Vikings Vs. Tim Tebow: 5 Questions With Predominantly Orange

In this week’s 5 Questions, Kim Constantinesco of Predominantly Orange gives us her insights on the Denver Broncos and their sadly under-publicized quarterback…

TVA: The world is torn on Tim Tebow. Some see him as legit and others think this little run of miracle victories has been a fluke. Where do you fall in that? Is Tebow for real?

PO: Aside from being able to walk on water, cure horrendous diseases with a wave of the hand, and turning “Chuck Norris Facts” into “Tim Tebow Facts,” Tebow is simply a second year quarterback. Credit the Broncos coaching staff for adapting their offense to fit his strengths. Credit the defense for keeping the Broncos in games so that the “Mile High Messiah” has a chance to win it in the end. Credit the Broncos offensive line for adapting to the read option. Many more things have turned the Broncos into a winning team than just Tim Tebow. Tebow is a phenomenal football player. Time will tell if he is a phenomenal quarterback. This off season will be the real test since he will be allowed to work with the coaching staff to improve his quarterback skills rather than being “locked out” of the building. The lockout hurt his development as a QB more than anyone. Whether or not he is “for real,” will be decided if the Broncos make it to the playoffs and surprise some teams in post season play.

TVA: The joke around the country is that John Fox and John Elway secretly want Tebow to fail. What’s your take on that?

PO: If Tebow fails, they fail, so I don’t think that’s the case. The two John’s do want to keep their options open, however. After all, Tebow is Josh McDaniels’ guy. Elway and Fox will likely draft a quarterback in a high round so if the Tebow experiment turns sour, they’ve got “cash” in the bank. John Fox always says, “this game is only fun when you win.” Elway undoubtedly agrees. Tebow is 5-1 as a starter so the two higher ups are happy right now.

TVA: Von Miller is having a great season as a rookie. Tell me a little bit about this defensive stud.

PO: Miller came to the Broncos thinking that he would be the “Robin” to Elvis Dumervil’s “Batman.” In reality, the Broncos now have two Batmans. The Broncos took Miller with the second pick in the draft for good reason. He’s explosive and he’s one of the quickest guys to the ball. He is third in the league in sacks with 11 on the season and he has 3 forced fumbles. Miller has made some rookie mistakes in terms of missed assignments and critical penalties, but he’s a huge highlight for this team’s defense. Without Miller, the Broncos wouldn’t be 6-5 right now. That’s without question. Off the field, Miller is a humble guy that looks more like Clark Kent with his buttoned down suits and thick-rimmed glasses. On the field, he’s all Superman.

TVA: Okay enough about guys other than Tebow. We know the Broncos are playing what can kindly be described as a quirky offense with Tebow in there. Can that offense really work in the long-run or does Tebow have to become a real passer?

PO: Because the read option is working so well for the Broncos, Tebow is getting plenty of time in the pocket to go through his reads. He will improve as a QB in time. How much and how quickly is not a question for this season. In the team’s last game, he went 8-for-18 for 143 yards and a TD. He also threw down 67 rushing yards. That’s 210 total yards of offense for the QB, or in other words, what a guy like Mark Sanchez or Andy Dalton would throw for. In terms of yards, he’s keeping pace. What other teams can’t contain, however, is his will to win at the end. The Broncos offense will work in the long run if their defense can hold opponents to 15.0 points per game as they have in the past four weeks.

TVA: Do the Broncos have a chance to get in the playoffs and make a run? It would be quite a story if they actually did.

PO: The Broncos absolutely have a chance to get into the playoffs. They’re a game behind the AFC West leading Oakland Raiders. They are also a game back in the Wild Card standings. Once in the playoffs, anything can happen. Look at the Seahawks beating the Saints last year. The NFL playoffs are like March Madness in that it’s one and done. Anything can happen in a playoff format like that.

For my half of the Q&A, hit up Predominantly Orange.

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