Whether or not he continues being a surprisingly effective football player, Robert Steven Williams writes, Tim Tebow has already made his mark.

You don’t have to be religious to love Tebow’s ability to overcome the monumental odds of success at quarterback through hard work and faith. It doesn’t matter to me how or who he draws strength from, the guy is beating odds and defying explanation.

Despite all the wins, his boss, John Elway, speaks publicly that Tebow doesn’t have what it takes. All the experts say the same 24/7 on TV, newspapers, and in the blogosphere.

It would take someone with Christ’s power to get me out of bed, let alone take the field to lead a team in a professional football game, with all those naysayers pontificating to the masses.

I’m no religious fanatic or huge Bronco fan, so I’m objective enough to understand that a strong Denver defense keeps the game close for Tebow’s late-game heroics, but I also don’t underestimate his teammates belief that if they keep the game tight, Tebow will come through for them.

I would have thought that any decent coach could fix Tebow’s mechanics. Tebow is obviously smart; he’s a hard worker and fearless. But all the experts say Tebow’s fundamentals are so awful, he’s unfixable. They also say he can’t hit the side of a barn with a football.

And yet he’s poised to take his team to the playoffs.

For all those kids told that they will never amount to anything, Tebow is proof not to listen. And to all those adults told that it’s too late, Tebow is proof that those in the know are often wrong.

I’ve certainly faced my uphill battles. I dropped out of a high-paying corporate job to write fiction and songs. It has been a difficult journey, and I was told often and by many, that I was too old and that it was too late to learn what I needed to be competitive in a crowded market.

I soldiered on. I apprenticed and I wrote lots of crappy prose and awful songs. I must admit that I envy Tebow’s faith in his church and Jesus. I had no such established source to draw sustenance from in my days of drought. I turned inward. Yoga and meditation helped.

In the way that Tebow draws his strength from Jesus, I found strength in knowing that there is something bigger than just “self” out there and that it is possible to tap into this energy to experience opportunity, love and happiness.

The odds are still against Tebow, but he’s already performed miracles, and so if this streak peters out, it doesn’t matter. I also realize that the odds are still stacked against me, but I’ve already moved mountains. I am far from a household name, but established artists have recognized something in my efforts and if nothing more amounts from what I’ve produced, this remarkable journey was well worth the splinters and struggle.

But I get this feeling that we haven’t seen the last of Tebow’s winning drives, and I feel the same about what I’m doing too, despite what these so-called experts say.

—Photo Charlie Neibergall/AP