Maybe Dennis Green was right.
Maybe, in this crazy society of sports, it is as simple as “They are who we thought they are,” or something close to his famous rant when the then-Green-coached Arizona Cardinals imploded in a second-half loss to Chicago in 2006.
Frequently it’s just that simple, regardless of the ink spilled or the countless hours spent discussing long-standing facts in this fictional hot seat or that fact or fiction or every made-for-television faux debate.
It’s there, for everyone to see, for everyone to digest and for everyone to doubt the next time the situation arises.
They are who we thought they are.
As soon as Brett Favre rolled right and opened his shoulders in the final seconds of regulation Sunday night in New Orleans, it was apparent to everyone watching from Winnipeg to Lake Winnie that he was going to throw an interception.
It was Favre, after all. It’s what he has done throughout his career that will be remembered and enshrined for his record-setting numbers and his incredible durability. His greatness always has been tempered by his insistence to force one throw too many — becoming too often the one interception that has been fatal.
Favre’s glorious career and silver locks aside, he was, in the end, the quarterback we have known all along.
Peyton Manning on Sunday was, you guessed it, who we thought he was. He withstood an early push, planned his response, was lethal in the final two minutes of the first half — including that seam pass to Austin Collie that was the best single throw I’ve ever seen — and punished the Jets.
This brings us to Tim Tebow.
Unless you have spent the better parts of the last three college football seasons in hibernation or isolated with your volleyball Wilson, you know Tebow. The former Florida Gators quarterback is as famous as anyone this side of Obama.
He won better than 80 percent of his college starts. He took home the Heisman as a sophomore. He became the face of college football, Bible-versed eye black and all. But is Dennis Green right about Tebow, too? Is Tebow what we thought he is as a football player?
Tebow ventured to Senior Bowl practice this week, aiming to prove to NFL scouts that he could flourish in the league as a quarterback. The NFL’s questions regarding Tebow are numerous. His mechanics are awkward. He operated almost entirely out of the shoutgun. His decision-making is slow, his delivery even moreso.
Reports from NFL.com Monday night were far from glowing, even stating Tebow struggled taking snaps directly from the center.
There was even discussions of making him a fullback or a tight end. Please, people. He is who we think is. Tebow is a quarterback, and he always has been a winner.
If Jeff George or Ryan Leaf — two guys who tested through the roof in the scouting and combine process — can warrant top-two spots in the draft, you can’t tell me Tebow will not get drafted. Seriously, testing well at the combine led us to believe that JaMarcus Russell was worthy of the No. 1 overall pick.
This is not to say Tebow will be a first-round pick or that he even deserves to be a first-round pick. Yes, there are cautionary signs. However, Alex Smith, Chris Redman, Jake Delhomme and Russell each started games in the NFL last year. I’ll take my chances with Tebow.
And that I know.