Either Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher forgot Tim Tebow was a quarterback, or a little sarcasm crept into the visiting locker room on Sunday after the Denver Broncos captured a 13-10 overtime victory.
"He's a good running back ... He does a good job for them," Urlacher told reporters when asked about Tebow.
When asked what he thought of the passing of Tebow, who was 21-of-40 for 236 yards with a touchdown and an interception, Urlacher praised Tebow's scrambling ability.
Tebow was told about Urlacher calling him a running back and did not take offense.
"Coming from a really good player, that means a lot," Tebow said.
The Bears were not in a great mood after surrendering a 10-0 fourth-quarter lead, and considering Tebow's passer rating was 68.3, they decided to spread around their respect for the Broncos instead of singling out the quarterback.
"We missed some opportunities in the game," Bears defensive end Julius Peppers said. "We got to finish better. That's pretty much it. It wasn't anything special he did."
Bears linebacker Lance Briggs praised the competitiveness of Tebow, who is 7-1 as a starter, including wins in his last six.
"Played hard," Briggs said. "I respect a guy who plays hard. Him and all the other 10 guys on the field for the Broncos."
Bears coach Lovie Smith also spread the praise around.
"He was able to scramble around and keep plays alive that allowed receivers chances to get open," Smith said. "He's a good football player, but they have other good football players. They're a good football team. ... Tebow is a leader of their team, normally the quarterback dictates a lot as to who wins the game, and he definitely had a big part in that today. "