Tim Tebow: Why Tim Terrific's Magic Is Sure to Run Out Next Weekend

Tim Tebow worked his magic once again on Sunday, leading the Broncos to yet another improbable victory, this one coming over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. 

But don't expect the polarizing youngster to convert himself any more followers next week, when his young Broncos square off against the New England Patriots. 

When the dust settles and reality sets in for the newly minted Tebowites, they'll come to realize that they're running into a team who has one of the league's most explosive offenses, a quarterback who still has two fully functional legs to throw with and an offensive line that can't be penetrated by a three-man rush as easily as Pittsburgh's was. 

The Pats' offense has already sliced and diced the Broncos once, to the tune of 41 points and 451 yards in Week 15. Bill Belichick knows how to pick John Fox's defense apart, and without that defense, Denver has to rely almost entirely on Tebow and the offense to score points. 

And that's where things get hairy. Tebow has flashed brilliance at times this season, delivering perfect, tight spirals into tight spaces and displaying a surprising touch on his passes. But he's also struggled with his consistency, overthrowing, underthrowing and flat-out missing receivers on a regular basis.

That was never more true than against the Patriots in Week 15. Tebow was at his schizophrenic best, looking like John Elway in the first quarter, and Akili Smith the rest of the way, struggling to hit open receivers while the offense sputtered and stalled regularly in the second half. 

On top of that, the running game is bereft of playmakers outside of Tebow; Knowshon Moreno is still hurt, and Willis McGahee is hardly an explosive runner anymore, preferring to grind out short-to-mid-length carries and lacking the big speed to break off big runs. 

With an inconsistent offense, there's no way the Broncos can hope to keep up with Tom Brady and the Pats come next weekend. The Patriots spread the ball around better than any team outside of New Orleans and Green Bay, and as we've seen repeatedly during the Broncos' recent run, this defense struggles when teams can spread the ball around. 

Just look at Pittsburgh. They started to find space to operate on Sunday when they realized that Antonio Brown was routinely open, and made things very interesting when they spread the ball around. If you think Bill Belichick hasn't figured this out, you haven't been paying attention. 

Don't get me wrong, I love Tim Terrific. He's shown he can be a solid passer and his leadership qualities have inspired this team to success. He's a leader, supremely confident and his charity work makes him an excellent role model for kids. He's still got work to do to fulfill his potential, but he's getting better every week. If Denver was facing any other remaining AFC team next weekend, Tebow's magic would keep rolling, and his legend would reach epic levels. 

But with Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the veteran Patriots back on the menu in the divisional round, Tim Terrific just doesn't have enough magic to pull the upset. 

Then again, we said the same thing last week.