AP – New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez (81) celebrates with Wes Welker after scoring on a 17-yard … FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Looks like Tebowmania has run its course.
"We just weren't able to get it going," Tim Tebow said after Tom Brady and the New England Patriots effectively buried the NFL's feel-good story of the year with a 45-10 rout of the Denver Broncos on Saturday night.
Tebow had to know it from the start.
And after Denver fell behind 35-7 at halftime. And after his frantic scrambles and wild passes failed, not to mention a non-existent Broncos defense.
Maligned for his faulty throwing motion, Tebow still managed to lead the Broncos to four overtime victories this season, the latest a 29-23 thrilling win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on his 80-yard scoring pass to Demaryius Thomas in a wild-card playoff game.
"It was fun to overcome forms of adversity with my teammates. Lot of things we're proud of," Tebow said. "There were a lot of ups and downs this season. To win some special games, to get in the playoffs, there's a lot of great things about this year."
Few of them happened Saturday.
On his first possession, he threw an incompletion and lost a fumble. By halftime, he had completed just 3 of 10 passes for 28 yards. By that time, Brady already had thrown five of his six touchdown passes.
Tebow just couldn't overcome a defense ranked 31st in the NFL.
"They did some good things, stunting up front," he said. "They played well. I thank my teammates for their effort even when things didn't go well."
Tebow became the starter for a team that was 1-4 and won seven of the next eight games, before losing the last three to finish the regular season at 8-8.
"I was really proud of what he showed and where he brought this football team," Denver coach John Fox said. "We're a work in progress."
Tebow remained upbeat after the game, saying he would — in time — be able to focus more on the good things that have happened this season than on the disappointing finish.
And he wasn't talking about football.
The Broncos quarterback mentioned visiting sick children in the hospital, and the stage his success in the NFL has given him.
"I had a platform to do more important things than football," Tebow said.
Now he goes into the offseason trying to improve. The question is: Will he be the starter again next season?
"Of course, he's our guy," safety Rahim Moore said. "People put too much pressure on him. He's going to have some good and some bad. I believe in him and I would like him to be our quarterback."
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