Honestly I’m coming around on Tebow. I still believe the 37th overall pick is too early for him, and too early to address the need at quarterback, but Tebow did impress me with his individual workout. The fact that he first willing to work on and change his delivery is highly impressive. How many quarterbacks have we seen not improve themselves and try to become NFL quarterbacks. There are plenty of bad deliveries and footwork around the league that stay the same.
I’m also impressed with how well he was able to transition in a short amount of time. It was just 6 weeks ago he was struggling at the Senior Bowl, since then he has completely reformed his delivery and footwork. From the reports I read only between 4-5 of his throws did he revert to his bad habits, and then not completely. That’s pretty impressive considering he’s been throwing the same way for 10+ years.
While I don’t believe that Tebow is ready to start next season, and possibly not the season after that. The strides that he has made are quite impressive. He’s always had the arm strength and does have all the intangibles you listed. He is also extremely strong and athletic, meaning that if he does ever ‘get it’, he could do some great things. The way I see it there are questions surrounding every rookie QB, and they will need to make adjustments to become quality starters in the league. Bradford, widely considered the top QB and pick, is coming off a serious injury to his throwing shoulder and has questions about working behind a center as well as his footwork. Claussen is a true junior and no Junior quarterback has jumped into immediate success in the NFL. While I don’t think he’s a bad apple I think Claussen like every quarterback will need quite a bit of seasoning.
To me if you are going to take the Phillip Rivers route and have a quarterback sit for a couple of years, why draft someone at the top of the 1st round, who you will be paying millions of dollars to ride the bench. Despite a few exceptions rookie quarterbacks don’t succeed when they start right off the bat, and they are almost never successful in year one (or two). I would like the Redskins to draft a project like LeFevour, Tebow or Jevan Snead in between rounds 3-4 (hopefully they can add some extra picks including a third rounder). And let him develop over the next couple of years. The two advantages to Tebow are that one: you know that he’s willing to admit his faults and work on making himself a better QB, which is more than you can say for others. They might be just as willing to accept Shannahan’s tutelage, but we know for a fact that Tebow is dedicated to becoming a pro quarterback. In addition to the work ethic you know Tebow has the mental part of the game down, which is what usually ends up separating the Peyton Manning’s from the Ryan Leaf’s. The other advantage to Tebow is his athleticism, while every other quarterback will be learning from the sidelines Tebow’s athleticism could allow him to be used in certain packages. If a team feels comfortable enough with Tebow footwork and throwing motion (maybe not for long term success, but to the point where it’s at least passable) they could get some on the field benefits to having Tebow in select formations. Which could end up speeding his development up.
I know that’s a rosy scenario, but it isn’t impossible. I trust work ethic and maturity when it comes to quarterbacks. Far too often i’ve seen talent and arm strength go by the weigh side, because the player wasn’t up to the challenge mentally. If Tim Tebow fails it won’t be to lack of effort, and that is something you can’t say about the Jamarcus Russell’s and Kyle Boller’s of the league. I won’t be too thrilled with hearing Tebow’s name called at pick 37, but if they take him anywhere past pick 50 I really can’t complain.
