Posted on 08/14/2011 8:08:52 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow has come under attack from sports analysts for being vocal about the role his Christian faith plays in his National Football League career.
Before his second professional season has even begun, naysayers are questioning his confidence that relies on his Christian beliefs.
CBSSports.com national columnist Gregg Doyel recently analyzed Tebow’s interview with Denver Post and said the way he equated his love for God in heaven with tangible rewards on earth amounted to blasphemy. The interview was prompted by reports that Tebow might not begin the season as Denver’s starting quarterback.
Doyel’s analysis angered Tebow’s fans. “Dude, your article bothers me. You know dang well that you painted Tebow as a religious nut-job,” complained one Daniel Liebman. Doyel Friday responded to what he described as “hate mails” from “Tebow fanatics.”
“I didn’t paint him as a religious nut-job. Tebow’s the one holding the brush. I just hung his art on the wall and asked you folks to take a look,” the columnist said.
“Your article on Christian faith is extremely offensive,” wrote another fan, Chance Jones. “I have forwarded my thoughts to many individuals at CBS Sports and will no longer be a customer.” Doyel listed the responses sent by Tebow’s fans followed by a statement defending his analysis.
While Tebow is not known to have responded to criticism, he posted “Joshua 1:19” on his Facebook page Friday. The verse, which reads, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go,” alluded to the charge.
Debi Albritton, a fan commented, saying, “Your faith and your continued show of faith even against all the naysayers is a testament to all Christians. May God bless you and continue to strengthen you against all the adversity you receive!”
Doyel’s article juxtaposed views that suggest “Tebow will never be a good NFL quarterback,” with his confidence in God for his success. “He doesn’t believe it. Which is fine… But check out the reason why he doesn’t believe it,” the sports columnist continued.
Then Doyel quoted Tebow as saying, “Others who say I won’t make it are wrong. They don’t know what I’m capable of and what’s inside me. My family and my friends have been bothered by what’s gone on, and I tell them to pay no attention to it. I’m relying as always on my faith.”
“He’ll make it in this league – for the Bible tells him so,” Doyel remarked. “From the outside it looks like Tebow equates his love for God in heaven with tangible rewards here on earth. And that’s more than wrong. It’s blasphemy.” However, Doyel claimed he had nothing against Tebow or his God and that he considered him the nicest person he had ever met.
Collin Hansen, editorial director of The Gospel Coalition, in a blog Friday, commented on the controversy involving Doyel and Tebow.
“I’m not sure if Doyel knows what blasphemy is, or the seriousness of the charge he’s leveling against Tebow,” Hansen commented. “Tebow could be saying he relies on his faith to withstand criticism and pressure, not that he finds assurance in his future as a starting quarterback because God loves him.”
However, Doyel agrees Tebow’s life has been “grandiose.”
“He was the best high school player in America. The best college player in America, and one of the most accomplished players – one Heisman, two national titles – in history. A first-round draft pick of the Denver Broncos in 2010.”
At college in Florida, Tebow frequently wore biblical verses on his eye black. In the 2009 Bowl Championship Series, he wore “John 3:16” on his eye paint, reportedly causing 92 million people to search the verse on Google. Later, Tebow switched to “Proverbs 3:5-6,” again causing 3.43 million searches of the verse together with “Tim Tebow.”
note to Tim: just tell ‘em you are Muslim, then the press will be afraid of you and won’t bother you anymore.
Lotsa good examples of good sane young Christian gentlemen playing QB in the NFL... Kurt Warner... Sam Bradford... Colt McCoy... Kitna...
Not a single one of them have ever been seen in a screaming blue-faced spitting rage against their own teammates when the scoreboard was against them, or invited themselves into the defense team's huddle for a "pep talk" before a kickoff.
Let him try that with his teammates in the NFL and he just might get what would help him most to become a truly decent guy... non-surgical removal of a couple of personality traits.
This practise can't be wise, nor can they be at full strength, in the middle of summer at training camp.
The left wing crowd took him to task for those comments. Not because he was a Christian.
Born-again Christians have been beheaded, burned alive,drawn and quartered and worse for their personal faith in Jesus Christ. Does anyone honestly think that Tim Tebow is afraid of reporters? Or the Libertarians who troll Free Republic pages, for that matter?
Yeah I get tired of the assumption of persecution. Anybody thinking Tebow is getting ripped because of his faith needs to explain why the exact same sports reporters loved Reggie White and love Tony Dungy. The fact is Tebow has issues with his mechanics, maybe they’ll get better, maybe they won’t but until somebody makes him a starter and he starts winning games it’s all legit criticism.
Really, because all these same guys were OK with Kurt Warner’s faith, and he’s the same color.
We can tell there’s something wrong with how Tebow plays because he can’t manage to win the starting job from Kyle Orton. I mean really, Kyle Orton, it’s not like Tebow is stuck warming the bench behind a hall of famer, he’s stuck behind a guy with a 32-30 record, there’s gotta be something wrong there.
There are dozens of similar cases in the last few decades involving phenomenal athletes who are top-caliber QBs at the high school and college level. But that's the one position where success at the college level has the least correlation to success in the NFL. Let's go back over the last 40 years and list all of the college QBs who won the Heisman Trophy:
1971 - Pat Sullivan (Auburn)
1984 - Doug Flutie (Boston College)
1986 - Vinnie Testaverde (Miami)
1989 - Andre Ware (Houston)
1990 - Ty Detmer (BYU)
1992 - Gino Torretta (Miami)
1993 - Charlie Ward (Florida State)
1996 - Danny Wuerffel (Florida)
2000 - Chris Weinke (Florida State)
2001 - Eric Crouch (Nebraska)
2002 - Carson Palmer (USC)
2003 - Jason White (Oklahoma)
2004 - Matt Leinart (USC)
2005 - Troy Smith (Ohio State)
2007 - Tim Tebow (Florida)
2008 - Sam Bradford (Oklahoma)
I've left 2010 Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton off this list because he hasn't appeared on an NFL roster for a single game yet. I've got nothing against Tim Tebow, but he's in very good company on that list -- among a whole bunch of players whose defining characteristic is that not only are there no NFL star QBs among them (Carson Palmer is the only one who comes close), but the vast majority of them have had no impact on their NFL teams even as long-term starters.
What's even more remarkable about that list is who isn't on it. You can go back over the last 30 years in the NFL, and you'll often find that the top QBs at any given time had not necessarily been top NCAA players or even top draft picks. Names like Dan Marino, Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Warren Moon, Steve Young, Brett Favre and Troy Aikman are conspicuously absent from this list.
With this kind of track record for uncertainty at the quarterback position, I find myself wondering why any NFL team would use a high draft pick on a QB.
I think Tebow brings intangibles.....in the end they’ll say, “All he does is win.”
I’m not a Christian but I recognize irrational “Sarah Palin” type of hatred when I see it.
Bookmark on a winner!
Dude, I will defend Knoxville until it gets real, but I’ll be damned that they slam Tebow. A remarkable man in his own right!
I’m sure that’s the case. I’m just not sure how far “intangibles” can get you in the NFL. Doug Flutie may have gotten more mileage out of his “intangibles” than any QB I can remember, but even he was basically a journeyman who showed only flashes of dominance in a pretty unremarkable career.
What would a God-hater like Doyel know about blasphemy? Those atheist nut-jobs are always trying to use theology against normal people, but they never have it right.
In 2003, Rush Limbaugh was fired from his position as a sportscaster for saying, with regard to Philadelphia Eagles Quarterback Donovan McNabb:
“I think what we’ve had here is a little social concern in the NFL. The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well,” Limbaugh said. “There is a little hope invested in McNabb, and he got a lot of credit for the performance of this team that he didn’t deserve. The defense carried this team.”
That sent the media scum into a grand mal self-righteousness seizure.
But what are they doing here exept being too hard on a new quarterback for being a Christian?
“CBSSports.com national columnist Gregg Doyel recently analyzed Tebow’s interview with Denver Post and said the way he equated his love for God in heaven with tangible rewards on earth amounted to blasphemy.”
What would anybody at SeeBS know about God?
“Joshua 1:19 bump....”
Joshua 1 ends with verse 18.
“I’m not a Christian but I recognize irrational “Sarah Palin” type of hatred when I see it.”
Good for you! I commend your outspoken integrity!
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