University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow's gaudy statistics after the Gators smashing manhandling of 5th ranked Cincinnati on Friday evening earned the gridiron great more glory in the local and state media.
But now the question that has been asked since his Heisman winning 2007 campaign will begin to grow louder in the coming months: Can be make it as a quarterback in the pros?
Conventional wisdom, as expressed on Friday night's Fox Sports broadcast by commentator Brian Billick, is dubious. When asked that question during the desultory second half by play by play announcer Thom Brennaman, as the Gators turned the much hyped game into a rout, Billick said there were concerns about Tebow's passing delivery, specifically how low he holds the ball before going into his very deliberate motion.
Brennaman then asked "why?" Billick then compared the UF icon to one of the great NFL passers of all time, former Miami Dolphin Dan Marino, who had one of the quickest releases the game has ever seen.
Brennaman then objected, chastising his broadcasting partner by saying that the two of them see very average to mediocre QB's every Sunday who don't compare to Marino.
A play then interrupted the announcers reverie. I turned the broadcast off shortly after wards and never did hear the former NFL coach's response.
But the exchange demonstrated what any thinking football fan should understand. Nobody knows for certain if Tim Tebow can or will be any good in the NFL. Nobody is even certain how many teams believe he might, which is why his draft status is uncertain with over four months to go in the draft. But history has proven that football "experts" invariably don't have a clue when it comes to determining who will be great and who will be a bust in the NFL when it comes to the signal-callers.
Want proof? Arguably the greatest QB of all time, Joe Montana, wasn't selected until the 3rd round in 1979. New England Patriot star Tom Brady wasn't selected until round 6 in 2000; The aforementioned Marino was the 6th and last quarterback taken in the famous QB filled draft of 1983, behind such stalwarts as Tony Eason.
More proof? Ryan Leaf was considered as good if not better than Peyton Manning coming out of the 1998 draft; Oakland's JaMarcus Russell was the first player selected in 2007 - an outright bust. San Francisco selected Alex Smith first in the entire draft in 2005 - he's trying to resuscitate an ailing career in San Francisco.
So, with all due respect to Coach Billick, Todd McShay, Mel Kiper Jr., and the other "experts" out there, I'd suggest that fans frankly ignore all of their endless discussions about Tebow's pro prospects over the course of the winter. Sure, his Kamikaze running style that was so much a part of his game earlier in his college career must be reduced in the pros, and yes, maybe the "experts" are right about his throwing style being too slow in the professional ranks. (Also Urban Meyer's spread offense didn't exactly prepare Alex Smith at U
As the record shows, it should be fairly obvious by now that when it comes to evaluating the prospects for such an unusual and special a talent as Tebow, NFL "experts" are very much like those executives in Hollywood that screenwriter William Goldman was referring to infamous quote: "Nobody Knows Anything."
