The Denver Broncos’ Quarterback Non-Controversy

Denver Broncos quarterback Brady Quinn was quick to apologize for comments in a recent article. (Jason O. Watson-US PRESSWIRE)

I’m not going to question the motives behind Mike Silver’s recent feature in GQ, “The Year of Magical Stinking: An Oral History Tebow Time.”

Frankly, I get it.  Tim Tebow elicits the most dichotomous feelings since I found out the three brothers that make up Hanson compose halfway decent music (the adults, not the children).  Denver Broncos fans were witness to something we can’t really explain:

A quarterback with shaky accuracy and “flawed” mechanics spearheaded the most thrilling season 15 years.  Add in the faith component, and there’s no doubt that people are going to be giving strong opinions, trying to process this anomaly out loud, and  even voicing their criticisms.

One thing I’m not a huge fan of is the antagonistic drama that conversations about polarizing figures devolves to.  Whether he meant to or not, Silver’s tenor and the portrayal of Denver’s backup quarterback Brady Quinn are not very flattering.  Feeling like this was not an honest appraisal of the context of their interview, Quinn’s apology was immediate:

"The comments attributed to me in a recent magazine article are in NO WAY reflective of my opinion of Tim and the Broncos.  Tim deserves a lot of credit for our success and I’m happy for him and what he accomplished.  Most importantly, he is a great teammate.  That interview was conducted three months ago, and the resulting story was a completely inaccurate portrayal of my comments.  I have addressed my disappointment with the writer and have reached out to Tim to clear this up.  I apologize to anyone who feels I was trying to take anything away from our Team’s or Tim’s success this season.  -@BQ9 (Brady Quinn) via Twitter."

As human as it is to make mistakes and to blow things out of proportion (hang on we’re about to deviate from football into the sociological realm), it’s just as human to apologize.

Whether you view football players as role models for your kids or as people who play a game and live very public lives, a lot is made of what Player A said about Player B and how Player B reacted when he found out.  We’re hardly ever privy to the apology if there is one.  And in what world does this sort of interaction fly with co-workers, spouses, children, or friends?

Thanks, Brady Quinn, for being a public reminder of that fact; something to model.

For as tantalizing as drama is, I prefer the non-controversy of  “I’m sorry.”

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