Posted 09.01.2010

Sports biz: Tebow with the ball

By Stewart Schley

The stock market has price/earnings ratios. In real estate, it’s location. And in the world of spectator sports, one element drives the market: hope. With that in mind, (and with apologies to Ernest Lawrence Thayer) we offer up this early-September preamble to the new NFL season:

The season hadn’t gone well for the Broncos now through three
They’d lost badly in Seattle, and been humbled by Indy
And when Knowshon coughed the ball up, and Bailey tweaked his knee
Despair began to burble in Section 103

Though hope had sprung eternal across the jerseyed masses
They’d seen far too many miscues, and errant Orton passes
Still, deep inside, in silence, eighty-thousand shared one thought:
If Tebow dons his helmet, we might just have a shot

But a first down was negated by a lousy offside call
And Gaffney, like a rookie, dropped an easy gimme ball
And with just one minute on the clock, and facing third and 10
It seemed apparent to the faithful: We were bound to lose again

But an unexpected draw play caught two linebackers off-guard
And a long-forgotten fullback earned the first down by a yard
The opponents still had 13, and the Broncos still had nine
When over on the sideline, McDaniels called for time.

Then seemingly from nowhere, the crowd began to roar
It started in the South Stands, near section 234
Where attentive fans had noticed a new player on the scene
He was shorter than the others. And his number was 15.

There was purpose in his gait as he trotted to the huddle
There was poise in his demeanor, and the defense now 
smelled trouble
From the cheap seats to the boxes, fresh hope had been restored
For Tim was on the field, clad predominately in orange

Eighty-thousand strong arose as the linemen took their places
There was fury in their voices, and faith upon their faces
They glanced once at the scoreboard, and clenched their knotted fists
As Tebow barked the play out from a cheat sheet on his wrist

Oh, a quick efficient handoff would surely get the offense going
A safe and easy offering to get the rookie’s juices flowing
But the team had something else in mind. For there would be no run.
Tebow had backed up five steps. The kid was in the gun.

The play the coach had scripted was a pass play wide and long
But the tight end badly stumbled, and the timing was all wrong
And when Tebow let the leather fly, the crowd became dejected
For it seemed the pass was certain to be quickly intercepted

But look! Straight out of nowhere, came Denver’s Eddie Royal
Bearing down on the defender, and determined now to spoil
The lousy lucky play that seemed sure to end this Sunday dance
And yes! Eddie delivered. And yes! There was a chance.

But the seconds seemed like minutes as the game clock now ticked down
The tension cracked like thunder through the roaring of the crowd
The time was fast receding, two seconds left was all
When finally, in a nick of time, the center hiked the ball

As if players in a Shakespeare scene the lineman took their cues
In lockstep they maneuvered and in unison they moved
They shifted left, all five of them, in a stout and trenchant wall
As Tebow, now protected, prepared to throw the ball

He stood noble as a statue, in warrior-like pose
As players raced downfield and the crowd noise swelled and rose
And the quarterback drew back his arm and let the football fly
And time seemed now suspended as the game clock read :05

Oh, Sundays come and Sundays go, and each season starts anew
And verdant football parking lots emit a scent of barbecue
And fans proudly wear their colors as they high-five their faithful friends…
But you’ll have to wait, oh sports fan, to see how this 
story ends

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