At yesterday’s press conference where it was officially announced that Peyton Manning will be starting the Denver Broncos this coming season, John Elway said that if he could hand-pick anyone to marry his daughter, it would be Tim Tebow. Manning showered the young quarterback with compliments, saying he was “a fan”. The two also raved that Tebow is a great player, but rumors have been churning lately that he will be traded now that Manning–a four-time MVP and the NFL’s most coveted free agent–has been signed to the team…and Elway did nothing to dispel those rumors, saying that Denver would “not be a super bowl team” with Tebow at the helm, despite the fact that Tebow helped lead Denver to the playoffs last season.

Although Manning displayed a great workout for Denver (and the other teams he was considering) and passed his physicals, he was out all of last season due to a string of neck injuries, which has some Denver fans concerned for the near future. But when asked what the Broncos’ plan B is should a trade commence and Manning gets hurt, Elway seemed incredulous. “We don’t have a plan B. We’re going with plan A,” he said.

Even though Manning is a pretty shiny prize for the Broncos and has been highly sought-after since his release from the Indianapolis Colts, some are wondering just why Denver would take such a risk with an up-and-coming player like Tebow. A recent article on Yahoo! Sports ponders whether or not the real reason there are talks of trading Tebow is that his fans have turned the game into a “circus”.

Tebow, well-known for his Christian values and considerable charity work, has attracted a following of loyal fans, and the phenomenon has been called “Tebowmania”. There’s been talk that all the attention he gets off the field interferes with the game, and speculation is that it could be the reason Denver is so quick to give up the young QB.

“At this point Tebow is a prisoner to his own off-the-field popularity, a rather tough reality considering he didn’t really try to create it in the first place,” writes Dan Wetzel. “No, Tebow hasn’t shied away from attention or outreach or providing a running testimony for his faith. However, he also has turned down a million chances to feed the fire.”

Whether this has anything to do with Denver’s decision–which hasn’t been announced yet–remains to be seen, but it will be interesting to watch how it plays out.