A Mile High comeback, 12 years later: Tim Tebow back in Denver for the Broncos' opener

Read the original at Toronto Star ↗
Toronto Star · collected 2026-09-18 · by Arnie Stapleton The Associated Press

Quick Summary

Tim Tebow is set to return to Empower Field at Mile High as the Broncos' "Legend of the Game" for their home opener against Jacksonville on Sunday, 12 years after his memorable touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas helped secure a playoff victory over Pittsburgh in 2012. Quarterback Bo Nix spoke about Tebow’s enduring impact and their growing friendship. The ceremony will include Tebow planting the team flag before kickoff and being recognized during an in-game break.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-18, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

Tim Tebow, former quarterback for the Denver Broncos, is returning to Empower Field at Mile High on Sunday, September 10, 2023, for his team's home opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Broncos announced that Tebow will serve as the alumni flag planter and be recognized as a "Legend of the Game." This event marks 11 years since Tebow threw an iconic 80-yard touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas during overtime in the playoffs, contributing significantly to a 29-23 win against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite this memorable moment, Tebow's tenure with the Broncos was brief; after Manning joined the team via free agency, Tebow left the organization. Current Broncos quarterback Bo Nix expressed his excitement about Tebow’s return and highlighted their growing friendship over recent years.

Written for “Tebow Returns To Broncos” on 2026-09-18, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
11
claim-shaped sentences
Uncertain
0%
0 of 11 hedged
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Correction & hedging signals
61.4
corrections and hedging in what we collected; not a measure of accuracy
Outlets on this story
1
Sports
Narrative spread
1
articles carrying this framing
Analyzed 2026-09-18 · how these are computed

Story

📰 Tebow Returns To Broncos
Sports · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Compared with similar articles

Nothing to compare against. No article is close enough to this one for the pipeline to have linked or judged the pair.

Publisher

Toronto Star · 1058 article(s) · 3 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 3 correction(s)
2026-09-17
UPDATE: Osisko Critical Minerals Corporation Announces C$100 Million Private Placement of Special Warrants
2026-09-17
Alabama set to execute man for pawn shop killings months after his nitrogen gas execution blocked
2026-09-04
Orca Corrects Q3 Quarterly Dividend Announcement

Who wrote this

Arnie Stapleton The Associated Press
4 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The Broncos (0-1) announced Thursday that the former QB will serve as the alumni flag planter and be recognized as the Broncos’ “Legend of the Game” for their home opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0) on Sunday.
🔮 The Broncos converted just twice in a dozen third-down opportunities and couldn’t sustain drives even before the game got out of hand.
🔮 I thought we could get it and we didn’t.”
Wire or desk byline, not an individual reporter.
More on this subject from Arnie Stapleton The Associated Press
All 4 articles by Arnie Stapleton The Associated Press →

Topics

Broncos DENVER SEC the Jacksonville Jaguars the Pittsburgh Steelers

Subjects

Broncos ORG · 9× Tebow PERSON · 6× DENVER GPE · 4× Bo Nix PERSON · 1× Demaryius Thomas PERSON · 1× Nix PERSON · 1× SEC ORG · 1× Tim Tebow PERSON · 1× the Jacksonville Jaguars ORG · 1× the Pittsburgh Steelers ORG · 1×

Narrative

In the first round of the playoffs that season, Tebow and Thomas teamed up for one of the NFL’s most iconic finishes, connecting on an 80-yard pass on the first play of overtime for a 29-23 win. The Broncos were blown out that next week at New England and Tebow’s time in Denver was soon over after Manning joined the Broncos in free agency two months later.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-18
🔮 The Broncos (0-1) announced Thursday that the former QB will serve as the alumni flag planter and be recognized as the Broncos’ “Legend of the Game” for their home opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0) on Sunday.

Claims (11 extracted, 0 hedged)

DENVER (AP) — Tim Tebow is returning to Empower Field at Mile High for the first time since throwing an 80-yard touchdown pass to the late Demaryius Thomas on the first play of overtime against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Jan. 8, 2012. asserted
Tebow → return → Jan.
The Broncos (0-1) announced Thursday that the former QB will serve as the alumni flag planter and be recognized as the Broncos’ “Legend of the Game” for their home opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0) on Sunday. asserted
QB → announce → Sunday
“It’ll be awesome to see him sort of in his environment, back at his spot,” Broncos quarterback Bo Nix said. asserted
Nix → see → spot
“Our relationship’s grown as we’ve gone on, and I remember him a while back, watching him play, I was a huge fan, he was my favorite quarterback growing up. asserted
he → grow → him
“And then as he became a commentator and announcer for the SEC, I was able to get to know him a little bit more,” Nix added, “and then now getting drafted by the Broncos and having that affiliation, we’ve gotten closer and been able to talk, been able to meet a couple of times. asserted
we → become → times
So, he’s a great friend, a great role model and it’ll be cool to have him out.” asserted
it → ’ → him
Tebowmania was a short-lived phenomenon in Denver before Peyton Manning arrived and led the Broncos to their third Super Bowl championship. asserted
Manning → live → championship
A first-round draft pick in 2010, Tebow replaced starter Kyle Orton after a 1-5 start in 2011 and led Denver to several dramatic victories, starting with an 18-15 overtime win at Miami when Tebow rallied the Broncos from a 15-0 deficit in the final 2:44 of regulation. asserted
Tebow → replace → regulation
In the first round of the playoffs that season, Tebow and Thomas teamed up for one of the NFL’s most iconic finishes, connecting on an 80-yard pass on the first play of overtime for a 29-23 win. The Broncos were blown out that next week at New England and Tebow’s time in Denver was soon over after Manning joined the Broncos in free agency two months later. asserted
Manning → team → agency
Tebow was subsequently traded to the New York Jets, where he started two games in 2012 before bouncing around other training camps, including Jacksonville’s, and then embarking on a broadcasting career. asserted
he → trade → career
Tebow will plant the Broncos’ flag ahead of kickoff and the team will recognize him on their giant video board during an in-game stoppage. asserted
team → plant → stoppage
💬 Give feedback
🕘 History 🎫 Support