2012 NFL Playoff Schedule: Tim Tebow, Alex Smith and QBs Whose Luck Has Run Out

The divisional round of the NFL postseason is here and only eight teams still have Super Bowl dreams still alive.

A few great quarterbacks have led their respective teams to this position on stellar play throughout the season and in the playoffs, such as Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady.

Others have gotten more fortunate and have been helped out tremendously by a little something called luck to be in this position.

Here are the names of the signal-callers who will need more than lady luck on their side this weekend to get by.

Alex Smith

The 49ers drafted Smith with the No. 1 overall pick way back in 2005, but he never turned out to be a star in this league.

He has been benched and started a number of years by a plethora of coaches, but finally found a niche as a game manager under Jim Harbaugh.

Now that the NFL has basically become flag football for receivers and QBs, you need an elite passer to win in the postseason.

Gone are the days of Trent Dilfer guiding a defensive-minded team to the Super Bowl by checking down, managing the clock and avoiding turnovers.

We now see guys like Brees, Rodgers and Peyton Manning hoisting the Lombardi Trophy, all elite quarterbacks who put their team on their backs. 

If Smith can’t make plays downfield, the 49ers have no chance of putting up enough points to hang with the Saints.

Tim Tebow

You have to love Tim Tebow—he’s a proven winner and one of the most exciting quarterbacks in the NFL to watch.

His string of fourth-quarter comebacks and overtime victories, including his 80-yard strike in the Wild Card game against Pittsburgh, is the stuff of legends.

However, the one fault the Broncos have proved they have with Tebow is the inability to come back from large deficits.

Unfortunately, they play a team that can pile on the points just as rapidly as any team in this league and will force Tebow to beat them with his arm.

Unless he can work another miracle and find a way to crawl out of a large deficit with more than a few final minutes, the Broncos’ epic season will be over. 

AFC Divisional Playoff Schedule

Saturday, Jan. 14 at 8 p.m. EST on CBS: Denver Broncos at New England Patriots

Sunday, Jan. 15 at 1 p.m. EST on CBS: Houston Texans at Baltimore Ravens

NFC Divisional Playoff Schedule

Saturday, Jan. 14 at 4:30 p.m. EST on FOX: New Orleans Saints at San Francisco 49ers

Sunday, Jan. 15 at 4:30 p.m. EST on FOX: New York Giants at Green Bay Packers