Hall of Fame quarterback and Broncos executive John Elway is “surprised” that people took his Nov. 21 comments about quarterback Tim Tebow so negatively.

One week ago, Denver’s executive vice president of football operations said “No” when asked on 102.3 FM The Ticket in Denver if he felt he was any closer to finding the Broncos’ quarterback of the future.

“I was surprised in the fact that people took it to be a negative answer and it really wasn’t a negative answer,” Elway said Monday on the same show, according to NFL.com. “That’s where I was taken aback. It wasn’t meant to be a strike at Timmy at all.

“It was just a reality check of where we were at the time, and it wasn’t a negative because I tried to follow it up with all the positive things we were doing and tried to point out some things we needed to get better at.”

According to NFL.com, Elway told the radio station Monday the issue stems from poor communication on his part.

“I was disappointed, and obviously I need to do a better job communicating that message, because the way it was taken was taken more negative than obviously I really meant it to be,” Elway said. “So that’s just one of those situations, and it’s something I’ll learn from also.”

Elway’s most recent comments came one day after the Broncos’ fourth straight win, all under the cool hand of Tebow and the spread option installed by coach John Fox to match his quarterback’s unique skillset.

While Tebow’s numbers haven’t been pretty, Sunday’s win was the third fourth-quarter comeback generated by the former Heisman Trophy winner this season. It was also the most statistically impressive, perhaps indicating the improvement Elway noted when told 102.3 FM a week ago that Tebow had to do better on third downs and improve as a passer.

For the first time all season, Tebow completed at least half of his passes Sunday, going 9 for 18 for 188 yards in Denver’s 16-13 overtime win at San Diego, and he had strikes of 39 yards to Eric Decker and 23 to Dante Rosario on the game-tying drive late in the fourth quarter.

 

“He’s getting better as a passer right before our eyes,” analyst Steve Mariucci said on the NFL Network. “This is such a fun story because it’s so unique. We haven’t seen this before. Of all of the option quarterbacks that have come into the league, they move them to receiver, or you play Wildcat, or you go play defense. Here is a team that’s playing option football — you’ve got to be kidding me — and the kid is winning games.”

via John Elway ‘surprised’ by reaction to Tim Tebow radio remark – ESPN.

ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Ndamukong Suh’s stomp will cost him two games without pay.

The NFL suspended Detroit’s All-Pro defensive tackle on Tuesday for roughing up a Green Bay Packers player in front of a national television audience during a loss on Thanksgiving Day. Suh will miss Sunday night’s game at New Orleans and a Dec. 11 home game against Minnesota and he won’t be paid until he is reinstated Dec. 12.

 

Suh formally appealed the punishment Tuesday afternoon. Art Shell will serve as the appeals officer. Appeals of discipline for on-field violations do not go to commissioner Roger Goodell.

The league plans to expedite the hearing to make a decision before the Lions play the Saints.

Suh is remorseful and knows he made a mistake last week, but he also was encouraged by the NFL Players Association and Goodell to appeal his two-game suspension, league sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

Suh also is prepared to conform with the punishment, meaning that he is expected to miss Sunday’s game against the Saints with the hope that his suspension could be reduced to one game, sources said.

This suspension is a larger issue than with just Suh, according to one source. The NFLPA wants to try to prevent other players involved in similar incidents from being suspended in the future.

Suh’s suspension will cost him $164,000, or two game checks.

Suh called Goodell on Sunday to apologize, but it didn’t seem to help.

“We respect the process the league undertook in order to arrive at this decision,” the Lions said in a statement before Tuesday afternoon’s practice. The team will have a roster exception during Suh’s suspension.

Message seeking comment were left by The Associated Press with Suh’s agent and sister. Suh can’t practice or be at the Lions’ practice facility during the suspension.

Earlier this season, the reigning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year requested a meeting with Goodell to discuss his play after he drew several penalties. Suh said he had a better understanding of the rules after that meeting.

Instead, he will be watching his teammates scramble to keep up in the NFC wild-card race after what the league was his fifth violation of on-field rules in his first two years in the NFL.

Suh-spended

The Lions’ Ndamukong Suh has received eight personal foul penalties since the start of last season, tied for most in the NFL during that span.

The Lions (7-4) currently would miss the playoffs, losing tiebreakers with the Chicago Bears and Atlanta Falcons, who both are also 7-4.

During the third quarter of Thursday’s 27-15 loss to the Packers, Suh lifted up his right knee and forcibly stepped on the right arm of Green Bay guard Evan Dietrich-Smith. On the same play, Suh shoved Dietrich-Smith’s helmet toward the turf while separating himself from the Packers player on the ground.

He was ejected for kicking and insisted during his postgame news conference that he didn’t intentionally step on Dietrich-Smith. After the Lions criticized his conduct the next day, Suh issued an apology and the talk of the league was whether he was the NFL’s dirtiest player.

NFL vice president of football operations Merton Hanks notified Suh of the penalty for “unsportsmanlike conduct” on Tuesday.

Suh has already been fined three times for roughing up quarterbacks and another time for unsportsmanlike conduct.

He grabbed Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton and threw him to the turf after he had gotten rid of the ball in a preseason game this year. He was docked twice last year for shoving Chicago’s Jay Cutler high in the back and for twisting Cleveland quarterback Jake Delhomme’s face mask and slamming him to the ground. He also was fined $5,000 during Week 9 in the 2010 season for unsportsmanlike conduct.

via Ndamukong Suh of Detroit Lions suspended two games without pay – ESPN.