ESPN’s Merril Hoge Rips Tim Tebow…For No Apparent Reason

Amidst the news that Tim Tebow has been working with the scout team at Denver Broncos training camp, former NFL running back and current ESPN analyst Merril Hoge once again went back to the film room to watch Tebow’s three starts for the Denver Broncos last year. Hoge was not impressed, to say the least.

He Tweeted that it is embarrassing for any Denver Broncos fan to think Tebow could start after watching his three games from last year. Hoge also went on ESPN and criticized Tebow’s throwing motion, his accuracy, and said that if you took the “F” off of his helmet and the name off of his back, that he would be just a late round pick or an undrafted free agent.

To be blunt, Merril Hoge is way out of his league here, and he’s over-compensating for something. I have done the research. I have watched the games. I have seen Tebow in person at training camp, and I have seen every single snap he’s ever taken for the Denver Broncos. He is like any other rookie quarterback or second year guy–he is very, very raw.

But does that give Hoge the right to go on national television and national media and continue to publicly torture a guy who is just trying to do his job, a guy who is doing what he loves? Hoge of ALL people should know when and when not to tell someone what they can or can’t do, what they can or cannot overcome.

Nevermind the fact Hoge was a homeless man’s Peyton Hillis when he played in the NFL, this is a guy who has publicly tried to humiliate Tim Tebow more than Todd McShay. If Hoge has nothing better to do than go back and look at Tim Tebow’s first three starts, then here’s an idea for you Hoge–go back and look at the first three starts of Peyton Manning, John Elway, and Tom Brady. Go back and tell me who has better accuracy.

If you want a tid-bit, then know this–John Elway’s BEST quarterback rating in his first three NFL starts was 0.2 points different than Tebow’s WORST rating in his three starts.

There is no denying that the Broncos were far more competitive in Tebow’s three starts than in any game previous dating all the way back to a game where they allegedly cheated against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Broncos’ scoring offensively sky-rocketed, and guys bought into Tebow. For those who honestly believe that Kyle Orton is that much better than Tebow, why don’t you ask Broncos fans why they were begging and pleading for Tebow at the end of last season. It wasn’t because the team was losing, it was because there was a stink you could smell from Denver all the way up here in South Dakota, and it was Kyle Orton.

I am not saying that Tebow is the second coming of any great quarterback, or that he will be the next John Elway. He is the first, the one and only Tim Tebow. He gives Broncos fans hope where Kyle Orton does not. Orton will likely make less mistakes, sure. The Broncos are capable of winning with Kyle Orton as quarterback, but Orton is not capable of winning the Broncos games. Tebow proved last year that he WAS capable of leading this team to victory, a quality the Broncos have not had in a quarterback since Elway left.

If you want to rip Tebow for his throwing motion–go ahead. But then tell me about Philip Rivers’ throwing motion. Tell me about Brett Favre’s throwing motion. You look at one of the most mechanically sound quarterbacks in NFL history in Peyton Manning. He is so good fundamentally and so accurate, yet he only has one Super Bowl ring. Mechanics don’t mean everything. Tebow has played three games in the NFL, so pundits like Hoge need to lay off or get laid off.

I personally am sick of the extra pressure people are putting on the Broncos’ quarterback situation, but I’m not dumb enough to think it’s just going to disappear. Tebow is not going to have anything handed to him in the NFL, and he doesn’t think that way. It’s ridiculous to see so many people hating a guy who has never been anything but nice to everyone, a guy who is simply trying to live his dream. He doesn’t care that people say he can’t, so why haven’t they stopped yet?

If he is going to fail, then he is going to fail. He doesn’t need a bunch of jerks from main-stream media continually riding him like they do. It’s apalling, disgusting, and I for one am ashamed of Merril Hoge. Lay off of Tebow, and let the guys play football.