Tebow Would Have Brought A Story To Mass.

I'm a fan of stories.

The Red Sox disappointed lots of fans in September, but the story of their free-fall, like any train wreck, was compelling. Boston's followers swore and screamed and tossed snack food at their television screens, but most of them couldn't look away.

That's not to suggest that Tim Tebow as a Patriot would have been a train wreck.

But it's been apparent for years that Tebow generates stories that energize those who adore him and infuriate those who don't. He did that in Denver, and he'll do it in New York. In spades.

That proclivity for polarizing people became apparent when Tebow was still in college. Nobody argued that he wasn't a fine quarterback then, but the way he thanked his personal savior during post-game interviews irked many, and the bible verses in his eye black struck even some who shared his persuasion as over-the-top and goofy.

Purists were put off by Tebow's unorthodox form. Some seemed insulted by the notion that he could aspire to play in the pros. People who didn't share Tim Tebow's feelings about abortion felt he should shut up and play, or at least shut up, as did folks who didn't see the hand of God in such matters as whether the Denver Broncos won. Others maintained that it didn't matter whether Tim Tebow stood on his head, crossed his eyes, and threw the ball between his legs, as long as he got the job done, and lots of people who shared his convictions regarded him as heroic, if not saintly, for stating those convictions publicly at every opportunity.

Tim Tebow's baggage, whether or not you regard it as admirable, would have traveled with him to New England, and it will certainly be examined thoroughly and commented upon at length in New York. Will it ever.

Which is the point, isn't it? Some athletes come with stories, and no matter how you feel about them, you don't like to lose those stories to somebody else.