation. He's not a good enough quarterback to elevate the players around him and he's not what the fans want to see.

Losing with Tim Tebow, however, is a win-win situation. Should he lose and prove to be a complete bust of a first-round pick, the fans will at least get to see it with their own eyes. But should he win, or at least flash and show the fans a glimmer of hope—this team isn't very good and the defense will take a year to improve—the organization will continue to see fan interest rise.

With Kyle Orton at quarterback, the Broncos will be stuck in neutral for another year. A three- or four-win season could, in fact, yield them the No. 1 pick, and that means Andrew Luck and John Elway's Stanford connection becomes a legitimate possibility.

The Broncos are doing themselves no favors with Orton under center. They never have and never will.

With Tim Tebow, they can kill as many as three birds with one stone. It is only Week 1, but the fans will continue to cry out for player they want to see most.

It is only a matter of time before the Broncos have no choice but to give in and put No. 15 back on the field.