Tony Romo. Jay Cutler. Drew Brees.
NFL quarterbacks are racking up the injuries through the first two weeks of the 2015 season. Some will miss multiple games, as with the case of Romo and Cutler. Others, such as Derek Carr, already missed parts of games due to various ailments.
This is nothing new in today's fast-paced, hard-hitting NFL. Injuries to star players are becoming more and more common place in recent seasons. As we see, quarterbacks are not exempt from this list. In some cases, they even have a higher risk in receiving a devastating hit, leaving a team scrambling to find a replacement. When this occurs, fans immediately begin to clamor for one man: Tim Tebow.
Fans from Dallas and Chicago are no different. Placing the success of the franchises on the shoulders of Brandon Weeden and Jimmy Clausen are not sitting well with fans. The Cowboys seemingly solved their backup quarterback situation by trading for Matt Cassel. (Sorry Kellen Moore. Maybe one day you'll get that shot. At least you should be active this week while Cassel learns the playbook.)
As for Bears fans, I ask this: Why Tebow? After an excellent college career at the University of Florida, Tebow has failed again and again on the pro level. Sure, he has an 8-6 career record, going 7-4 and leading the Broncos to the playoffs in 2011. That Denver team was led by a top-tier defense. Tebow would struggle for three quarters while the defense kept the game close. Then, in miraculous fashion, Tebow would have an amazing fourth quarter by throwing five-yard crossing routes that got taken sixty yards for a score.
Yes, Tebow is a leader. There is no discrediting that. Even at the NFL level, though, you need to show a little bit more consistency. Tebow's mechanics have never been great and teams have figured out ways to limit the success of running quarterbacks. His window has closed.
If one needs more proof, one can take a look at his stats. He has thrown 17 touchdowns against 9 interceptions. He has thrown for 2422 yards. Toss in a career completion percentage of 47.9% and what you have is a quarterback not worth the time.
With that being said, here are five players worth signing to be your next backup quarterback who are better options than Tim Tebow.
Rex Grossman
Teams: 3
Stats: 56 career touchdowns, 10,232 career yards
Rex Grossman last played a snap in 2013 but that doesn't mean he's not worth a look. Old "Train Rex" himself was the very man who led the Bears to their last Super Bowl appearance in 2007. Maybe he's the one that can right this ship for the 2015 season. Oh, wait, they'll probably need a defense first.
Matt Flynn
Teams: 4 (regular season)
Stats: 17 career touchdowns, 61% completion rate, one hefty contract
Matt Flynn, one may remember, struck it rich after his 6-touchdown performance in the final game of the 2011 season with Green Bay. He signed with Seattle, didn't even start a game, and has been bouncing around since. On second thought, he has the same problem Tebow did. He couldn't even secure a roster spot with the Jets. That's a big red flag right there.
Christian Ponder
Stats: 38 td's, 36 int's, and a career-record of 14-21-1.
Christian Ponder never really caught on with Minnesota. And he has the same problem as Matt Flynn, except you need to replace the word 'Jets' with the word 'Raiders'.
Jeff George
Stats: 12 years, Over 22,000 yards, and 154 career touchdowns.
Jeff George, the original "arm for hire", can most likely still sling it around the field at the age of 48. I'm sure if he was called, he would answer.
LaDainian Tomlinson
Stats: 8-12, 143 yards and 7 td's.
LaDainian Tomlinson threw the half-back pass like no other. Plus, look at those numbers. He can easily lead the Bears to glory. Now, all you have to do is get him out of retirement.
There it is. Five players that can uplift the Bears to greatness other than Tebow. Or any other team, for that matter. It's time to move on from the man that lost relevancy on the field years ago. A relevancy he never truly earned, at least in the NFL.
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