Anti-Christian bias doesn't have anything to do with the Philadelphia Eagles' decision to sign Tim Tebow to a one year contract, despite the claims of some religious conservatives that his faith is hindering him from getting a better deal in the NFL.
According to an article by political science professor John A. Tures on The Huffington Post, criticism of Tebow's ability on the field is not a sign of religious bigotry or religious persecution because of Tebow's openness about his Christian beliefs.
"The NFL is clearly a professional league dominated by Christians. If Tebow is struggling, it isn't because he's "Tebowing" or bowing down in prayer. It's because he's completing less than half of his passes," he said.
Tures said that it's actually Tebow's supporters who continue to look for evidence of anti-religious bias.
"They claim Tebow was great, owing to his lone playoff victory at home over the Pittsburgh Steelers, and how the Broncos did during the season in the won-loss column. Yet a casual glance of the statistics that year showed that he only completed 46.5 percent of his passes, which is the lowest percentage of anyone who threw the ball at least 25 times," he said.
Tebow's career as a professional quarterback has had a polarising effect, with some fans of the game dissatisfied with his statistics, while others love him for his strong faith.
Tures said that while Tebow showed potential in carrying the ball, the player also turned down opportunities to play quarterback or other positions for other teams.
Still, there are those who maintain that Tebow is getting the short end of the stick because of his religious beliefs. Randy Cross, a 3-time Super Bowl champ, is one of them.
"People, especially the media, root against him because of what he stands for. My personal belief is there are people in the media, people in the stands, who are predisposed to see a guy like that fail ... Just because he's so public about the way he feels," he said.
Tebow's latest contract with the Eagles comes only with a base salary of $660,000 released in weekly installments of $38,824 during the regular season. The contract does not guarantee anything other than stipends, with $195 for each day of joining offseason workouts and $1,800 for a week in training camp.
The contract excludes bonuses and also entails an injury split which would cut his pay to $388,000 in case he lands on injured reserve status, reported USA Today Sports.
