DENVER – When Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow arrived for his postgame press conference Thursday after an extended wait, he apologized "for taking so long."
He could have been talking about the game itself, in which he once again saved his best for last, leading Denver to a 17-13 victory over the New York Jets with a 95-yard scoring drive capped by his 20-yard touchdown run at the 58-second mark.
Broncos fans likely would tell him: No apology needed.
Since Tebow replaced Kyle Orton as the starting quarterback last month, the Broncos (5-5) have won four of five games, three of them in down-to-the-wire fashion, to climb within a half-game of Oakland in the AFC West.
"I like winning, but I wish it wasn't quite that stressful," Tebow said.
Broncos fans, many of whom clamored for Tebow as Denver began the season 1-4, are learning that when time — and hope — seem to be running out, it's Tebow Time.
"He's super competitive," Broncos coach John Fox said. "He never lays his sword down. He's going to fight you to the death."
His effort Thursday was helped greatly by the Broncos' defense, which, until the winning drive, had scored Denver's only touchdown on a third-quarter interception return by cornerback Andre Goodman.
The defense also snuffed the Jets' efforts at a comeback in the last 58 seconds, with rookie linebacker Von Miller sacking New York quarterback Mark Sanchez midway through the drive. Sanchez's last-second pass attempt fell incomplete as time ran out, extending the misery and further dampening the playoff hopes of the Jets (5-5), who just four nights earlier lost 37-16 to the New England Patriots.
"We made too many mistakes to win a game," Jets coach Rex Ryan said Thursday.
Denver's offense was far from perfect through the first 54 minutes of the game. The winning drive was the Broncos' only sustained series.
Until that point, Tebow was off the mark and off his vaunted running game. He had just 11 yards rushing and 69 yards passing (completing six of 15 attempts) coming into the fourth quarter.
The Jets broke a 10-10 tie early in the fourth quarter on a 45-yard Nick Folk field goal. The score was still 13-10 when the Broncos took over at their own 5-yard line with 5:54 remaining in the game.
"When we were in the huddle, what we were talking about as an offense is that you want opportunities like this, because this is an opportunity for greatness as an offense," Tebow said. "We said, 'We haven't done anything this whole game, but we have an opportunity to do something special right now.' "
Broncos receiver Dante Rosario remembered not so much what was said as what he saw.
"You could just tell he was very amped up, very emotional, but in control," he said of Tebow. "He had that excitement in his eyes like he knew what was about to happen."
Tebow completed three of five passes, including a right-on-target 18-yarder to Rosario, and ran for 57 yards on six carries.
The Jets "blitzed everybody" on the last play of the drive, Tebow said, which created an opening to the end zone.
"Tim Tebow did it," said Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, who earlier in the week said no NFL team could be successful over the long haul primarily running an option offense, as the Broncos are doing with Tebow. "He shocked me."
Week by week, Tebow is quieting his detractors and turning up the volume on "Tebow-mania."
He earned the starting job by leading the Broncos to 16 fourth-quarter points in a Oct. 9 loss to San Diego. The rally fell short only on the game's last play, when the Chargers knocked down a would-be touchdown pass.
In his first start, Tebow willed the Broncos to a 18-15 overtime win against Miami. Last Sunday, he threw a 56-yard, fourth-quarter scoring strike to Eric Decker to lift the Broncos past Kansas City.
"I put that pressure on myself to try to make something happen," Tebow said. "Ultimately, that's the best part about being a quarterback. That's why I've wanted to be a quarterback since I was 6 years old, watching guys like John Elway and Steve Young have game-winning drives."
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