Vitals
Position: Backup quarterback, cultural icon

Height: 6 feet 3 | Weight: 236

Age: 25 | Experience: 3rd year

The storyline

Tebow led the Broncos to the playoffs last year, his second season after Denver chose him in the first round of the draft. He was 8-6 as a starting quarterback in two seasons in Denver to a playoff victory over Pittsburgh in fact, but the acquisition of Peyton Manning meant there was no room at the inn, and he was traded to New York to serve as Mark Sanchez's backup. Tebow's significance derives from the extreme split he inspires among fans, some of whom believe he is winning incarnate, and some of whom believe he simply is a quarterback who can't throw. At least not well.

Talk about a letdown. So far he has rushed 23 times for 78 yards, which ranks No. 93 in the league. It's one more than Cincinnati's Andy Dalton has totaled. Tebow has also attempted three passes, completing two of them for a net gain of 32 yards or in other words, 7 yards more than Seahawks receiver Sidney Rice gained on his completion last week.

The strategy

Seattle has to be aware of Tebow, but the fact the Seahawks defended Carolina's read option so well in Week 5 bodes well for Seattle. The Seahawks did not have to deviate from their base defensive package to stop Cam Newton, and the Jets may not be as difficult to defend since Tebow's entrance to the game is like a flare signaling a potential quarterback keeper is coming.

The statement

Q: How would you use Tim Tebow if he was on your football team?

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll: "We don't have him on our team so I don't want to divulge that because you never know."

Q: What are your thoughts on Tim Tebow?

Carroll: "I think he's a great, competitive football player. What he did last year is in the books. It's real, what he did, and he did it in a fashion that few would think would be successful. I think his will and his competitiveness that he's always demonstrated since he was a young kid just came through. It was not to the liking of the way Denver wanted to go."