Tim Tebow will start at quarterback on Sunday against Houston at INVESCO Field at Mile High, Interim Head Coach Eric Studesville said in a Monday press conference.
Tebow made his first career start in Sunday’s 39-23 loss in Oakland, finishing 8-of-16 passing for 138 yards and a touchdown. The 2010 first-round pick’s 100.5 passer rating marked the highest-ever for a Denver rookie quarterback in a starting debut.
He also added seven rushes for 78 yards, including a 40-yard first-quarter rushing touchdown.
The performance earned positive reviews from Studesville and Tebow’s teammates in the minutes after the loss. With Kyle Orton still rehabbing a rib injury, Studesville said a day later that Tebow earned the chance to make his first home start.
“I thought Tim played well in his first start in a difficult environment, being in there with those fans when they started getting cranked up,” Studesville said. “I thought he really managed everything well — the environment, our game plan, got us in and out of the things that we needed to and just ran our offense well.”
Against the Raiders, the team waited until Sunday to announce that Tebow would start. With Kyle Orton still dealing with a rib injury, Studesville said the team decided to make the decision early heading into a Week 16 showdown with the Texans.
The interim head coach said he met with both quarterbacks on Monday morning to explain his decision.
“With where he is right now, we just felt that prolonging this later into the week was not the best thing for our preparation and practice,” Studesville said. “So, we decided to make the decision earlier in the week to go and do this.”
Studesville lauded Tebow for his energizing leadership style and ability “to put the ball where he needed to in order to give us a chance to win the football game” in his debut starting effort. The coach also said he’s excited about building on the performance with another week for Tebow to take a majority of the first-team quarterback reps.
With another week to improve and tweak the gameplan toward Tebow’s strengths, it’s a process that excites Studesville going forward.
“We are finding more and more out about what he does,” Studesville said. “That game yesterday gave us a lot of information and a lot of things that we can work with and go from and that we can build on as coaches to give him. We have seen it out here (at practice), but it is different when everything is full speed on Sunday afternoon.”
JACKSON JOINS SQUAD
The Broncos added Chevis Jackson to the active roster on Monday when they were assigned the third-year cornerback off waivers. To make room, the team waived linebacker Kevin Alexander.
Jackson, a third-year player out of LSU, has appeared in 33 career regular season games with three starts during stints with Jacksonville and Atlanta. He most recently played with New England but did not appear in any games before being waived on Saturday.
The former third round pick has 64 career tackles, including one sack, and one interception. He also played in one postseason game as a rookie with the Falcons, garnering an interception in a start against Arizona.
Alexander played in eight games, playing mostly on special teams, after being elevated from the practice squad on Oct. 16. The linebacker notched one tackle and a pass breakup on defense and added three special-teams stops.
INJURY UPDATE
Studesville said he’s hopeful the team will get back several injured players this week but urged waiting until later in the week before making more concrete judgements.
Knowshon Moreno missed the final three quarters on Sunday after injuring his side. Studesville said the second-year running back spent the morning getting treatment at the team’s Dove Valley facility.
“He is a little sore and we will continue to evaluate that as we go through the week and see where we are with him,” Studesville said.
Matt Prater missed his second straight game with a right groin injury, and the interim head coach said the kicker will test the leg early in the week. If he can’t go, Studesville said he’s been pleased by the job Steven Hauschka has done in Prater’s place and would continue to use the newcomer, who has hit four of his five field goal attempts in the last two games.
Studesville also expressed optimism that Demaryius Thomas (ankle) and Brian Dawkins (knee) might be able to return this week. Thomas has missed the past four games, while Dawkins has been out for three straight.
Thomas practiced on a limited basis last Friday, which the interim head coach viewed as a positive step toward having the rookie wide receiver back against the Texans.
“We got him out moving around a little bit and hope to get a little bit more this week from him,” Studesville said. “He will continue his rehab and what he is doing and monitor it day by day.”
Tags: 2010, Denver Broncos, Tim Tebow, Week 16
Yeah, it may not have been a dominating D, but we had real men in the trenches in Neil Smith, Keith Traylor, Trevor Pryce and Tanuvasa, kick arse attitude LB in Romanowski and good ones in Mobley and Cadrez, killer safety in Atwater and Braxton was good too and Crockett and Gordon were good enough to hold the back end considering the pressure we put on QB’s up front. I would take a line up like this next year in a heartbeat!
There are a lot of HC names being talked about,I’m not saying who’s right and who’s wrong,thats a matter of opinion.No matter who gets the HC job,I would like to see 2 things happen next year that would make me happy.
1st of all,I would like to see us go back to zoneblocking,I think Moreno would be a Beast in that scheme,andTebow could tear it up too.
2nd,I would like to go back to a 4-3 Defense,I think that suits us better.Doom and Ayers are both true DEs,and could be put back at their natural positions,we would be set at DT if we draft Fairley or Dareas along with Bannon in the middle.
Ayers-Fairley/Dareas-Bannon-Doom…..the new Dline I want!
Of course we would need to draft Jones LB and maybe 1 more LB.
And we had Alfred Williams in the trenches in 1997 too!!!
You and I both know it starts in the trenches…
Yeah I do agree,but we also had a GREAT running game that kept them off the field a lot too.That is a big part of our problem now,they seem to wear down in the 3rd and 4th qtrs,they are tired.
Yeah, 4-3 on D and zone scheme on O is what we know it to be our identity, thank god we are going to lose that N-E identity regardless.
Yeah Alfred Williams is probably my favorite outta the bunch.
That’s where Dennison comes in.
Yeah we are the Broncos and Damn proud of it,no more trying to imitate another team!
We were often imitated but never duplicated,the Texans tried it but came up short,especially on D,but they have our O down pretty good.
Yeah Dennison would be a dream at OC,I hate to wish bad luck on anyone,but I do hope they get fired so we can bring Dennison back home where he belongs,didn’t he play LB here?
Yeah, he played eight years as a Broncos linebacker (1982-90).
3 SB’s!!!
So you are saying you want Greg Williams at HC,Rick Dennison at OC,and Wade Phillips at DC,I can live with that.Not to shabby,as long as you think Williams can handle the HC job,he should considering he won’t have to worry about anything but his job.Too much power can destroy a HC look at McD,and Shanny would still be here if he hadn’t had the power to hire and fire the DC.
Just as long as Williams is a Tebow fan,no more drafting or trading for QBs.We can trade Orton and Quinn tho! and pick up a walk on FA for backup,I don’t see paying Orton 9 mil to sit on the freaking bench!
where is greg williams now
A D-minded head coach is needed so that the scheme and the running of it stays with us for a fews years. A good D-Coordinator could move on straight away as they are always sought after.
Although I’d still like Gruden / Tebow as per the vid posted earlier!
DC of the Saints, that’s why only way to bring him in is as HC, same with Spewell (Giants DC) and Rivera (SD DC).
Williams is DC of the Saints…
I just wish McDaniels left before Dennison did. Getting him back will be tough if kubiak keeps his HC job in houston..Dennison knows kubiak more than anyone we get in denver…
When I say whoever as long as it works…I mean we make playoffs and superbowls. As long as they right the ship. Get us defense and where we need to be. McD didn’t do that…and i never thought he could…And like u bay im glad the NE way is out the window. Dennison will be a dream but anyway, I can’t wait for offseason when decisions will be made. So we can move forward. Hope its the right decisions
And for those who think McD sucked because he was inexperienced as a HC…not just that….He was a egotistic maniac who was power hungry and wanted to do everyones job or have them do exactly what he says. Coaches are like a football team…just know your role,, do it and trust your comrade will do his. Like on D its all about gap control….trying to do someone elses job results in hole in the D. Support don’t take into your own hands. Not to mention not only was he inexperienced as a HC…He ONLY knew the NE way and was young to boot. A great coach has been exposed to way more than one way. And is usually either older than anyone on his roster for the most part…or has the mental maturity of a a disciplinarian.
Huh well bring in Ryan I say look what he has done with the browns d this year who ever it is I hope you guys are right and he is a defensive BA
Good post TRB.
Kubiak should be history in Houston, he has been given 5 years after all…. Cowher will take that job and Dennison will be available to move up… over here I hope.
Dennison knows Bowlen over here….
And how could I forget Elway!
That’s a great trio reunion if you ask me.
Thx Bay
And yea thats the hope, because 5 years of not getting it done is one thing..but when a coach like cowher says he is interested…that reduced his likely hood of staying from 50 percent to 20 percent. Hopefully Dennison can come up here as OC/OL (like he is in houston) … I just fear that if Kubiak is avialable Bowlen will find it hard to pass him up. He is very close with the bowlen family from what i hear (but so was shanny) getting him might be a mistake cuz houston is a talented offense team with no defense…its exactly like a shannahan team in his later years and thats the LAST thing we need.
I don’t want Kubiak as HC either, I could live with him as OC but that’s it.
TE-BOW TE-BOW TE-BOW TE-BOW TE-BOW!!!
tex 17
broncos 31
you guys are crazy thinking dennison is going to come on board as OC under anyone but Kubiak.. however headcoach is a different stroke. he was a defensive player and learned O under the best. he is the one for my money. nuf said
Great arguments have been made in regards to bringing in a d mined HC. I won’t embarrass myself too much at attempting persuasive dialog to no avail. I will hold on to my stubborn ways however and not believe that it is a move in the right direction. However something has to be done for our defense. It seems to me that the constant change of coordinators is the biggest downfall to our team. More so than how the HC’s mentality is focused. I want a HC who will not ship out a coordinator at the drop of a dime. I believe in giving the HC, 3 years to prove himself, it would be extremely unfair to ask a coordinator to do it in less than 3 and wander why there is such a lack of production. Specifically there is pretty much only two coaches I would not like to see in Denver in any realistic capacity. 1) Jon Gruden 2) Mike Nolan… other than those two, I am really hoping that management can perform a productive and realistic search for the new coaching regime. I believe it was Bay that mentioned how at first it was easy to believe in McDaniels because of how he talked. It was easy to be impressed with him by his knowledge of the game, but as we have seen, he was not ready. All the talk was straight from the “Bellichick Coaching Playbook”. I hope that our management does not get bamboozled this time around.
I called the sirius blitz with adam shine and rich gannon. Asked them what they thought of tebow and what our chances were on getting gruden. They liked tebow performance but not sure if gruden will come to denver because mr b. Might not pay that kind o f money. If he does need to get him first before a gm so he can reccomend a gm he can work with. I hope mr b. Pays top dollar on a hc. Gruden or not.we tried that with new hc with no
experiance don’t want that again. That came from rich gannon who still remains close with him. Frisco looks good for gruden but still lack of qb. Can’t wait to find out who it will be.
For the record. I am still backing McDaniels, someday he will lead a dominating team in this league. He was just not ready when given his first opportunity and it is extremely obvious that Denver was not a good fit for him, then or ever.
CHUCKY CHUCKY CHUCKY
ya i would like to 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and even 5th the idea of scratching Kubiak off the HC list. i like Rivera. he has done great things with the SD defense. say what you will about SD, they have a good D. would love to have dennison as OC. wade phillips would be a good DC as long as (previously stated by… bay i think) the HC is a D minded guy! also want to second the idea of drafting a DT in round 1, with a mean as heck LB in the 2nd, possible 2 LBs in the second. Then we could use another Safety… scary mean like say… atwater style of play, or polumalu type of guy. then prob better get at least 1 CB in there somewhere also. We ABSOLUTELY MUST draft leaders on D. we need vocal leaders not the by example types. so a vocal MLB. that needs to be our highest 2nd round pick IMO.
GO TEBOW, GO BRONCOS!!
OFFENSE WINS GAMES, DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS!!
THE BATTLE IS WON IN THE TRENCHES!!
I just looked up the draft order if season ended today and we are at #2. If you want to see current position of teams so far type in (updated draft position). So if we lose the last two games we will be #2 for sure. INTERESTING………….
As much as i like Kubiak I wouldn`t like him as HC either. We`d be right back where we were with Shanny. OC is fine with me along with Dennison. zoneblocking baby. Also bring back the 4-3 D. Thats our make-up.
Ya Rayjr26, I`d like the top DT. From what BFE has said over and over about Fairly I`d want him. A DT with over 10 sacks. That says it all for me. Not sure of the # of TFL though but I bet it`s alot. We need a young monster of a DT top priority.
Agreed, either way anyone looks at it the front 7 has been our demise for years, drafting for any other positions in the first half of the draft would make very little sense to me.
And it is funny that safety is becoming a position of need since one year ago it was our deepest with Dawkins, who now we know is done, Hill who this year hasn’t always exactly commanded the respect I thought I should give him, Barrett who McD lost to Belicheck, McBath who has been now found out to be injury prone and that leaves Bruton… How quickly can things turn around.
I like the idea of getting a top rated D lineman or a monster of a MLB. The MLB needs to be the leader of the D. We have not had one capable, I believe since Al Wilson.
What I am honestly wandering about and very curious. Would management even be open to bringing in some former staff? I am not in line with most here that want Dennison back in some capacity. He is one, that like Kubiak for some, am comfortable with not welcoming back.
It would take a lot to sell me on the idea of bringing in Rivera. I remember vividly AJ Smith calling them “wimps”. Even though SD does appear to have a solid defense, this too is not a coach I would be comfortable with giving the reigns to. Now I do understand that Smith is a j/o but a lot can be said about the inconsistencies of the SD defense without superstar players on steroids.
So, there are my two cents, but I just got a massive head ache. I contemplated, what if Brad Childress came to Denver…. I need to find some Ibprofen asap.
I’m definitely most wary about the possibility of Bowlen bringing Kubiak back and make him HC, that would seem like an easy decision for Bowlen considering their relationship and the long standing Elway/Kubiak relationship but it would not be a smart football decision for this team at this point in my opinion, I mean the guy had 5 years in Houston with tremendous talent on the front 7 and could never get in the playoffs even with that all world offense of theirs. Definitely most worried about it for sure…..
If Childress comes into Denver, I cut up my Bronco membership card, haha.
Stevencan2, Brad Childress lost the lockerroom of the Vikings. The players resented him. The players wanted himgone. Childress is a complete jerk. There`s no way I want him.
I think he was just joking, if you noticed, he just said thinking about it gave him a headache.
Plus we play outdoor, we don’t play under a dome, LOL.
OK. He`s not going to be hear anyway. If Mr. Bowlen brings him in for an interview I`d need some ibprofen also.
I see that Coach Gruden was wearing an orange jacket on MNF. Is he giving Mr Bowlen and John Elway a hint?
HINT! HINT!
The same division with the Manning guy at the QB? Who has OWNED that division. Exception being one year when Tennessee went nuts! Kubes took that team, a relative expansion team, and did the best he could. Considering Manning. And wild cards going to AFC east/north year in year out. Tough position to be in.
I for one would welcome the idea of Kubiak as our HC. He’s ‘worked’ with a lot of QBs. Griese, Plummer, Schaub.
He could really be in a position to provide Tebow the necessary coaching. Not some power trip, I have to prove my point, do as I say not as I do Coach. He’s 1a on my list. After Nolan.
DEFENSE in 2011