The RPs Debate Tim Tebow: Ron Granieri Rebuts
[The RP's Provocation; Artur Davis' Rebuttal #1; Rod Jetton's Rebuttal #2; John Y. Brown, III's Rebuttal #3]
I have to admit that I have had a serious bias against Tim Tebow since his college days, a bias that has its roots in a fundamental theological difference.
You see, everything about Tim Tebow is an affront to my deeply held beliefs, as communicated to me through the Church to which I have belonged since birth.
I am referring, of course, to the Church of the Classic Drop-Back Quarterbacks.
How well and with such joy I remember sitting on Sundays in The Church of the Three Holy J’s [Jack, Joe, and Jim—three names holy to all Western New York football fans] as the priest opened each service with the Sign of the QB: “In the name of Unitas, and of Starr, and of the Perfect Spiral, Amen.” I can still recite entire passages from Scripture, such as this from The Sermon of Yankee Stadium, 1958 [John 19: 82]:
“Blessed are they who, when the game is on the line, can stand in the pocket and deliver the ball, for they shall win The Greatest Game of All Time.”
I also clearly remember the passages from the old Baltimore [Colt] Catechism:
Q. Why did God make the Quarterback?
A: He made him to read the defense, to identify the open receiver, and to lead that receiver to the End Zone with an accurate throw.
For one whose beliefs are as deep and traditional as my own, Tim Tebow’s style of play is nothing less than blasphemous. Of course, I am used to having my beliefs insulted by both players and an elite sports media that has rushed time and again to declare my beliefs antiquated and ill-suited to the present. How often have we been told that the “Quarterback of the Future” will be more mobile, less reliant on the Deep Out? Who after all can forget Sports Illustrated crowning Randall Cunningham as “The Ultimate Weapon,” the infamous “Slash Heresy,” or even the outburst of Flutopian Enthusiasm in my own home region? Of course, in each case, I have watched those heresies flower and wither, as championships continue to be earned by classic quarterbacks such as Brady, Rodgers, Warner, and Manning.
Certainly, recent quarterbacks have adopted some mobility—ever since the Second Three Rivers Council in the early 1970s, when my faith opened its windows to encourage the acceptance and maturation of such future saints as Terry of Steeltown and Roger of Dallas, the Church has accepted the need for modest changes—but my faith has been strong and proven reliable through every storm. That does not stop the media from anointing some college superstar as the next “Next Big Thing” with aggressive regularity. Nevertheless, every time those would-be reformers forget that college football, with its vast talent disparities and slow linebackers, rewards a very different type of play than the NFL. Short-term success is certainly possible until professional defensive coordinators get enough film to develop a counter-strategy (take note, Cam Newton!). Long-term success, however, depends on how well Quarterbacks adapt to the pro game, even if they want to keep some elements of their past—Elder Steve the Young [er] can attest to that.
So Tim Tebow, that living insult to good passing mechanics, is but the latest in a long line of false prophets and cult figures for me to reject. Though the door is always open for him to repent, convert and seek redemption in the bosom of the One True Church.
Oh, wait. You wanted my opinion on Tebow’s Christianity?
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