Thread: Tebow's rise to top backup may come Thursday

Tebow's rise to top backup may come Thursday
The Denver Post
POSTED: 09/01/2010 01:00:00 AM MDT


Tim Tebow (Denver Post file photo)
Is rookie Tim Tebow officially the No. 2 quarterback?

The Broncos closed practice to the media Tuesday before engaging in team drills, so it won't be known until early in their preseason game Thursday night at Minnesota whom coach Josh McDaniels prefers as his backup quarterback.

Starting quarterback Kyle Orton is expected to play one or two series Thursday. If Tebow replaces Orton first, as he did during the second half Sunday against Pittsburgh, his promotion to the No. 2 slot will be all but official.

Should former first-round draft pick Brady Quinn be the first sub in, Tebow may still be the game-day backup so he can be used in short-yardage and goal-line situations. But the competition for the true backup position may be on.

"We're going to let them compete today and in Minnesota," McDaniels said. "Both players have done some good things, both players have turned the ball over, both players have been able to function in the two-minute offense and I think that both players have plenty of room to improve.

"From that standpoint, I think this game will probably help us determine kind of where we see everything."

Clady update.

Let this be a lesson to the youngsters who line up nearest Ryan Clady.

If you're going to hoop, hoop it up in April.

Despite blowing out his knee while playing basketball on the same weekend the Broncos drafted left guard Zane Beadles and center J.D. Walton, the all-pro Clady may have timed his injury so that he never misses a game.

Clady, who has started all 32 games at left tackle since the Broncos drafted the offensive lineman with the No. 12 pick in 2008, not only was practicing Tuesday without wearing an orange (noncontact) jersey, the team's plan is to play him in the preseason finale.

Besides Clady, running back Correll Buckhalter also practiced without restriction for the first time Tuesday while starting tailback Knowshon Moreno returned for the first time since suffering a strained hamstring on Aug. 1, the first day of training camp. Moreno was wearing an orange jersey.
"If the backs are ready to go, we're going to play them," McDaniels said.

"Ryan Clady, same thing. We're going to kind of use today and tomorrow to gauge where we're at. Those guys will be there and that's what we're hoping for. So if they can do that and get some of those first hits out of the way and some of the first game action out of the way before we go to Jacksonville (for the Sept. 12 opener), that would be the purpose of it."

Back in business?

Tebow and backup running back LenDale White played Sunday against Pittsburgh despite practicing with injury limitations last week.

So there is precedent for Moreno to play Thursday against the Vikings. It would still be a surprise, though, because of the shortened work week and Moreno's admission that his hamstring is only 80 percent healed.

"I'm not really sure. It's whatever Coach wants to do," Moreno said. "I'm just trying to get healthy, get better and get back."

Moreno is expected to be a starter in the Broncos' opener at Jacksonville.

Mike Klis, The Denver Post



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Have the starters run down the field and score, and then put on their baseball caps.

No injuries!

Even with how badly Quinn has played, I'd rather him as the backup this year. Orton looked horrible in preseason last year, too. I'm not making excuses for Quinn, but I wouldn't make Tebow the backup based solely on preseason.

Originally Posted by I Eat Staples

Even with how badly Quinn has played, I'd rather him as the backup this year. Orton looked horrible in preseason last year, too. I'm not making excuses for Quinn, but I wouldn't make Tebow the backup based solely on preseason.

no matter if quinn played lights out...he was in all likely going to be labeled as 3rd string in order to be able to utilize tebow in certain packages

Originally Posted by arapaho2

no matter if quinn played lights out...he was in all likely going to be labeled as 3rd string in order to be able to utilize tebow in certain packages

That's true, but we could have just kept 3 active QBs.

Also, I really hope there's none of these "special packages". All that will do is hurt our offensive rhythm as well as Tebow's development as a QB.

Originally Posted by I Eat Staples

That's true, but we could have just kept 3 active QBs.

Also, I really hope there's none of these "special packages". All that will do is hurt our offensive rhythm as well as Tebow's development as a QB.

yes but for tebow to be active as the 3rd qb and come into a game as a qb would result in orton sitting the rest of the game

if tebow is the #2 he can come and go into the game....with quinn the 3rd coming in only if orton is hurt and cannot play further

therfor tobe able to bring tebow into games in certain packages he must be officialy #2

Originally Posted by arapaho2

yes but for tebow to be active as the 3rd qb and come into a game as a qb would result in orton sitting the rest of the game

if tebow is the #2 he can come and go into the game....with quinn the 3rd coming in only if orton is hurt and cannot play further

therfor tobe able to bring tebow into games in certain packages he must be officialy #2

That's not true. That rule only applies to a player listed as the emergency QB. If you have 3 active QBs, any of them can play at any time.

funny. . . i told people that tebow would be the number two this year, and quinn would be lucky to make the team-- it was met with a good bit of skepticism. . . this really shouldn't be any surprise, though. . . experience level aside, tebow's a player, and quinn just isn't. . .

Not exactly a shocking idea that Tebow listed at #2...

Tebow has had 4 years playing in the spread quinn well has not.

We he ever be anything after the beatdown in CLE time will tell
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Originally Posted by Jrwiz

Tebow has had 4 years playing in the spread quinn well has not.

We he ever be anything after the beatdown in CLE time will tell
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i think time already has told. . .

i'm actually pretty amazed at how badly quinn has played