I was combing through sports headlines the other day and I came across one about Tim Tebow. Not surprising, Tebow is everywhere. Then I kept reading the article and I suddenly felt like my frustrations that have been built-up over the last two years had been validated.

Sports Illustrated ran a survey recently in which 180 NFL players participated. On the survey, there was the question of which player is the most overrated player. With 34 percent of the vote, the players selected Tim Tebow.
It’s about freakin’ time.

In 2010, Tebow, the former Heisman Trophy winner was selected by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the NFL draft. After two terrible, and I do mean awful, seasons in Denver, Tebow was traded to the New York Jets so Denver could make room for Peyton Manning. Some time during those two years, “Tebowmania” exploded and Tebow became more polarizing than LeBron James.

So far this season, Tebow has thrown for a whopping 32 yards and run for an eye-popping 76 in his first seven games with the Jets. Sarcasm aside, Tebow still gets as much media attention as some of the game’s elites like Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady. The attention that Tebow gets continues to leave me scratching my head, considering he is a backup quarterback.

I know what some of you are saying: “Tebow still won games in Denver and took them to the playoffs.” True, a miracle overtime win against a banged-up Steelers team was pretty impressive, but let’s look into the numbers. Tebow played in 14 games last year for the Broncos and averaged only 123 yards per game and completed only 46 percent of his passes. It sounds like he really gets the job done. Don’t get me wrong, Tebow is an incredible athlete and his work ethic is unbeatable.
Whether or not you agree with me, Tim Tebow’s numbers don’t justify his hype. Yet, the curious thing about Tebowmania is that no matter what Tebow does (or doesn’t do), we in the media can’t seem to shut up about him. When I write about Tebow, it adds to the Tebowmania. When this story is a headline on the front page of a major sports organization’s website, it adds to Tebowmania. Could it be because we hate Tebowmania, yet we can’t stop talking about it?
That could be one answer, but there is no sure answer as Tebowmania is difficult to explain. Perhaps if we quit talking about it, then Tebow won’t be the most overrated player in the NFL. Or he could play better; then the hype will be justified.