Has Kanye West stopped speaking yet? His Video Music Awards “acceptance speech” was so rambling, self-aggrandizing, illogical and damning that it made his plan to run for president in 2020 seem entirely plausible. Somewhere between Kanye’s miserably inane diatribe and Miley Cyrus’s tedious S&M antics, I switched channels to hear sports commentators talking about the prospects of Tim Tebow.

Cultural whiplash.

By now most people are familiar with Tebow’s personal bio — devout Christian, 2007 Heisman-winning University of Florida quarterback, released by the Broncos for Peyton Manning, unimpressive performance with the Jets, two summer months with the Patriots. After two years away, by sheer force of will and relentless training of his arm, Tebow is back for another shot with another franchise. To the delight of his fans, he survives on the Philadelphia Eagles’ roster as third-string quarterback — at least for now.

(Update: Tebow along with some 700 NFL other players was cut this past weekend. “We felt Tim has progressed, but we didn’t feel he was good enough to be the [No.] 3 [quarterback] right now,” Eagles head coach Chip Kelly said.)

Why does Tebow elicit such a reaction from people? Certainly there are other football players who are far more talented and just as devout — Saints’ Drew Brees or Seahawks’ Russell Wilson. Yet perhaps it’s because Tebow isn’t as strong an athlete and hasn’t yet found wild success that people are drawn to his story. Everyone loves an underdog with a heart of gold.

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Tebow represents everything that today’s sex-it-up and curse-it-out popular culture despises: manners, gratitude, humility, chastity, perseverance, selflessness — and yes, godliness.

Other than being hugely successful in the hip-hop and fashion world, what does Kanye West represent culturally? While he may be the sweetest guy ever on the inside (his song “Jesus Walks” was the best), on the outside Kanye comes across as the anti-Tebow: boorish, disrespectful, foul-mouthed, arrogant, and insecure.

The moment West walks on stage, we cringe. He is a man who goes to absurd lengths to be the center of it all — stepping on Taylor Swift’s award speech, wearing a leather skirt, and this year trashing the very idea of an awards show that was honoring him. He also hogged air-time for the subject he loves most — himself.

Being honored in the Video Vanguard category, the man known to millions as the guy lucky enough to marry Kim Kardashian forgot to acknowledge her presence in the front row. And did he thank his professional collaborators? No way, bro! And the rapper-turned-fashionista looked like he stole his outfit from the closet of an insane asylum patient.

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His 13-minute speech seemed like a Kanye mini-series on an endless loop. It couldn’t end fast enough.

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Yet when we see Tebow run out on the football field, knowing his past glories and struggles as a player, we are rooting for him. He does hard things. He stays true to his faith despite the cultural ridicule, and tirelessly works to better his game. Over the loud chorus of critics, he has remained eternally cheerful.

“I’m just continuing to try and refine and improve my mechanics,” Tebow said recently. “I know it sounds like a cliché but … I try to go out here and work, always be positive.”

Will he make the team? After a recent practice, he simply said, ”It’s been an awesome journey.”

Back at the VMAs, meanwhile, Kanye drew cheers for profundities such as: “We the millennials, bro. This is a new mentality … We gonna teach our kids that they can be something. We gonna teach our kids that they can stand up for thyself!”

I’ll stick with the old mentality, if you don’t mind, and hope they stand like Tebow — for “themselves” and for others.

This article has been updated.