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Tim Tebow, Broncos clinch AFC West despite season-ending slide
Associated Press
DENVER -- Tim Tebow has always done things the unorthodox way. Making the playoffs was no different.
He fell short in his latest comeback bid, yet his Denver Broncos are still going to the playoffs.
Kyle Orton got his revenge in leading the Kansas City Chiefs to a 7-3 win over Denver on Sunday, but it's the Broncos who clinched the AFC West and are headed to the postseason.
After congratulating their former starting quarterback, the Broncos celebrated the end to their six-year playoff drought once San Diego beat Oakland 38-26 later Sunday.
Losers of their last three games, the Broncos finished 8-8, same as the Raiders. They won their first division title since 2005 on a tiebreaker.
So, everybody at Mile High got what they wanted even though Tebow couldn't beat the guy he failed to beat out in training camp.
Tebow, though, got the last laugh.
Orton, who also handed Green Bay its only loss, went 2-1 in Kansas City. His steady play likely raised his stock as he prepares to enter free agency. And he might have secured interim coach Romeo Crennel's future.
Best of all, he beat the team that benched him after he finally caved under the weight of Tebowmania and the Broncos stumbled to a 1-4 start.
The Broncos revamped their offense to fit Tebow's unorthodox skill set and surged to the top of their division. They released Orton in the midst of a 7-1 run that included a series of fourth-quarter comebacks that captivated the football world.
Never before in the four-plus decades since the AFL-NFL merger has a starting quarterback returned to start a game in the same season against his former team.
Orton didn't do much but he didn't have to. The game's only touchdown came on Dexter McCluster's 21-yard scamper with 11 seconds left in the first quarter.
Orton's 18-yard completion to Jonathan Baldwin on third-and-9 from his own 12 with five minutes left in the game was as big a play as he had all afternoon as this was a battle of field position and the Punting Colquitt Bros. more than anything else.
The Broncos got the ball back at their own 20 with 3:59 left.
Tebow time? Not this time.
The Broncos were forced to punt with 2:37 remaining, but Orton was no better and the Chiefs punted it back to them, but because coach John Fox had mismanaged the final minute of the first half -- calling a timeout and then deciding against a long field goal -- the Broncos needed to go 84 yards with 58 seconds left instead of just needing to get into field goal range for another game-winner by Matt Prater.
Tebow, who had completed four passes all afternoon with the Broncos running 47 times for 216 yards, including 145 by Willis McGahee, suddenly had to chuck it.
And he was intercepted by cornerback Brandon Carr with 8 seconds left.
Orton took a knee and the game was over.
Tebow finished 6 of 22 for 60 yards and added 16 yards on six carries.
The Broncos saved $2.6 million by releasing Orton just before Thanksgiving but Orton nearly made them pay an even heftier price for that decision, completing 15 of 29 passes for 180 yards against his former team and connecting with Dwayne Bowe six times for 93 yards against Pro Bowl cornerback Champ Bailey.
Had Denver not backed into the playoffs, boss John Elway's dangerous decision to release Orton at midseason would have gone down as one of the biggest blunders in Broncos history.
And Fox would have been second-guessed for passing up on a 57-yard field goal attempt in the first half even though his kicker is the best in the business from long distance and points were at a premium.
Fox had called a timeout with 36 seconds left in the half and there was too much time on the clock for the Chiefs to score if Prater had missed.
The Broncos finally scored on Prater's 38-yarder in the third quarter.
Javier Arenas' muffed punt at his own 20 in the first quarter and Matthew Willis recovered for Denver. But the Broncos went nowhere and settled for the field goal.
Coming off the worst game of his career, a four-turnover blunder at Buffalo, Tebow killed Denver's only promising drive of the first half when he coughed up the football as he was trying to reach across the Chiefs 10-yard line for the first down and linebacker Justin Houston scooped up the loose ball.
Fox chose not to send out Prater for a 57-yard field goal attempt with 31 seconds left in the first half even though Prater is 12 of 16 from 50-plus yards, the best in the league since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger.
The Broncos lost two offensive starters in the first half when right guard Chris Kuper, the stalwart on an otherwise young line, injured his left leg and fullback Spencer Larsen hurt a knee. Because they had deactivated Austin Sylvester, their only other fullback, the Broncos had to use two tight ends after that.
playing in Denver will not be easy, wonder if Ryan Clark will have to sit this game out?
IIRC Ryan was cleared to play in Denver the last time the Steelers played there, However the team held him out. I think they should do the same this time.
@Dejan_KovacevicDejan Kovacevic
Ryan Clark said he'll discuss with Tomlin "later" his status regarding Denver, where altitude threatens his health. Didn't sound pleased.
Molon labe
People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. George Orwell
?We're not going to apologize for winning.?
Mike Tomlin
American metal pimped by asiansteel
Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you 1. Jesus Christ, 2.The American G.I., One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.
By Gene Collier, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
[url="http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12002/1200803-150-0.stm"]http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12002/1200803-150-0.stm[/url]
CLEVELAND -- In the whirling snow of the wind-battered Ohio lakeshore, Steelers-Browns came down to the final play on the NFL's climactic weekend, which meant nothing in the moment and just about everything to the politics of the AFC playoffs.
Its essential meaning was that not a lot has changed since that Thursday night little more than three weeks ago at Heinz Field, when the Steelers led these same dogged Dawg Pounders by only four points with three minutes left.
Sure Mike Tomlin's team won both games on its way to another 12-4 season, but what does it say when you roll that bus homeward on the Ohio Turnpike along with the haunting sense that it's a good thing you don't have to play Cleveland in the playoffs?
"We've got our marching orders," said a demonstrably upbeat Tomlin after a brutal Russian novel of a football game. "We're on our way to Denver."
Well that's certainly good news for those of us who just can't get enough Tim Tebow analysis.
I try to restrict my Tebow intake to the dialogue Saturday Night Live's writers create to lampoon the Bronco quarterback's presumptive link to a higher power, but maybe you noticed the way Denver powered down Sunday on Tebow's 8-for-22 in a 7-3 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Tebow has lorded over three consecutive losses that somehow got his team a fourth seed in the tournament that starts Saturday, mostly because somebody has to be the AFC West champion, even if they're 8-8.
"He's great at getting out of the pocket," said Brett Keisel, "and we'll have to adjust to the option. It's gonna be wild. Denver is gonna be pumped to be back in the playoffs.
"It's the playoffs and [I'm] very proud of what we've done to get there. We just need a couple more turnovers."
After two more takeaway-free weeks against San Francisco and St. Louis, Troy Polamalu finally came up with one Sunday and all it meant was the difference in a 13-9 victory that was delivered principally by the Steelers defense.
When Troy swiped a short Seneca Wallace pass intended for Browns tight end Evan Moore at the Cleveland 44, the offense punched in the only touchdown of a long afternoon.
Isaac Redman got home from 7 yards out, then fumbled to end two of the next three Steelers possessions, but Redman also wound up gaining 92 yards on 19 carries on a day when he joined Ryan Clark as a kind of dual story line at the doorway to the postseason.
"We had some injuries sustained in the game, many of which are minor, [but] of course the Rashard Mendenhall injury is not," Tomlin said in his best business-like tone. "Obviously you should anticipate that he won't be participating next week for us."
Obviously?
Yeah, it's that bad, and it means that the Steelers will go to the playoffs with Redman displacing their lead horse in the running game, and, because the venue is mile high Colorado, potentially without safety Clark as well.
Clark carries a sickle cell trait that can cause a serious blood disorder in high altitude.
"We've got to circle the wagons and try to be better on the road than we have been," Clark said an hour after Baltimore won the AFC North and home field by holding off the Bengals in the opposite corner of Ohio.
"I'd like to have gotten a bye, obviously, but this team is not about me. If I can't play, then that's what it is."
Cleveland was on its way to a tying touchdown Sunday when Dick LeBeau sent Clark on a safety blitz that floored Wallace 7 yards deep in his backfield, so Clark's value remains very much evident. If he can't play, that will certainly further pressurize an offense that hasn't produced a single touchdown pass since Dec. 8.
"They've got a great defense," said Ben Roethlisberger, who somehow managed a 23 for 40 performance in spite of a still-tender ankle and some unforgiving lake-driven winds.
"They've got a great pass rush, linebackers, great secondary. I've seen and heard of the havoc that they wreak."
On top of that, this is an offense that nearly got wreaked twice by the Cleveland Browns.
"They always play us tough," said Lawrence Timmons, "and they converted some big third downs today.
"Tebow can run like Wallace ran today, so we'll have our hands full. Tebow's been a very inspirational leader for them."
So I've heard.
And this week, I have a feeling I'll hear it again, and that you will hear it again and again and again and again until you'd like to see the Broncos beaten by about 50-0.
People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. George Orwell
?We're not going to apologize for winning.?
Mike Tomlin
American metal pimped by asiansteel
Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you 1. Jesus Christ, 2.The American G.I., One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.
Here's the thing- the Tebow vs Steelers match-up is VERY much in favour of the Black & Gold- the biggest 'weakness' the Steelers have had on defense is...passing defense. The biggest weakness of the Denver Tebow's....passing. They don't move the ball through the air very well at all. It'll be a run fest on their behalf- a tactic that plays to the Steelers strengths.
There will probably be 0 sacks for the Steelers, but if they can keep the Tebow's running game to around the 100 yard mark, there's very little chance that the Tebow's will score enough points to beat the Steelers. Heck- the Steelers might even get a couple of INT's if the Tebow's try passing.
Turnovers- that's the win/lose factor. If the Steelers can limit their turnovers, Chadman predicts a 24-3 rout of the Tebow's in Denverland.
The people that are trying to make the world worse never take a day off, why should I?
Where is the "Tim Tebow Coming Back To Earth" thread?
Well, that was sort of the intent
I have a feeling Saint LeBeau will eat TT's lunch if we can force him into obvious passing downs. Wouldnt want any other opponent for the first round of this years playoffs. Time to go talk smack to my uncle in Colo... hahaha
sigpic
Crush your enemies, see them driven before you, hear the lamentations of their women.
Here's the thing- the Tebow vs Steelers match-up is VERY much in favour of the Black & Gold- the biggest 'weakness' the Steelers have had on defense is...passing defense. The biggest weakness of the Denver Tebow's....passing. They don't move the ball through the air very well at all. It'll be a run fest on their behalf- a tactic that plays to the Steelers strengths.
The thing about your prediction... which makes complete sense... is that die-hard Steeler fans have seen games like this (where we seem to be a mortal lock to win), and we've somehow, someway lost. I'm NOT predicting that... and the potential for us to dominate them as the Chadman says is strong... I think we're in for a nail-biting game, where Tebow possibly has the ball and the chance to drive them down the field on us.
Tebo and their offense doesn't put any fear into me. Our offense seems to keep things too tight in the games so, we will have to throttle their offense so Arians and company can win by so few points.
Here's the thing- the Tebow vs Steelers match-up is VERY much in favour of the Black & Gold- the biggest 'weakness' the Steelers have had on defense is...passing defense. The biggest weakness of the Denver Tebow's....passing. They don't move the ball through the air very well at all. It'll be a run fest on their behalf- a tactic that plays to the Steelers strengths.
There will probably be 0 sacks for the Steelers, but if they can keep the Tebow's running game to around the 100 yard mark, there's very little chance that the Tebow's will score enough points to beat the Steelers. Heck- the Steelers might even get a couple of INT's if the Tebow's try passing.
Turnovers- that's the win/lose factor. If the Steelers can limit their turnovers, Chadman predicts a 24-3 rout of the Tebow's in Denverland.
Chadman, not sure how you came to this conclusion. I don't think the Steelers run defense has been nearly as impenetrable as in previous years. In fact, I think they are ranked 8th in the league in defensive rush yds allowed. On the other hand, and probably due to the number of lame QBs we have faced this season, the Steelers passing defense (yds allowed) is ranked #1.
I see this match up a lot like the PIT-KC game (KC has a decent defense) and THAT game was a struggle to the end. Keep in mind KC was led by a barely NFL QB in Palko and if it was not for a few god-awful throws (which hopefully Tebow will provide in the next game) KC may have been able to pull the game out.
Our offense has been as anemic as the Browns for nearly a month (yesterday first TD since Dec. . We can point to a lot of contributing factors (OL shambles, gimpy Ben, lame OC) but the bottom line is we have been winning in spite of the offense, and BECAUSE of the defense. I see the Denver game as no different (in fact, offensively we are in even worse shape).
DENVER – The improbable champions wore no hats. They didn’t dance. They didn’t dump Gatorade. They didn’t scream into the frosty mountain night the way winners do when the impossible has happened. The Denver Broncos might be unlikely conquerors of the AFC West – a once 1-4 team now hosting the Super Bowl runner-up Pittsburgh Steelers – but the party was somewhere else on Sunday night.
Whatever magic lived for two blessed months in the frantic autumn of 2011 was gone on the first day of 2012, replaced with the awkward uncertainty of a team led by a quarterback who has become something less than ordinary. Percentages have evened out. The outlandish can’t happen every week and, robbed of his powers to make miracles, Tim Tebow’s Broncos have become what the scoreboard said: 7-3 losers to the Kansas City Chiefs. And this isn’t the way you want to be marching into the postseason.
No player in the NFL is as confounding as the man who came to save the Broncos for seven of eight weeks. He can be at times a contortionist, pulling Denver from sure defeats, and also overmatched, looking like a man who shouldn’t play another game in the NFL.
“The problem is still his throwing motion,” said one NFL quarterbacks coach when reached Sunday night.
Tebow pulls his arm back so far, the coach said, that it becomes obvious when he is going to throw, and since Tebow also tends to lock his eyes on his receivers, defensive backs realize where the ball is going. They rush to those receivers, forcing Tebow to either attempt precise throws he still cannot make or tuck the ball and run. On Sunday the holes in the defense weren’t there the way they had been in October and November. He had 16 yards rushing and those came hard and painful.
His final line on Sunday read like a failed experiment from the exhibition season: 6-for-22 for 60 yards and a passer rating of 20.6.
It’s as if a blueprint has been made of how to stop Tebow and now everyone is following it.
Or as another NFL quarterbacks coach said recently: “He’s not a quarterback. He can’t throw.”
Yes, this is a problem indeed because Tebow remains the Broncos’ best hope, the player around whom an offense has been built, a player whose ability to hold onto the ball allowed Denver coach John Fox to emphasize a run-first attack that made the Broncos’ defense more effective. It is no accident the Broncos won seven of the first eight games they played after dumping Kyle Orton and making Tebow the starter. And yet there is also a real sense that next weekend’s game might also be for his future here.
Seven wins – including five amazing, resourceful, last-second victories – don’t add up to much when paired with four straight losses if Denver loses next Sunday to the Steelers. They look even worse with passer ratings of 37.9 and 20.6 which is what he’s had these last two weeks.
It is not a secret in NFL circles that team vice president John Elway is uncomfortable with Tebow mania. On Sunday evening he stood in the news conference room adjacent to the Broncos locker room and watched as Tebow answered questions with his usual optimistic, non-revealing manner. Elway placed his foot on a chair and faced away from the podium where Tebow stood. He smiled when Tebow politically answered a loaded question about officiating with a passive-aggressive, “I think the refs do a good job and I think they did a great job in the game.”
But there was also a stern look on Elway’s face, one that seemed to say he has much more on his mind than just a 7-3 loss and a home game looming with the Steelers. Trying to read Elway on Tebow became one of Denver’s parlor games last year. There was always a sense he was painted into a corner, stuck with the previous regime’s brilliant idea and desperate to get onto a quarterback who more resembled him. Through the winning, Elway gave more grudging endorsements of Tebow. But the three losses have changed the atmosphere. As quickly as Tebow rose, the sense around the team is that he is tumbling just as fast.
Three weeks ago, after the last of the miracles, the Broncos coaches sounded more enthusiastic about Tebow. He was throwing better they said. They told a narrative of a quarterback who spent half an hour before and after practice doing nothing but work on his footwork, with their belief that his balance would improve his throwing. And the fact is his throwing did get better. His passes were crisper, more accurate. Of all the criticisms of his game, no one challenges the hours he puts into watching film and working on his skills.
After the game someone asked Tebow if the “Tebow Mystique” – whatever that means – was gone. The quarterback smiled shyly.
“I don’t know about any mystique, but I am very grateful that we have another opportunity,” he said. “It’s very exciting to win the [AFC] West.”
If only everyone else around the Broncos seemed as thrilled. Mostly it seemed the miracle man was walking through the room with a stocking hat pulled down on his head and no miracles left.
Molon labe
People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. George Orwell
?We're not going to apologize for winning.?
Mike Tomlin
American metal pimped by asiansteel
Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you 1. Jesus Christ, 2.The American G.I., One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.
Ryan Clark has been one of the most durable players in the Pittsburgh Steelers' secondary the past three years, but there's a decent chance he won't be allowed to suit up for Sunday's wild-card showdown against Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos despite his clean bill of health.
From the surprising Bengals and late-surging Giants to the playoff-tested Steelers and Saints, Elliot Harrison examines wild-card weekend. More ...
Clark has sickle cell trait, and the high altitude at Sports Authority Field at Mile High is problematic for his condition. Clark played a game at Denver during the 2007 season and became violently ill after the high altitude caused his blood to sickle. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported a deprivation of oxygen to Clark's major organs eventually cost him his spleen and gall bladder.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin didn't let Clark play in a 2009 regular-season game at Denver nor in an exhibition game there last year, and Tomlin said Sunday the team plans to discuss Clark's situation with doctors this week before making a decision on his status.
"We're going to meet with the doctors at some point (today) or Tuesday," Tomlin said following the Steelers' 13-9 win over the Browns. "Last time we went (to Denver), we worked him out extensively to see how he responded, and they gathered the data in that regard. So we'll put some heads together, and when I'm talking about heads I'm talking about medical experts, not myself."
Clark told the Tribune-Review that he expects the decision to be Tomlin's and not his.
"It's easier on me that way anyway," Clark said. "No decision has been made, so we've got things to talk about."
Molon labe
People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. George Orwell
?We're not going to apologize for winning.?
Mike Tomlin
American metal pimped by asiansteel
Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you 1. Jesus Christ, 2.The American G.I., One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.
Cleveland was on its way to a tying touchdown Sunday when bad word LeBeau sent Clark on a safety blitz that floored Wallace 7 yards deep in his backfield, so Clark's value remains very much evident.
Why? Because he got a sack on a safety blitz? Writer sounds like a casual fan, applauding a splash play and ignoring his actual value which is to...be a good safety and play well beside Troy, letting him play his game. Fwiw, I'm not trying to downplay Clark's play at all. He's one of the reasons we're where we are. My point has more to do with why the writer would point out a sack off a safety blitz as evidence of his value as opposed to what he does in every game? Just doesn't make sense to me.
Cleveland was on its way to a tying touchdown Sunday when bad word LeBeau sent Clark on a safety blitz that floored Wallace 7 yards deep in his backfield, so Clark's value remains very much evident.
Why? Because he got a sack on a safety blitz? Writer sounds like a casual fan, applauding a splash play and ignoring his actual value which is to...be a good safety and play well beside Troy, letting him play his game. Fwiw, I'm not trying to downplay Clark's play at all. He's one of the reasons we're where we are. My point has more to do with why the writer would point out a sack off a safety blitz as evidence of his value as opposed to what he does in every game? Just doesn't make sense to me.
It's much easier to show Clarks value on a splash play that stopped a game tying drive vs pointing out all the unseen things he does while Troy runs free.
By Dejan Kovacevic, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
In the spirit of the rise and subsequent fall of Tim Tebow, I offer this morning a few myths and realities regarding the mile-high main attraction of the Steelers' Sunday playoff duel.
And we'll begin, naturally, with ...
Myth: Tebow is a winner.
Reality: His record as an NFL starter is 8-6, so there's that. But toss aside his handful of late heroics and ESPN's symphonically scored narratives, and it's easy to see the real burden has been on Denver's defense. When the Broncos held opponents to 15.8 points per game in Tebow's first eight starts, he was 7-1. They've given up 29.3 over the past three, and all were losses. That's not drama. That's the D.
Myth: All that matters is the W.
Reality: That's true of a team, but it's a lousy way to evaluate individuals in a team sport. Unless you really believed that the Pirates' Kevin Correia was the National League's best pitcher at the All-Star break. Or that Trent Dilfer was a better quarterback than Dan Marino.
Myth: Tebow's legs make up for his arm.
Reality: His 72.9 passer rating ranks 28th among the NFL's 34 qualified quarterbacks, and he has rushed for 47 yards per game. The latter is neat for his position, but it's well short of a fair trade.
Myth: Because John Elway has vowed that Tebow will be Denver's starter entering 2012, there's no way coach John Fox would pull him mid-game against the Steelers.
Reality: Elway and all concerned aren't about to hand away a playoff game. Fox answered a question on the topic yesterday this way: "I don't do well with hypotheticals. I anticipate that we will play very well this Sunday." That's hardly taking umbrage at the notion.
Myth: The Steelers have to make significant defensive adjustments to counter Tebow.
Reality: Buffalo and Kansas City, Denver's past two opponents, have come at him from both sides to cut off his running room and force a quick pass. If that sounds familiar, that's what the Steelers have been doing since Dick LeBeau was watching Dick Van Dyke.
Myth: James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley must make that happen.
Reality: Did you see Troy Polamalu sacking Cleveland quarterback Seneca Wallace on a running play Sunday?
Myth: "Hey, I'm just trying not to get 'Tebowed,' " Harrison said Monday.
Reality: Don't buy it. The Steelers aren't about to overlook a playoff opponent, but their intimidation level regarding Tebow is zero.
Myth: The Steelers should be worried about a subpar quarterback because Curtis Painter, Tyler Palko and Wallace nearly pulled off winning drives at game's end.
Reality: Um, scoreboard?
Myth: Stop Tebow, and you stop the Denver ground game.
Reality: The Broncos' rushing offense ranked No. 1 in the NFL with an average of 164.5 yards per game. They were led by a revitalized Willis McGahee's 1,199 yards, including 10 rushes of 20-plus yards (one more than the entire Steelers roster). On the other side, as Steelers safety Ryan Clark said, "Our rushing defense has been our Achilles' heel, so this will be a great test."
Myth: Clark's absence won't hurt.
Reality: He plays in Polamalu's shadow, but he's consistently graded No. 1 by the coaches for open-field tackling, and he had a team-high 10 tackles Sunday. One was a sensational sack with Cleveland tight end Evan Moore clinging to his back like an octopus.
Myth: Part of Mike Tomlin's 36-second tribute to Tebow at his Tuesday news conference was this: "When I look at Tim Tebow, I see a guy who just wins. He's at his best in the significant moments. He makes those around him better. They buy into what he's selling. He's got natural charismatic leadership ability."
Reality: Should have heard his outlook for the Rams.
Myth: If Tebow beats the Steelers, someone in Baltimore will douse John Harbaugh with Gatorade.
Reality: Please. He'll be doused because the Ravens made it through the bye week.
Myth: I don't like Tebow.
Reality: That's not the case at all, honestly, although some of this might come across that way. I respect what he's done given clear limitations, as well as his faith and unflappable confidence. It's been, at times, a story fit for Disney. But the "Moneyball" generation of statistical analysis should teach even the sappiest sports fan to take emotion out of the mix. That's why they often call reality harsh.
I've never been a Tebow fan and the media is the primary reason. It reminds me of the female who has a nice friend who wants to go on a date. You keep asking how she looks and the female keeps talking about her character, good heart, volunteer work etc...
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