Few of us can imagine a world without Tim Tebow. It seems John Elway can’t either.

Elway, the newly appointed VP of football operations for the Broncos, left little room for doubt during his introductory news conference Wednesday that Tebow is the future at quarterback. It would stand to reason the yet-to-be-hired head coach should hold the same opinion as well.

“I don’t believe that anyone is going to come over and say, ‘I don’t want Tim Tebow,’” Elway said of his coaching candidates. “If they do, then maybe they are not the right guy for the job.”

Elway won’t be making personnel decisions or coaching in Denver, but will hire the football minds who will and has final say in football matters. So while he admitted Tebow needs much work as a pocket passer — he said it’s up to the Broncos to figure that out — the next head coach will be handed Project Tebow with certain expectations. 

Checking in with NFL Network analyst Jamie Dukes, he believes the dynamic represents a potential pitfall for Elway.

“I think Elways’ biggest challenge is his relationship and faith in Tebow. The biggest landmine he’s going to have to navigate is the balancing act of liking Tebow as a person and what it means for him as a quarterback. Are you going to bring in somebody who can run the team because you like him, or somebody who will run an offense suited to Tebow’s abilities to run and pass? If that’s the case, you might want to check in with Marty Mornhinweg.”

Dukes’ point is well-taken, and Elway’s first major decision with the Broncos will be his hire of a head coach. How much bearing will the team’s stock in Tebow play in that decision? It might be a good idea for the candidates currently on the list — Perry Fewell, Jim Harbaugh, Eric Studesville and Mike Mularkey – to have some type of blueprint for Project Tebow.

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