I’ve seen Tebow miss wide open midrange targets by over 5 yards. And really his interceptions ARE sky high. That 6 interceptions was on 271 total attempts and countered with only 126 total completions, that is a number that is frankly pathetic. A big part of his problem is his throwing motions are inconsistent. He’s a knuckleballer, which works great for a pitcher because it’s hard to hit balls that nobody knows where they’re going, doesn’t work so well in the NFL though because it’s really hard to catch balls nobody knows where they’re going.
There’s no factoring in. 46% completions is terrible. With that exact same receiving core Orton was at 59.5%... and got benched. Any QB whose passing is dependent on his own running isn’t a good QB, he’s a running lining up in the wrong spot.
You notice how many teams Testaverde was on? And how many of them were awful? Bad teams make bad decisions and pick up bad QBs.
Actually the primary thing that has changed for the Broncos is Manning is back up to speed. Those first 5 games he wasn’t on page with his receivers, he was holding onto the ball a lot longer than he usually does, and throwing late and getting intercepted. Then he got on page, he’s back to his 1.8, and his throws are on time and accurate. When Manning is on his clock offensive line play doesn’t matter, because he just doesn’t have the ball long enough to get sacked.
Which boils back down to the problem with Tebow. He’s an excellent athlete, which works great in the college game that’s much much slower. In the NFL a QB needs to be smart. The way NFL QBs get rid of the ball in 2.4 seconds is they know where they’re going to throw it before the snap. They’ve read the defense, they know what adjustments their receivers will make to their routes, they know who will be open when. After the snap is merely execution of what they figured out in their brain, dropping back the correct number of steps and throwing to the spot they decided on. Must NFL throws are made when the receiver is still covered, they GET open while the ball flies. Tebow is a college QB, he only throws to guys that are already open, too late and too slow for the NFL.
If he can’t learn to read defenses pre-snap, if he can’t get consistency in his throwing, he’s never gonna make the jump. Now he might still get to hang out in the league for a while, there’s always room at the bottom for mediocre cheap talent, but he’ll never be among the ranks of good QBs, he’ll never be on a good team, and eventually he’ll quietly go away like so many so-so QBs before.
Thank you. I’ve heard other people say the same thing but not as well.
So have I. I've also watched wide open mid-range targets be hit in the numbers by his balls only to drop them. I don't know which I saw more, or which is more crushing but they both hurt.
And really his interceptions ARE sky high. That 6 interceptions was on 271 total attempts
I disagree with you because 6/271 = 2.2 percent of his pass attempts resulted in an interception whereas Peyton Manning has a career average of 2.7 percent pass attempts resulting in an interception. Tony Romo is picked off 2.9 percent of the time.
and countered with only 126 total completions, that is a number that is frankly pathetic.
His low number of total completions is a problem but not one that I see as insurmountable. He's a southpaw. The ball spins differently from what receivers are used to. He'll want to throw left which is the opposite of the way most offensive lines are designed for where the left tackle and guard protect the QB's blindside. Furthermore, when passblockingfor Tebow, the OL also has to runblock. Forming a perfect horseshoe pocket maynot be best for a running QB. The OL needs to pass protect while at the same time creating run gaps. The denver OL never really did anyof that very well from what I remember seeing.
A big part of his problem is his throwing motions are inconsistent. He’s a knuckleballer, which works great for a pitcher because it’s hard to hit balls that nobody knows where they’re going, doesn’t work so well in the NFL though because it’s really hard to catch balls nobody knows where they’re going.
Accuracy will always suffer when passing while running. Beyond that, I would have to review tapes to comment on his accuracy when throwing from the pocket, throwing when running left and throwing when running right.
Any QB whose passing is dependent on his own running isn’t a good QB, he’s a running lining up in the wrong spot.
That's the general criticism leveled at any of the throwing tailbacks that have been filling in at QB for the past 20 years.
You notice how many teams Testaverde was on? And how many of them were awful? Bad teams make bad decisions and pick up bad QBs.
Agreed but my point in bringing up Testaverde was that as long as Tebow stays healthy, he should find some team that can use him no matter how much his detractors want him out of the league.
Actually the primary thing that has changed for the Broncos is Manning is back up to speed. Those first 5 games he wasn’t on page with his receivers, he was holding onto the ball a lot longer than he usually does, and throwing late and getting intercepted. Then he got on page, he’s back to his 1.8, and his throws are on time and accurate. When Manning is on his clock offensive line play doesn’t matter, because he just doesn’t have the ball long enough to get sacked.
From what you said, Manning had the entire preseason and first 5 games of regular season and couldn't get in synch with his receivers. No one places Tebow in the same level as a Manning so, might we cut Tebow a little slack in this regard? Had Tebow stayed with Denver, might he and his receivers have gotten in better synch? Might his OL develop better techniques for protecting a run-first southpaw? We can speculate but we will never know.
Which boils back down to the problem with Tebow. He’s an excellent athlete, which works great in the college game that’s much much slower. In the NFL a QB needs to be smart. The way NFL QBs get rid of the ball in 2.4 seconds is they know where they’re going to throw it before the snap. They’ve read the defense, they know what adjustments their receivers will make to their routes, they know who will be open when. After the snap is merely execution of what they figured out in their brain, dropping back the correct number of steps and throwing to the spot they decided on. Must NFL throws are made when the receiver is still covered, they GET open while the ball flies. Tebow is a college QB, he only throws to guys that are already open, too late and too slow for the NFL. If he can’t learn to read defenses pre-snap, if he can’t get consistency in his throwing, he’s never gonna make the jump.
I do have to say I've noticed that Tebow has "happy feet" when in the pocket. Why that is I could only speculate. Is it something he can grow out of? We'll never know if he doesn't get the chance.
Had he remained at Denver, we'd know by now if he was developing or not. If the Jets trade/cut him, we won't know if these issues can be overcome for another year, or two.