You can't blame Denver Broncos fans for being excited. Barring an act of Tebow, Peyton Manning will be their next starting quarterback.
But what about Tim Tebow? This is a man who created some of the greatest memories in recent franchise history. Now he's done, reportedly being shopped around the NFL.
If you took the pulse of Denver's fan base right now, would the euphoria of free-agency conquest be replaced by nostalgia for Tebowmania? Would there be reservations about giving up on a 24-year-old quarterback for a surgery-plagued player more than a decade his senior? Would there be Tebow loyalists who viewed Monday's move as a grave mistake?
Well ... no. Not even a little, at least according to radio callers on KKFN-FM in Denver.
• "I even cried a little bit," said Javier, a graveyard shift worker who said he enjoys waking up to sports talk radio more than waking next to his wife. "I just want to say it's a great day in Denver Broncos country."
• "Even though we had all the excitement over Tim Tebow last year with all the comebacks," a caller named Brent said, "I can guarantee Denver it's going to be replaced with expectations of Super Bowl victories, and that will far outweigh what we had with Tim Tebow last year."
You get the point. Tebow once had an army of defenders in Denver. Now -- like Tebow himself -- it's ancient history. The NFL really does stand for Not For Long.
