Pats Dispatch Tebow - Hopefully No More "Tebowing" in Our NFL Future!

 Tim Tebow is now gone from the NFL ranks, at least for now - and let us hope forever. While his Xtianoid groupies may be saddened they'll see no more "Tebowing" - the rest of us are delighted. We had had enough of his sanctimony, and also hypocrisy - thanking the Lord and praising him after a 'W' - but delivering nary a tweet after a loss. What? "Satan" caused your losses?

Robert Kraft, NE Patsies'  owner explained yesterday on CBS Early Show why the kid's time was up. He was diplomatic saying: "Well, we've only really ever used two quarterbacks and we already have them." But the real reason as anyone who's into football knows, is that Tebow - aside from some option tricks- didn't have the ball skills to consistently beat NFL secondaries ....or D-linemen.

The Patriots taking Tebow in the first place was somewhat astonishing, given that back in December, 2011 they laid on a big time butt whuppin'. See the image below of one of the many sacks Tebow took at the Pats' hands:


As I wrote on a blog post back then:

"Patriots 41, Broncos, 23. Praise the Lord and pass the humble pie!"

And recall Dan Shaughnessy's (of The Boston Globe's)  remarks the next day:

"A simplistic, throw-back offense isn't enough to exchange scores or keep pace against Patriots quarterback Tom Brady , a thoroughly 21st century man.
Sorry, Tim Tebow. Your time never arrived."

Indeed! Meanwhile, Tom Brady - a real QB - sadistically picked apart an outmanned Broncos' secondary - almost like a necrotic kid ripping off a fly's wings and legs one by one. Brady completed 23 of 34 for 320 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. And he had a 1-yard rushing touchdown, followed by a menacing spike, in the second quarter that put the Pats up, 24-16 after they had once trailed, 16-7.

At the point of that spike, Brady was heard by many fans in the stadium to scream:

"Take that! You Tebow Maniacs!"

Here he is in mid-Yell:

Let's also get straight that many Denver Broncos' fans were themselves embarrassed by the overt, holier-than-thou baloney coming from Tebow. It so turned some fans off that they actually took the time to pen letters to the Denver Post, averring they were changing allegiance - to the Kansas City Chiefs!

Now, that is a pretty gross downer and state of disappointment. Of course, meanwhile, the Colorado Christians were pumping Tebow's saintliness until it stuck in just about every normal person's craw. Thankfully, at the end of the 2011 season, Tebow was sent packing to the Jets, where he became a media darling of the dumbo set, but never really delivered more than a few offensive tricks as the Jests slid back.

Again, it was strange and odd beyond belief the Pats took Tebow, given what they exposed of his weaknesses two years back. One can only surmise that Bill Belichick thought he could somehow remake the guy into a real pocket passer - but in practices likely discovered it was a lost cause.

A Tom Brady, Joe Flacco or Aaron Rodgers, he ain't.

We do wish Tim well, and hey - perhaps a college coaching job or some other similar gig (HS coach in Gainesville, FL) is in his future. But I am fairly certain no other NFL team will pick him up before the season begins - which is tomorrow,  but technically not until Sunday when most teams face off. While Tebow did win the Heisman, his tricks simply weren't adequate to spell success in the harder hitting, more remorseless NFL. When one of is glorifiers writes his autobiography that's what they ought to keep in mind.

Tebow Comes to Senses- Cancels Out of Hate Church Appearance

Evidently, the eruption of the blogosphere yesterday concerning Tim Tebow's planned speech at a hate monger Fundie church has caused him to cancel out.

According to press reports this a.m..:

"Tim Tebow has backed out of an appearance at a Baptist mega church in Dallas run by a pastor who has created controversy with his remarks about gays and other faiths. "


According to an AP press report, Tebow tweeted Thursday that "new information has come to my attention" - meaning he probably got wind of what was on my blog and others, concerning the hate mongering Robert Jeffress and his Dallas First Baptist Church of the Hell Mongers.

According to the AP release, Tebow wrote:

"I will continue to use the platform God has blessed me with to bring Faith, Hope and Love to all those needing a brighter day,"


The report added:

"The Rev. Robert Jeffress, First Baptist's pastor, confirmed in a phone interview that Tebow called him Wednesday night to cancel.  Jeffress said Tebow told him he would like to speak at First Baptist at some point, but "he needed to avoid controversy right now for personal and professional reasons."

Trouble is, Tim, whenever you DO decide to appear at that Hellfire, hate fest church, everyone will find out once more - news travels fast these days - and you will be right back where you are now, offering excuses. The best plan therefore is to just steer clear of Big D, or at least that particular preacher who is undoubtedly a Pastor Mike clone!  (Pastor Mike must be crying right now about having to abort his trip to Dallas to get new ideas for hate screeds.)

On the positive side, though I'm an atheist, I have to give kudos to Tim for his charitable work with disabled kids. My theory is that he recognized all his accumulated charitable capital is likely to be squandered if he appeared at a hate monger church, irrespective of the topic. It's the atmosphere and the people, Tim, and remember that next time you hanker to make an appearance there!

At least this time, the better angels of Tebow's nature prevailed, which is a lot more than can be said for Pastor Jeffress, Pastor Mike, Terry Jones, Fred Phelps and their assorted half-assed clones!

Tim Tebow Making HUGE Mistake Going to Dallas' HATE Church

 Hateful fundies are all in a dither, and as one loon wrote on his blog "packing bags to go see and hear Tim Tebow in Dallas in April."   Yeah, right! Just don't let the HATE entrance door bang you in the balls on the way in, Sparky!

As reported in The Denver Post this morning ('Tebow Must Audible Out of This Play', p. 1B) Tebow plans to make an appearance April 28 at the First Baptist Church of Dr. Robert Jeffress.

The Post writer is dismayed by Timmy's obnoxious choice of venue, and cites the words of Gregg Doyel of CBS Sports:

'Tim Tebow is about to make the biggest mistake of his life. Tebow has agreed to speak at a hateful Baptist preacher's church, an EVANGELICAL CRETIN named Robert Jeffress, who does the work of the lord sort of like Westboro Baptist in Topeka, Kan., does the work of the lord."

Doyel goes on to note that while Jeffress isn't quite as bad as Prime Hater Fred Phelps of Westboro (i.e. picketing the funerals of fallen soldiers with signs of "HELL BOUND!")  he is still pretty bad.  He believes, like another "pastor" we all know who ran a rancid hate blog until he was chased off by death threats, that:

- AIDS is an exclusively 'gay disease' so provides a basis for the military to exclude any homosexual,

-Jews, homosexuals, and Catholics are all going to "Hell"  - some (e.g. Jews and homosexuals) faster than others.

- The Catholic Church is a "Satanic cult"

- Islam is a religion that "promotes pedophilia"

Now where have we seen all this bollocks before? Hmmmm.....let me think. I think the primary clue is a a blog that once bore the giveaway initials "P. M".  A blog (and linked Facebook page) that once idiotically proposed all atheists be placed on lists "similar to sex offenders" so people that are godly would know where the "Satan loving" reside.  Of course, once the atheist web got hold of that, they beseiged his sorry ass and within 2 nanoseconds he high-tailed and shut his blog down.

Anyway, I understand this same doofus plans to travel to Big D to see Tebow, and likely hobnob with Jeffress. Well, what can I say? I guess cretins of a feather flock together! 

Meanwhile, the D. Post author of the original column remarks:

"I simply can't imagine Tebow knowing the stuff that Jeffress has said and Tebow saying, 'Yep, that's where I want to go!'"

The author adds:

"It simply doesn't make sense he would risk all he's done just to make one speech."

Yeah, but see, in many ways money can do a lot to wreck supposed principles! Even for a fundie!

But perhaps the most salient words are the ones that ended the piece:

"After a season on the sidelines, Timmy, the ball's in your hands! Better not fumble this one!"

Indeed!

SB Players: Try to keep 'God' Out of Football This Week!

Tim  Tebow walks away with head down after the 45-10 thrashing by the NE Patriots last year. Why didn't he hold his god responsible for that debacle? If you're going to praise your deity for winning, ought you not critique it for losses? Especially of the blowout variety?

Today is SuperBowl Media Day in New Orleans, and if previous Media Days are any example – players on both teams will spend more time blowing hot air than talking about serious football. Already a number of bollocks story lines have emerged in the media (newspapers, and NFL Channel) to do with which scriptural verses tattooed on Colin Kaepernick he will kiss after each TD, and whether Kaepernick’s God will lead him to a SB win over Ray Lewis’ God.

Football fan blog readers may recall after the Ravens beat New England in the AFC championship, Ray – beside himself with emotion- pounded his chest and with tears streaming in his eyes, blurted: “This shows God is GREAT! He can do ANYTHING! When we put our trust and faith in Him great things happen! And He said, 'no enemy can stand against thee!'”


Maybe, but I seriously doubt any “God” worth his salt is interested in a game created by mammalian bipeds and played by more massive male bipeds for a lot of money. I believe it was Tim Tebow who first learned that lesson a year ago when his ‘God’ couldn’t save him or his then team (Denver Broncos) no matter how many times he wore John 3:16 on his eye-blackener or Tebowed. Where is Timmy now? Well, in a kind of limbo after a so-so season with the NY Jets.


Many of us who blistered Tim, the inveterate god monger, feel tremendous vindication now a year later. This despite certain clueless pundits like Michael Medved, who penned a Wall Street Journal op-ed : 'The Secrets of Tebow Hatred', castigating all churlish imps who would dare rain on the Great One's parade while a league "stocked with millionaire wife beaters and dog killers" received little or no opprobrium. Medved ultimately asked: "So why should Tim Tebow draw more resentment than other religious athletes?" and concludes "he's too apparently flawless to draw much sympathy from the uninitiated."


Actually, no. It was because he never let up nor was he consistent. While he attributed each Bronco TD, win or minor success, gain to his god, he never also acknowledged his god when he was brutally sacked or the Broncs were lashed with a loss, like their 45-10 thrashing at the hands of New England in last year’s AFC playoffs. So what then? The Devil was responsible for the losses? Oh wait, no…Tim blamed himself. Yet he was too myopic to see it was his making plays at the right time that led to wins, not any interference by some external supernatural hobgoblin.


Was the land then filled with godless, cynical "Tebow haters"? Not really. The fact is most of us didn't "hate" Tim Tebow. Hell, we hardly knew him personally. What we hated was the media hype and schmaltz surrounding him and the unthinking nature of his fans and groupies who appeared to conflate occasional luck on the football field with some type of divine intervention or "miracle" - when a small dose of critical thought ought to lead them to ask 'Why this time and not next time?' Why praise the ‘Lawd’ for wins, but not blame him for defeats?

We also detested how the evangelical whackos in the country exploited Tebow to their own ends to push their agendas. Such as Colorado Springs -based 'Focus on the Family' which featured a "John 3:16" ad in the midst of one game.

The fact is, even IF a powerful supernatural force or Being did exist, by its very nature it would have no more interest in human football games or their outcomes than any normal human would have in two packs of hyenas having a pissing contest (to see who can mark the most territory) in the middle of the Mala Mala Game preserve in S Africa (as featured on a recent NatGEO ‘Wild’ documentary.

Let us hope that Ray Lewis, Colin Kaepernick and all the other would-be god mongers on the two SuperBowl teams process that as opposed to filling the airwaves with god talk or other baloney today.

And, if the Ravens do win on Sunday - against a tough 49er team-  let's hope Ray Lewis in his excitement (given this is his last game) gives at least as much credit to his team mates for making critical plays as his imaginary friend in the sky!

Footnote: (1/31/13):
--------------------

It appears I may be the "outcast" in my views, since the NFL appears to actually the National FAITH League, according to the report in the latest Sports Illustrated ('In the Fields of the Lord', Feb. 4, p. 38). Evidently what was regarded as absurd 50 years ago (pro football players being "cozy" with Xtianity) is now regarded as a norm! Faith huddles and prayer services occur before each game, Chaplains are assigned to each team, and noisome bible studies abound.  According to the piece:

"At the Superbowl in New Orleans this Sunday, players on both teams will pray in small huddles on the sidelines, before every quarter."

Good grief! It's the Super GOD BOWL!

Interestingly, all these god-mongering bozos aren't able to transfer their godism into moral practice. According to the same article,  god-mongering "athletes generally score lower than the general student population in test on moral reasoning." It appears this can be extrapolated to the NFL players as well.

All of which shows me the need to clean out the peculiar American religious infection is needed even more than ever before. Atheist ball players anywhere? You need to infiltrate the NFL and get it back to normality! Ah, but then this whole ridiculous god-crazed nation needs to be brought back to sanity!

A "God Glut" in the US of A? You Better Believe it!

"We have God on our dollars, God in our pledge of allegiance, God in our congress...God in our public schools, a few of which cling to creationism. God's wishes are cited in efforts to deny abortions to raped women and civil marriages to same sex couples. In our country, God doesn't merely have a place at the table...He or She is host of the prayer heavy dinner party!"

-Frank Bruni, "The God Glut", New York Times, p. A25 today

Columnist Frank Bruni's thrust in his piece is that America is so far God-gone in its collective brain that there isn't "enough room for doubters".  We cavalierly use the word "God" more than the people of any other nation, but pay little heed to any substantive meaning of the word, as if the noun alone confers reality. As Bruni puts it:

"We Americans aren't careful at all....and our religion suffuses arenas where its claims should be carefully measured."

Indeed. But the heart of the problem is that too many Americans never bother to parse the G-word when they use it, or the assumptions behind it. Many of these concern the attributes assigned to their deity. If these attributes are in conflict (for example, omnipresence and omnipotence) then the "god" that results is inchoate, a farce for the febrile-minded.

It was Philosopher Mortimer Adler who first identified the attribute of “aseity” as the most fundamental for any putative divine being. Adler translated his coined term as synonymous with non-contingence, i.e. depending on nothing else for existence. In many respects, aseity trumps all other properties when it comes to identifying a divinity or trying to assign properties whereby a God can be defined consistently.


For example, aseity extended under certain conditions enables us to eliminate certain types of deity. Consider, for example, a proposed pantheistic deity which some define as being co-extensive (or “coterminous”) with the physical universe. But philosopher Alan Watts in a brilliant verbal tour de force showed this isn’t a credible deity. As he put it (‘Behold the Spirit’) if one subtracts the entire physical universe from the pantheistic deity then one arrives at zero. In this case, the pantheistic deity is effectively contingent on the physical universe for its existence. But if it is contingent on the physical universe then it lacks aseity or non-contingency.

Interestingly, a dualistic deity is also prohibited, including one which posits a reality controlled or governed by its deity which splits into absolute evil and good portions, or parts. Thus, an abiding reality which includes an absolute evil presence called “Satan” – presumed to govern the domain of Earth, and an absolutely good entity ‘God’, presumed to govern everything outside Earth, falls under the weight of non-contingency.

The reason is that in such a dualistic good-evil “theo-verse” the putative deity (“God”) becomes dependent on an absolute evil entity “Satan” to do its afterlife bidding in herding “sheep” and “goats” - the former to “heaven” and the latter to “hell”. The problem is, as Anselm once noted, that once credence is given to such a split spiritual reality, the “God” within it is no longer non-contingent. Hence, it is more a cartoonish convention or construct.

Can aseity be assigned such that an entity called “God” can truly be imaged or encapsulated? Perhaps, but more likely not very likely! The reason, as Alan Watts has observed, is because to envisage such deity requires a perfect balancing act between fixity and fluidity. In fixity one seeks to possess or fix a definition or image, but this borders on idolatry. (A perfect example is the fundie who clings to every word of his bible as the god-given absolute truth). In fluidity one admits to the constant motion and ephemeral nature of reality around him but in this case no imaging is possible because all the images flowing are also fleeting.

This has led Watts to finally conclude (‘The Wisdom of Insecurity’, p.27):

“The incredible truth that what religion calls the vision of God is found by giving up any belief in the idea of God. By the same law of reversed effort, we find the infinite and the absolute, not by straining to escape from the finite and relative world, but by the most complete acceptance of its limitations.

Paradoxical as it may seem, we likewise find life meaningful only when we have seen that it is without purpose, and we know the mystery of the universe only when we are convinced that we know nothing about it at all. The ordinary materialist fails to reach this point because he does not follow his line of thought consistently to its end.”


The last statement is particularly significant, in that it discloses the true materialist is actually a genuine spiritual thinker, provided he does follow his line of thinking “consistently to the end”. He may then likely be far more spiritual than his fundie cousin because he is less likely to grasp or clasp an idol …..whether in the form of a special “salvation” formula (Watts also warns against clasping too closely to Christ using his own words) or embodied in the words (often mistranslated)  of a book taken to be absolute symbols of truth.

Ironically also, the materialist may well be closer to a generic divinity orientation –  by the simple expedient of using the law of reversed effort in giving up any belief in the idea of God! One can then argue that if more Americans employed reversed effort vis-a-vis "God", they'd surrender their rank certainty when they use the G-word and even be less inclined to do so. In that case, we'd see a welcome retreat in the overuse of the G-word whether in the halls of congress, at public school sports events, or from insufferable NFL players who believe their spectacular catch was due to intervention by the "Almighty".

On that note, let's also be thankful that Tim Tebow is now more a marginal sideline sideshow for the NY Jets than driving a Godly-Sports movement in an already God-besotted nation!

Mind blowing, eh?

A Final, Unceremonious End to "Tebowmania"?

With the signing of 4-time Pro-Bowler, and 1-time Superbowl winner Peyton Manning, Denver General Manager John Elway has made a clear signal of his intention to move the Broncos beyond "Tebowmania". As DPost columnist Mike Littwin put it in his column today, Elway showed he could put Tebow and his mania in the rearview mirror merely by going after Manning. Getting Manning meant a colossal win, and even not getting him would be 'okay' because it sent a clear message to Tebow to look for greener pastures.

Now, with Manning scheduled today to be presented with his new Bronco uniform (No. 18 - bequeathed by the Broncos, originally retired with their first QB), and sign on the dotted line for $90 million for 5 years, Tebow's path out is esssentially a formality. Most likely destination? Jacksonville, FL, a northern Florida conservative city - putatively in the "Bible Belt", and barely 100 mi. from Gainesville and the Univ. of Florida where Tebow played college ball.

None of this sits well with about 20% of hard core Tebow fans in Denver, many of whom have vowed now to drop the Broncs as their team and go looking for Tim's new one. They're pissed at the way Elway and owner Pat Bowlen have treated him, and also vexed at being left with No. 15 Tebow jerseys that they will likely now have to either mothball as an ancient relic, or donate to Goodwill.

But the question persists: Is this the unceremonious end to Tebowmania?

Not necessarily! If Tim lands in a conservative Bible Belt football town like Jacksonville, expect a full -throated endorsement and resurrection. Tim will once again become "God's Quarterback" as he was hailed in Denver after leading them to the promised land of their first playoff game in over 6 years. Tebow mania will also be fueled to proximity to his alma mater, with tens of thousands of Gator fans pouring in to watch each home game in Jacksonville. It will be a bonanza for the Jags, their fans and their new owner, Khan.

Meanwhile, Tebow's maniacal backers in Denver will emit fumes of envy as they watch their boy perform and "Tebow" endlessly after each play, but no longer in Bronco orange and blue.

What about Denver, did they make the right deal with Manning? By any stretch it's a bet (on a 36 year old who's seen better days after four neck surgeries) that most wouldn't take. As reported in today's Denver Post (story, p. 1A) the Las Vegas Hilton sports book has now changed Denver's odds of winning the next Superbowl from 60 to 1 to 10 to 1. But that doesn't mean the lower odds will make their path any easier!

They have a more brutal schedule than last year and will not only have to face powerful defenses in the Falcons, Ravens and Steelers, but defenses that are now operating at full capacity - as opposed to having half their players injured or at half strength as when the Steelers faced Denver in the first playoff game last season (which Denver pulled out with Tebow's last minute pass to Demaryus Thomas).

My bet is still that Manning will be out after his first big hit. I simply don't believe he can take it, whether it arrives from Baltimore's Terrell Suggs or the Steelers' James Harrison. Then, after that, the Broncos SuperBowl odds will likely go back up to 120:1 with some unheard of backup QB taking the reins and Tebow long gone. Likely making the Jags a contender in the new season.

Meanwhile, Pat Bowlen and John Elway will realize what a reckless gamble they made on a former great QB who they only saw pass a few footballs in NC, and under no pressure, while taking no hits.

Tim Tebow's Train Crashes to a Final Wreck

Top: Patriots' defenders surround Tebow leaving him unable to break free to pick up a first down. Below: Tim walks away with head down after the 45-10 thrashing. This is it for the Tebow Train, at least for another year!

Last week, after the Denver Broncos' "miracle" worker QB Tim Tebow fired an overtime TD pass to Demaryus Thomas to beat a semi-crippled Pittsburgh Steelers team, all the Tebow groupies came out in force as predicted. The NFL Channel dominated with 88% of its special program time devoted to all things Tebow, including a "Tim Tebow special" on the quarterback's success this year. ESPN wasn't far behind and the newspapers must have racked up over 2 million inches in Tebow column space.

At The Washington Post, none other than former senior editor Sally Quinn actually wrote a fairly serious exploration of the possibility that Tebow might be "the Second Coming of Christ". After all, if he could engineer such marvelous game endings, plus do all his charitable work, perhaps he was Jesus Christ but now reincarnated in the form of an NFL football quarterback.

Not far behind, Michael Medved penned in a Wall Street Journal op-ed yesterday: 'The Secrets of Tebow Hatred', castigating all those churlish imps who would dare rain on the Great One's parade while a league "stocked with millionaire wife beaters and dog killers" received little or no opprobrium. Medved ultimately asks: "So why should Tim Tebow draw more resentment than other religious athletes?" and concludes "he's too apparently flawless to draw much sympathy from the uninitiated."

Meanwhile, a small stable of truly elite NFL quarterbacks (e.g. Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Eli Manning) waiting in the wings to play in this weekend's playoff games - had to listen and watch as endless hour after hour of prime broadcast time was devoted to Tim Tebow. Ultimately, one surmises that before the New England Patriots game with the Broncos last night, several thousand emails or tweets landed in NE QB Tom Brady's devices imploring him: "Please, Tom! Put an end to the hype behind this m***f*cker!" And so he did!

Tossing 6 - count them SIX - touchdown passes before the game was four minutes into the second half, tying an NFL playoff record, Brady and his Patriots routed the forlorn Broncos 45-10.The major ass-whipping, accompanied by hoots from the New England crowd and mocking chants of "Tebow! Te-BOE!" put a gnarly finish on the game's ending while dashing the hopes of the Tebow faithful that another miracle was yet in the works and he'd somehow pull one out with his "Lord and Savior" on his side. And no, to a Jesuit opinionator (Fr. J. Martin) in yesterday's WSJ, even if the Tebow led Broncs had somehow won, it wouldn't have "decimated atheism in the Rocky Mountain region". It merely would have meant the Broncos and Tebow had more luck or Zebra's calls on their side than anyone might have imagined!

In other words, the end had an absolute finality to it that, mercifully, should finally quell the continual jabber about Tim Tebow and his ways while giving short shrift to so many superior QBs. But what did one behold when the Broncos were on offense? Only pathos and chaos! They began - even after winning the coin toss- by "deferring", which was equivalent to allowing NE to spot them 7 pts, which is what happend. Brady basically said: "Oh yeah? You're going to defer? Okay, we will just go and take a seven point lead!" Which they did.

Over most of the Broncos' possessions, meanwhile, they kept running a foolish option play which the Patriot defenders always sniffed out and halted - usually for negative yards. Meanwhile, by the middle of the third quarter, behind by 35-7, the Broncos had racked up 13 negative plays (that is, plays for negative yardage) with many made by Tebow himself. Unlike last week, when he played with his WRs like Eddie Royal and Demaryus Thomas against a feeble secondary - with outstanding Ryan Clark missing from action- NE was whole and they didn't miss a beat. None of the Broncos receivers were able to get open enough to make big plays. Tears meanwhile filled bars and sports pubs from Pueblo all the way to Denver on the I25.

Is the land now filled with inveterate, cynical "Tebow haters"? Not really. The fact is most of us don't "hate" Tim Tebow. Hell, we hardly know him personally. What we hate is the media hype and schmaltz surrounding him and the unthinking nature of his fans and groupies who appear to conflate occasional luck on the football field with some type of divine intervention or "miracle" - when a small dose of critical thought ought to lead them to ask 'Why this time and not next time?'

We also detest how the evangelical whackos in the country have exploited Tebow to their own ends to push their agendas. Such as Colorado Springs -based 'Focus on the Family' which featured a "John 3:16" ad in the midst of last night's game. Have they no shame? Has Tebow no shame for permitting himself to be used to further others' agendas? The point is what we detest is not Tebow personally but allowing himself to be used for such blatant hypocritical posturing and nonsense, even as his many fans dote on him but do so while lacking any balance or proportion or judgment. This is what has driven many of us literally nuts, and why we hoped someone would finally put a lid on it.

Fortunately, Tom Brady did last night, and in stunning fashion. Yes, mayhap Tim will be resurrected next year. But at least for about eight months we shall hear no more about his "magical plays", his special whatever it is, or "miracles" that "bind the faithful".

All genuine miracle workers, alas, need them to keep occurring in order to be marked real...and they can't fail when the biggest obstacles emerge (such as 45-10 leads). Unfortunately for Tim, his miracle train crashed last night -- running into a determined New England team itself committed to ending the vacuous nonsense and hype....at least for another year!

AAAAARGH! NOT TEBOW ...AGAIN!

Tebow, after the game, jacked up like a rat on crack. Let him enjoy it because this time next week he will be crying into his good Book!


Well, I guess I spoke- wrote too soon. I predicted an end to "Tebow Mania" and the unpatented "miracles" of Mr. God Boy Tim Tebow, but seems I was premature, e.g.

http://brane-space.blogspot.com/2012/01/gratifying-end-to-tebow-mania.html

But seems that like a vampire that won't die, even after "Igor" drives a stake into him for the nth time, Tebow Mania has once again been resurrected, thanks to the Broncos unlikely victory over the hard-nosed Pittsburgh Steelers yesterday, 29-23 with the winning TD coming in overtime on an 80 yard pass play from Tebow to Demaryus Thomas. Wild doesn’t begin to describe it. The play took 11 seconds and was the quickest ending to an overtime in NFL history.

The Steeler defender who got burned, Ike Taylor, is inconsolable...as well as he should be along with the other corner and safeties. They were caught by surprise!

Thomas hauled in a high play-action pass at the Denver 38, stiff-armed Ike Taylor, and then outraced Ryan Mundy to the end zone. Tebow, who looked as startled as everyone else, chased down Thomas and knelt on one knee - a gesture known far and wide these days as Tebowing. Then he pounded a fist in triumph and took a victory lap.

According to Tim Tebow:

“When I saw him scoring, first of all, I just thought, 'Thank you, Lord,’ Then, I was running pretty fast, chasing him - like I can catch up to D.T! Then I just jumped into the stands, first time I’ve done that. That was fun. Then, got on a knee and thanked the Lord again and tried to celebrate with my teammates and the fans.’’

But Tim, why didn't you hold your same Lord to account for all those losses? This is the question many of us want you to answer! Shouldn't you shun the Lord in a loss if you "praise" him for a win? If you praise him for loss or win, then what does it matter if you win or lose? And WHY should the "Lord" care two mites?

Prodded by John Elway to let the ball fly and pull the trigger , Tebow acted as if the last three weeks never happened, lifting the Broncos to their first playoff win in six years. And, unlike Elway, who lost his first postseason start - to the Steelers at home in 1984 - Tebow is 1-0 in the playoffs. Is this a miracle? Hell no!

This was no "miracle" but once again, the Broncos by pure happenstance - meeting a team with too many serious injuries to compete - like they did earlier against Minnesota (Adrian Peterson the top RB out with an injury) and the Chicago Bears (QB Jay Cutler and Running back Matt Forte out with injuries).

The Steelers (12-5) lost because of being injury-depleted on both offense and defense! On critical defense they lost Brett Keisel and Casey Hampton during the game, key linemen. Another defensive tackle, Starks, was in and out of the game but mostly out. Ryan Clarke a top secondary man wasn't able to play because of having sickle cell anemia which worsens at high altitude (Denver is a mile high). On offense, Roethlisberger was gimpy from a high ankle sprain, top RB Rashard Mendenhall was out, and Center Pouncey was also not able to play. All bad omens and had I known all these injuries would materialize I'd never have forecast a Steeler blowout.

But, the Broncos (9-8) are now heading to New England for a second-round game against the top-seeded Patriots on Saturday night. They lost the earlier bout big time, and I forecast they will again.....Finally, finally putting an end to this Tebowing, Tebow time, Tebow Mania bullshit.

And if they DO win, by some remote freak chance, I will "Tebow" in my front yard for 10 minutes every morning until Superbowl Sunday! Oh, and take a photo of me doing it and post it!

A Gratifying End to "Tebow-Mania"

Miracle Boy Tim Tebow upended by Kansas City Chiefs' defenders this afternoon. Look for Tim and his Broncos to get stomped next week by the Steelers.


Despite the shellackings administered to the Tim Tebow-led Denver Broncos the past two weeks, by the New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills respectively, Tebow-prayer groupies, Jesus freaks, assorted holy rollers and their hangers-on were out in force today at Sports Authority Stadium at Mile High in Denver expecting another miracle. They firmly believed Tebow the Bible boy would lead them into the promised land of the playoffs for the first time in over a decade.

Denver sports writers, mainly Tebow groupies, were just as delirious with the likes of Woody Paige predicting a mini-blowout, and others (like Dave Krieger) predicting more modest victories. It appears none of these elite writers looked behind the numbers and possibilities to see a Tebow ambush by the Chiefs waiting in the wings. I did and it was based on pure logic. Two weeks ago the same Chiefs had defeated the previously unbeaten Green Bay Packers (now 15-1), by 19-14 by applying a fierce "man under" press coverage on defense (to keep Aaron Rodgers contained) while engineering a do enough offense with no turnovers.

I saw no reason why, if they could do such a number on the NFL's best team, they couldn't do the same on Tebow and the Broncos. As it turned out they did, 7-3, which sounds more like a baseball than a football score.

Though billed in Denver as the "Orton Bowl" - because for the first time it featured a previously -released quarterback (Kyle Orton, dumped by the Broncos) against his successor, it was actually much more subdued and merely became a showcase for the Broncos gaining the final divisional crown (AFC West) by virtue of nemesis Oakland losing at home to San Diego, 38-26. Had Oakland taken care of business, they'd have had the AFC West instead of the Broncos. In any case, Tebow and the Broncs gave new meaning to the oft-used term "backing into the playoffs". Because they sure haven't entered as any kind of conquerors....errrr. ...crusaders.

Given this, the Broncos and their holy roller QB won't last long against the Pittsburgh Steelers, 12-4, who will be their playoff opponent in Denver next week. I can promise you that Tebow will spend most of this time running - away from the mighty Steelers' Defense, including linebakcers James Harrison, and Troy Polamalu.

As for this game, the final line for Orton was 18 of 29 for 180 yards and a below-average 71.0 passer rating. But below average was considerably better than Tebow's final line: 6 of 22, 60 yards, 1 interception, 1 lost fumble and a 20.6 rating - lowest in the NFL in all games played today. Where was Tebow's deity when he most needed him? Maybe he had other things in the universe to attend to, who knows? But as usual, Tebow did a Tebow at the end and thanked 'his Lord and Savior',.....for what......I don't know. Maybe keeping him humble, or teaching him a lesson....not to let his ego overwhelm his earthly perspectives.

Tebow was just 3 of 8 in pass completions for 29 yards at the half. After three quarters, Tebow was 4 of 14 for 43 yards. The Broncos' offense failed to score a point by halftime. For the sixth time in 11 games, they failed to score more than 3 points by halftime.

Crippling the Broncos' offense in this seasonal rematch with the Chiefs was they lost two starters to injury early in the first half. Right guard Chris Kuper, the senior member of the offensive line, suffered a severe dislocation where his leg meets the ankle in the first quarter. He will not play in the playoffs.

Now, why did Tebow's "lord" allow that to occur, given he had to know - given his omniscience - the extent to which any success by Tim depended on them. The Broncos also lost fullback Spencer Larsen to a knee injury. Again, Tim, what's with your lord? Why let that happen to a stand up guy?

Tebow also lost a fumble at the Chiefs' 13 yard line that prevented kicker from attempting a short field goal, and then with barely two minutes to go and driving for a possibly winning score, Tebow was intercepted by the Chiefs.

How oh how could this have happened? Why did the miracles end?

These are questions for which Tim Tebow's followers want answers.

The simplest ones are there for the taking, or accepting: Tebow is NOT a God boy, he isn't "holy" and doesn't work miracles....and oh, football is just a game played by over-sized, bipedal primates on one remote planet in an ordinary spiral galaxy - one of hundreds of billions.

Maybe Tebow maniacs will finally get that next week after they're decimated by the unholy Pittsburgh Steelers while the latter's towel -waving fans (who follow their team everywhere) howl with derision and glee.

In the meantime we may be sure "Tebow mania" has finally, finally run its course....like a bad case of the flu!

Tebow Mania (Mercifully) Gets Sacked....for Now!

"Leave it to the Patriots to ruin things for everybody else.

Sports fans of America yesterday turned their eyes toward this stadium one mile above sea level, hoping to see another miracle; a burning bush, a football Fatima, perhaps 80,000 fans feasting on a few fishes and loaves.

No. There was no Tebow Time this time. Instead, we witnessed another routine execution by the brutal New England assassins who've ruled the AFC East in nine of the past eleven seasons.

Patriots 41, Broncos, 23. Praise the Lord and pass the humble pie!"

-Dan Shaughnessy - The Boston Globe


"A simplistic, throw-back offense isn't enough to exchange scores or keep pace against Patriots quarterback Tom Brady , a thoroughly 21st century man.

Sorry, Tim Tebow. Your time never arrived.

Tom Brady is not Caleb Hanie. Shocking the Bears is one thing.

But for the Broncos to stage a fourth-quarter comeback against New England, it would have required Tebow to possess more magic than Harry Potter.”

Mike Kiszla – Denver Post

And so, mercifully, the over-hyped fable of an insufferable, bible -quoting god boy working miracles at Sports Authority Stadium at Mile High in Denver has come to an end, at least for now. This is what I and many other "hardened cranks" (the description in a WSJ piece today, p. B10) have wanted from the moment it began. We KNEW Tebow was over-hyped, and just wanted the ever gullible, slap- happy, pie-eyed folk of America (most of whom don't know a cover 2 from a cover 1 defense) to see Tebow's frailities exposed - in a game against a really serious opponent. As opposed to a series of pretenders who: a) never made enough adjustments - especially on defense - at halftime, and b) always played idiotically (and too conservatively) at the end of the game just to run out the clock and sit on tiny leads, as opposed to aggressively adding more points and putting the game out of reach for any comeback "Tebow time". The Dolphins, Jets, and Bears all succumbed to this error, and paid. Then the rest of us paid, by having a mediocre QB transmogrified into some kind of wunderkind and hyped across the airwaves. (Except for Saturday Night Live where Tebow was spoofed by a Jesus sock puppet, telling him to cool it.)

Although Denver seized the early momentum in the game, the Broncos fumbled it away. Literally.

Three fumbles by the Broncos near their end of the field gave Brady all the edge he needed to rock what had appeared to be a granite-tough Denver defense against mediocre offenses.

Picking apart an outmanned Broncos' secondary filled with rookies, Brady completed 23 of 34 for 320 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. And he had a 1-yard rushing touchdown, followed by a menacing spike, in the second quarter that put the Pats up, 24-16 after they had once trailed, 16-7.

At the point of that spike, Brady was heard to scream by many fans in the stadium:

"Take that! You Tebow Maniacs!"

I loved the 41-23 drubbing because it not only proved my point that no "god" was involved in Tebow's "Miracle" finishes, but also that Tebow himself is a hypocrite. He praises his deity when he wins, but doesn't hold it to account in a loss! And a whopping one at that where he's sacked twice and forced to fumble once. This schizoid approach to his god shows me it's not real, and he merely uses it as a rallying ploy when convenient (e.g. against sorry ass, so-so teams that make huge errors at the end of games to enable Tebow to prevail in Tebow time) .

The Pats, however, proved once and for all that it's smoke and mirrors and that Tebow is no miracle worker. Defend him properly, especially using ball grabbing tactics for which the Pats are famous, and he turns into a very pedestrian QB. When faced with a formidable, multi-threat offense, and a defense that can make the necessary adjustments, Tim Tebow and his team turn out to be straw men....as I predicted last week.

As for Tebow scoring, Sofia Brugato, a blogger for the website Abortion Gang, knows the value of Tebow’s energy. She initiated a campaign last week that encourages Americans to donate money to pro-choice groups — such as Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Rights Action League — each time Tebow scores. Since he scored two TDs yesterday, one expects lots of donations would have flowed in.

In the end, however, what matters is whether in this period of economic distress, the people are so desperate that they're prepared to put their faith in a faux savior rather than in themselves and in the country to solve its own problems.

Don't look to Tim Tebow! All his prayers and invocations yesterday couldn't do donkey squat to entice his "Lord and Savior" to assist him or his team. Nor could all his Mile High Mount Sermonizing throughout the game summon enough useful energy for the Broncos to come back from their own forlorn mistakes.

At least Brady and his Patriots exposed this bunch of pretenders for what they were - not fit to play with the 'big boys' yet!

Enough Of This "Tebow-itis"!

Matthew 6:5-7: “When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret"

The whole pro football world, and the media that supports it, seems to have gone off the deep end now with Tim Tebow-itis. We are now informed (by Broncos' linebacker Wesley Woodyard), in today's Denver Post, that Tebow informed the team before the game yesterday afternoon with the Bears - in a "quiet corner of the locker room" - that all would be well. "God has spoken to him and has said 'don't worry about a thing".

After the game, as reported by Denver Post sports columnist Mike Kiszla, Tebow acknowledged the power of his deity in the game: "I believe in a BIG God, and special things can happen!

Really, Tim? And how big is your God? As big as the solar system? The galaxy? The Local Group of Galaxies? The whole universe? (Including all the dark matter and energy?) Sheesh! Give it a rest, boy! You and you're team are pulling out these last minute wins not because of the interference of some "Almighty" exclusively wearing Broncos' blue, orange and white, but because all the teams you've faced and beaten: a) Have had serious injuries to key play makers, and b) the remnant teams have all made the same mistakes!

There is no divine action or engagement in football, Tim. Get over yourself. Even if a divinity does exist, and that's never been proven, it would arguably have better things to do with its time than mind the Broncos' games each and every Sunday and respond to your "Tebowing" to interfere to cause a field goal miss or an opposition fumble (like Marion Barber's yesterday in OT) to make sure you guys win!

So, is it really true that there's such a thing as "Tebow time"? Nope, not even close. What's happened in three of the last minute come from behind wins by Tebow and his crew is that the opposition began playing lax coverage, or what football aficionados refer to as "prevent defense": dropping into into soft pass coverage and allowing Tebow to complete passes at the expense of the clock. But it didn't work for any of the victims: the Dolphins, the Chargers, the Jets, and lastly the Bears yesterday. With the game literally on the line, and with only a one score (7 pt.) lead, the Bears made the same basic, disgusting error as the Dolphins, Chargers and Jets and gave Tebow room to work. He thereby threw for 191 of his 236 passing yards in the 4th quarter and overtime.

Even Bears star Linebacker Brian Urlacher admitted to the laxity, saying in a post-game interview: "We just didn't finish. We got into our zone defense at the end and they down the field and scored on us". Uh, yeppers, Brian, you could say that! One would have thought that at least the Bears would have closely watched the other teams' defeats at the hands of Tebow to see what they did wrong and not emulate it. But evidently not.

Meanwhile, the one team (Detroit Lions) to have demolished the Broncos (45-10) with Tebow, see, e.g.
http://brane-space.blogspot.com/2011/10/hyper-christian-qb-eaten-by-lions.html

played hard core, man to man defense until the final whistle. No wimpy, pussyfooting zone coverage or "prevent" for them. Let's also bear in mind that the Broncos have benefited by playing teams in those wins where key players were injured. For example, running back Adrian Peterson - the best Vikings offensive player- was missing from the Minnesota game and a huge reason why the Broncos pulled it out at the end (if Peterson had been in, the Vikes could have likely run out the clock). Ditto with key players missing from the Jets, and we know both RB Mat Forte and QB Jake Cutler were missing for the Bears in their Sunday contest. In each case, the Broncos have been major beneficiaries.

But, of course, the argument can be made that all teams suffer injuries, especially at this time of year. Heck, the Packers lost their star wideout Jennings in yesterday's Raiders game, to a torn medial collateral ligament. Ryan Pickett also went down with a concussion and is doubtful for the next game.

Thus, it's even more critical for teams not to make basic mistakes when facing the Broncos and Tebow - to prevent them from becoming a legend in their own minds. I mean, haven't we had enough of "Tebowing" and "Tebow-tizing" - the parody of the Christian baptism for any offending players who enter Mile High stadium, uh.....the new Mile High ....which is much closer to heaven, to hear the Bronco-maniacs.

Meanwhile, Tebow kool aid drinkers in the media typically have the wrong take. For example, Patton Dodd ('God's Quarterback', WSJ, Dec. 10-11, p. C1) correctly notes most or many Americans, are uncomfortable with displays of petty piety on the football field (or in baseball stadiums or on basketball courts, for that matter). We don't want to see any signs of the cross, or pointing skyward after a key or winning play because....why? Well it's fucking hypocritical! So when the same guys boff plays, drop balls, miss FGs and lose games....what's with that? WHOSE fault is that?

If you're going to point skyward following a great play or after an eventual "W'", shouldn't you be shaking your fists at the sky for a failed play, or a drubbing (like Detroit delivered)? Or wait, do you assume "me bad" for the failed play but not "me good" for the great one? Jeebers, at least be consistent, if you can't stop being full of false piety! And what about when you play another team laden with "believers"? If God is fair shouldn't the two teams always have games that end in ties? Or, is God less in one team than the other, and how exactly do you tell? Inquiring minds want to know!
Another canard trotted out by Dodd is that we distrust those like Tebow, because we "can't trust goodness". But wait! what exactly IS "goodness"? How is it defined or measured, and HOW do we know Tebow has it apart from his words, or claims? Do we see him curing the sick? What about even helping them out, say by devoting a tenth of his money to charities? What about giving up football altogether and traveling to Africa like some Peace Corps workers have done, and setting up potable water stations for thirsty villagers and their babies, so they don't have to suffer dysentery or other water-borne diseases? THAT is what I call genuine goodness! Self-sacrifice in the interest of others.

Meanwhile, Dodd offers up that Tebow met a young woman with brain cancer at Disney World for an Awards ceremony and offered to be her date for that event. He made her day! But is that on a par with a Peace Corps or other aid worker risking life and limb to build a fresh water aquifer in Congo or Botswana? I'm not demeaning Tebow's goodwill gesture, only saying we shouldn't conflate sports figures' moves or minor goodwill gestures (which also delivers positive PR - and likely many more commercial sponsorships) from a general sense of decency with a person truly sacrificing himself for his fellow man. Maybe I'm blind, but I don't see that from Tebow.

In any case, I see the Tebow train getting derailed next week when they play New England. These Patriots (their name) haven't been held to fewer than 31 points since the first week of November. Meanwhile, they've scored at least 30 pts. at least ten times this season. And the Broncos? They've score 18 or fewer points in six of Tebow's eight starts.

Let me put it this way: If Tebow and the Broncos manage somehow to pull this one out against the Pats, I will publicly "Tebow" in front of my house for 10 minutes right after the game- and I will have wifey take a photo of it and post on this blog! Howzzat?

See also: http://www.salon.com/2011/12/13/dont_fall_for_tebow/

Is Tim Tebow Guided by the "Lord"?

I fairly cringed when Nick Novak of the San Diego Chargers missed a 53-yd. field goal in overtime, because I knew if it got to "Tebow time" and the Xtian maniac managed to pull yet another last minute win out, we'd never here the end of how the "Lawd" was "guiding his arm" and his team ....to destiny! Sure enough, Tebow did his thing, and the Denver Broncos prevailed 16-13 making it a 5-1 straight record for Saint Tim and a 6-5 overall record for the Broncos.

And the following day, all the odious religious bloviating began and continues..... For example, we learned that just prior to the game Tebow led his compatriots in a prayer and invoked the passages in Proverbs 27:17, which began:

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another....."

Very interesting, that. Because Jim Harbaugh, coach of the San Francisco 49'ers, after his team was defeated by the Baltimore Ravens 16-6 on Thanksgiving night, said:

"Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another....as my brother John has sharpened me....and John is the sharpest..."

This was acknowledging John, the head coach of the Ravens, as this was the first ever matchup in NFL history in which brother faced brother. (Hence the game had been nicknamed "the Har-Bowl")


So, one wonders if Tim had watched the Ravens- SF game - which I believe he did- and found the words intriguing, then googled them to get the full Proverbs quote before citing it and delivering it to his enraptured team mates. Just a theory!

We then learned from Denver Post sports columnist Mike Kiszla ('Old Testament Lesson Resonates with Broncos', Sunday Denver Post, p. 4BB) that Tebow had actually been praying for the Chargers to miss a potential game-winning field goal, which would have been the one from Novak. According to Kiszla's quotation from Tebow:

"I was kind of praying the whole time..."

Kiszla then observed that "Tebow praised the Lord for everything that happened....."

Really?

So, are we then to believe the "Lawd" intervened from his sublime rafters and caused the ball to veer off? Maybe the Almighty also stepped in and helped Tebow sustain all those punishing defensive blows, including when - on a 2nd and 9 at the Charger 39, the San Diego outside linebacker Travis LaBoy grabbed Tebow's facemask and yanked it down while defensive end Corey Liuget grabbed Tebow's shoulder pads and pulled him down before defensive tackle and 300-pounder Vaughn Martin barreled into him under a full head of steam - by one account "pounding Tebow like a veal cutlet".

But hey! I guess the Lawd was in there somewhere to absorb some of that punishment. Eh?

Horse pockey!

Let's dispense at once, for starters, that a putative Being or entity that would have (arguably) been responsible for the cosmos' inception (I am using this as a working assumption, not that I buy it) would have any remote interest in a game played by over-sized mammalian bipeds on a dust speck planet of an ordinary star two-thirds out to the rim of an ordinary spiral galaxy. The very notion is totally laughable!

The other notion that's laughable is that said Being would not only have an abiding interest in following this game, but following (and aiding) one player when called upon to do so! The notion that he'd even deign to think of interfering in a making a field goal go awry would be enough to make any serious believer reject the entity as comical.

So if it isn't any supernatural being behind Tebow's success, what is it? Simple: Because Tebow couldn't conduct a normal NFL offense (as seen in the Miami game he barely won with the Dolphins' help when they muffed an onside kick from Denver) John Fox, the Denver Head Coach, bent the offense to conform to Tebow's abilities (or lack of them). This meant running the so-called "option" in much the same way Tebow ran it while at the University of Florida.

The Denver-UF option system can be reduced thusly:

1) Tebow hands off the ball to a running back

2) Tebow pretends to give the ball to a RB, but throws it instead

3) Tebow pretends to give the ball to a RB, but runs it himself.

There you have it! That's it. The problem is that just like the Miami Dolphins' "Wildcat" which emerged in 2008, it will only be a matter of time before defenses catch on, and then the question will become: How long before such a defense breaks every bone in the guy's body?

We will see, but in the meantime Tebow would do well to give as many kudos to Broncos' strong side linebacker Von Miller, as to his god. It was Miller who, at a key point, sped into the SD offense and dropped RB Michael Tolbert for a critical 4 yard loss - making a fairly certain game winning Charger field goal into a dicey one.

Meanwhile, I predict Tebow will meet his comeuppance as early as this Sunday when he faces the Minnesota Vikings of the NFC's 'black and blue' division, with their astounding LB Jared Allen ready and waiting for any Tebow-time tricks.

Hyper Christian QB "eaten" by Lions!

Saint Tebow dumped on his ass by a Lions' defender in today's 45-10 blowout game. Will this be a wake up call for the overpaid and over-hyped God boy? One can hope!


Well, as I forecast last week, after the Denver Broncos and their little miracle worker-God mongering Quarterback Tim Tebow eked out a last minute win over the pathetic Dolphins,

http://brane-space.blogspot.com/2011/10/thoughts-on-winners-and-losers.html

they wouldn't fare so well this week facing the Lions (in the NFC's "black and blue" division) of Detroit. I forecast the sanctimonious "John:3:16" citing little shit would be eaten, and he was - all his "Tebowing" (going down on one knee in a prayer pose) aside.

Indeed, at least two Detroit Lion players mocked "Tebowing," which was certainly their right after the NFL's most improved team blew out the Broncos, 45-10. This game was so satisfying on so many levels for anti-Tebows like me, it is difficult to recite them all. I could go through all the flaws in this pretender's throwing mechanics, but why bore readers with the details? Suffice it to say, this game above all shows the punk is overrated and likely overpaid.

All the Broncomaniacs went into delirium last week, but they forgot they were playing a team that was 0-5 and lacked their starting QB (Chad Henne) out for the year with an arm injury. The backup Matt Moore, has barely started six games! Now, meeting a fully operating team we see first hand the Broncos, or as I call them, the "ponies", are mostly smoke and mirrors and all of Tebow's prayers didn't stop the Lion's savaging!

Thankfully, there were many numbers as ugly as the final score:

Tebow and the Broncos' offense had nine, three-and-outs.

The offense was 0 for 10 on third downs before Detroit's D seemed to let them convert a couple in the fourth quarter.

Tebow took two delay-of-game penalties and seven sacks, one that resulted in a fumble returned by Lions' defensive end Cliff Averil for a touchdown.

Early in the fourth quarter, Tebow was an unsightly 8 of 25 passing for 87 yards and an interception that was returned 100 yards for a touchdown by Lions cornerback Chris Houston.

Maybe this will be the last we see or hear of that deplorable "Tebowing' nonsense.

One can hope!

Thoughts on Winners and Losers....

Tony Sparano- below- Miami Dolphins head coach, downcast after the 18-15 loss which may well cost him his job.

Two teams, two tales: one of winning and going to 7-0 in their record, the other of losing, and now 0-6. The Green Bay Packers and Miami Dolphins! Both teams faced determined opponents yesterday afternoon, the Packers against division rivals Minnesota at their stadium, and the Miami Dolphins taking on the Tim Tebow (he of the John 3:16 balderdash) in theirs.

Miami was ahead 15-0 with 2: 55 left but lost, 18-15. Green Bay was ahead by only 33-27 with 2:41 left on the clock and won. So what happened?

In the case of the Miami Dolphins, one need only go to the famous Sun Tzu saying which also applies to the pro football arena:

"Wars are usually won or lost before they even begin"

The Dolphins lost their war after holding off Saint Tebow and his Broncos for 54:23 by giving in to the expedient way. The philosophy of "Just play not to lose!" Trouble is, when you play not to lose, you generally do because the thought or possibility of loss has already embedded itself in your consciousness. I mean why else play not to lose? On the other hand, by playing to win, you will generally ensure a win, all other things being equal.

So, with 5:37 left in the game at that point, the Dolphins' Offensive Brain Trust , in what turned out to be a key possession, chose to try to run the ball three times for all of 6 yards. Generally, running can be good at the end of a game, but ONLY if it's effective and: a) takes time off the clock and b) gets first downs. The Dolphins' efforts garnered neither, despite the fact had they at least applied some aggression via the passing game, and got to the 30 yard line, they could have sealed their win with a field goal. In that case, nothing Denver or Tebow did would have mattered.

They also would have done their Defense a favor, which until then had kept Tebow contained, going only 6-for 21, and mounted a serious pass rush - missing from their past 5 games.

But by going three and out, and using up only 4 seconds, they gave Denver new life, as well as their biblical star boy. Taking on the challenge, Tebow drove the Broncs down to score a relatively easy 6 points, then they tacked on 1 more to make it 15-7. There was now about 3:41 left. The Broncos then opted to try an onside kick, instead of punting and turning the ball back to Miami.

Generally, an onside kick must be displaced at least ten (forward) yards of the field to be valid. If recovered by the team that attempts it, it can turn a game around, as we beheld in the SuperBowl two years ago, when New Orleans' Saints did it to the Indianapolis Colts starting the 2nd half.

The defending team must put what is called their best "hands guy" on the receiving team, and that often means the guy with the literal largest hands - to ensure no mistakes. The Green Bay Packers, for example, generally use receiver Donald Driver for onside kick duties. He also has the largest hands on the team - at nearly 11" long.

The Dolphins didn't use such a hands guy but rather an ordinary special teams player, Marlon Moore, and so the result was predictable: Virgil Green of Denver knocked the ball loose from Moore's hands and the Broncos recovered it near the Miami 34 yard line and Tebow easily drove them down that short field for another score. It was now 15 -13.

Tebow and the Broncos now decided to go for two points, which would tie the score at 15 all. This meant getting the ball into the end zone once more. (The Dolphins already tried to do this in the 2nd quarter when the score was 12-0 Miami, but it wasn't needed. Indeed, the failure to convert, minus just the ordinary extra point, also ensured their defeat later).

Everyone in the stadium knew Mr. Bible puncher's M.O. and that meant running it up the gut into the end zone. Did the Dolphins? Evidently not! Tebow just waltzed 4 yards into the end zone like he was taking a Sunday stroll.. It was now 15-15. All was not yet lost. The game went to overtime.

Miami won the coin toss, so got first possession - but they muffed it and went 3 and out. The Broncos then got the ball and they also went 3 and out. Miami took the next punt and.....boffed it...fumbled with the Broncos recovering near the Miami 30. Game over! The Broncos' Matt Prater kicks the winning field goal and Tebow and the Broncos prevail 18-15.

Dolphins' fans are ready to hang themselves from the stadium rafters in the wake of the club's biggest choke in its 46-year history. Meanwhile, Tebow groupies - mainly from Univ. of Florida - are beside themselves with biblically proportioned delirium over their boy's heroics. One religiously-inclined fool reporter asks Tim after the game:

"Didn't this game ending embody the Christian spirit?"

Wonder what the goop will ask next week after the Lions of Detroit get done mauling Xtian star boy!

Now, flash to the Packers, at the end of their game with the Minnesotar Vikings -who have now scored 23 unanswered points and are within a touchdown and extra point of winning. The score if Pack 33 Vikes 27.

The Minnesota coach, facing 4th and 10 chose to let his D hold the Pack, which had meekly gone three and out twice before, and punted. With 2:41 left it was essential to retain ball control and not kick the ball back!

The Pack knew in order to beat this new kid on the block QB they faced, Christian Ponder (now emulating Dan Marino) they had to get runs AND 1st downs!

James Starks rose to the occasion running for 16 yds. in one go, and then nailing 2 more first downs by the end of which only :37 was left on the clock and it was fall down time.

Pack Wins 33-27.

They took care of the ball possession at the end and business, and why they are 7-0.

The Dolphins didn't, and that's one major reason they're 0-6.