Tim Tebow still has a legion of doubters, but he had one very strong admirer last night.
The Broncos jumped through a dizzying amount of hoops to make the much-debated former University of Florida quarterback a first-round pick, taking him 25th overall as the Radio City Music Hall crowd shook the walls with chants of “Over-rated!”
Denver could not have been more determined to take Tebow, making a total of four trades — two down and two up — to position themselves for the former Heisman Trophy winner.
Tebow ended up being the second of two first-round choices by the Broncos — Georgia Tech wideout Demaryius Thomas at No. 22 was the other — who feel they have the luxury to develop Tebow slowly with veteran quarterbacks Kyle Orton and Brady Quinn already on the roster.
“Whatever they ask me to do, I’m going to do it,” Tebow said from his home in Jacksonville, Fla., after the selection was announced. “I just think I showed them I was willing to do whatever it took. I want to thank everyone in the organization. Over last few weeks, we really hit it off. I was hoping and praying that was where I could play.”
Debate about Tebow, his fullback’s body and his ungainly, sidearmed throwing motion was so feverish going into the draft that Tebow declined the NFL’s offer to come to New York because of concern that he might fall all the way to the third round or even lower.
But the Broncos, who have gambled relentlessly with personnel moves since coach Josh McDaniels’ arrival a year ago, felt the 6-foot-3, 236-pound project was too tantalizing to pass up, even though he never played under center in college.
McDaniels realized he would not be able to justify Tebow at the Broncos’ original draft position, No. 11, so Denver methodically moved down with trades to grab him late in the round while picking up Thomas along the way.
“I think that’s a good pick,” McDaniels said. “The player [Tebow] has all the traits you’re looking for.”