Tim Tebow: The Broncos Keep Winning in Spite of Themselves

Two-for-eight and 68 yards. 

Those are Tim Tebow's passing statistics from Sunday's 17-10 win over the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead. 

Yes, I said win. As improbable as it seemed just a day ago, a professional football team won a game running the option offense. That is almost, but not quite, as ridiculous as a professional football team winning a game in which their quarterback completed just two passes. 

And yet, the Broncos did win the game.

Tebow supporters will say that this, at the end of the day, is all that matters. Tebow's poor mechanics, awful accuracy and inability to read NFL defenses are moot so long as he wins.

The problem lies in the fact that a team can only win in spite of itself for so long.

Sure, running the ball 56 times out of 64 offensive plays will mean that a receiver might sneak behind a cheating secondary once or twice, and that might be enough to beat the Chiefs or the Raiders, but what happens when a real team comes to town? 

Don't misunderstand me: I know the Broncos are not world beaters no matter who's under center, and I certainly won't lay the entirety of the blame for their bad offense at Tebow's feet alone. They don't have a great pass blocking line, nor great weapons at receiver and their defense doesn't scare anyone.

But going forward, after the draft picks have been made, the free agents brought in and the foundation lain for a successful today, how will those Broncos win with a quarterback throwing out of the option? 

And don't tell me that he'll come along in time.

The NFL doesn't stand for National Football Learning, and Tim Tebow isn't going to graduate from remedial quarterbacking to—forgive the expression—a pro-style offense. He's not going to suddenly stop bouncing passes to receivers seven yards away from him. There's no growth chart for this kind of quarterback, because this kind of quarterback doesn't grow. 

Still, I have to admit I'm enthralled by the whole thing. As a lifelong Bills fan, I get a kick out of watching other franchises experience events that will be remembered with equal parts shame and embarrassment.

I remember Wade Phillips resting Doug Flutie for the final game of the 1999 season, only to inexplicably give the wild card round start to Rob Johnson, a lousy quarterback whose best contribution to the Bills was getting hurt and opening the door for Flutie in the first place.

The result of Phillips' gaffe was an uninspired performance by Johnson against the Titans and, of course, the Music City Miracle. 

I also remember Ralph Wilson Jr. hiring Buddy Nix out of retirement to run his team. Nix's second draft with the club was well-received, with Nix drafting perhaps the best overall player in Marcell Dareus and the best CB in Aaron Williams.

But, Nix's very first impression was dubious, when he drafted CJ Spiller, despite already having Marshawn Lynch and an emerging Fred Jackson on the roster. Jackson is on pace to break the Bills' single-season yards from scrimmage record, and Spiller is currently being transitioned to wide receiver because he can't get on the field in any other capacity.

Today, the Broncos are having their own moment of infamy. Years from now, Denver fans will look back on this experiment and cringe, unable to recall why they defended Tebow in the first place. Then the rest of us will laugh at the hilariously epic failures of Tim Tebow, while thanking the football gods that Josh McDaniels wasn't coaching our team when he decided to gamble his reputation on a quarterback from Florida, who many analysts pegged as an NFL tight end. 

But, it's more than just watching the Broncos embarrass themselves by running a college offense for their incapable quarterback. The whole spectacle is a fantastically interesting study of how the sports media covers hype, and the often contentious cohabitation of sensationalistic journalism and rational analysis.

Perhaps the oddest part has been all the instances of the two switching sides. Sportscenter anchors are poo-pooing Tebow's wins with a litany of, "yeah, but," while Dan Marino waxes romantically with such gems as "at the end of the day, he won the game."

You couldn't make this stuff up if you tried. 

It even tempts me to ask the impossible: What if he keeps winning? 

He won't.

I'm a rational human being, and I know with the same certainty that I know aliens aren't going to land on the White House lawn, that Tebow's recent success is unsustainable, and eventually the Broncos good luck will run out.

But, what if it doesn't and three weeks from now Denver has three more wins? 

I suppose that kind of questioning leads the gullible to become UFOlogists.

I'm not one of those people, and I doubt you are either, but a quick survey of the people around you will reveal there are more than a comfortable number of them hovering in your circles.

I suggest immediate confiscation of all tinfoil and related products, and the disavowing of anyone you catch Tebowing without irony. But most of all, enjoy the ride while it lasts, because there will come a time when two-for-eight doesn't cut it, when Tim Terrific is asked to rise up to a level he isn't physically or mentally able to, and the proverbial plug is pulled.

Until then, grab some popcorn and pull up a seat.