San Francisco 49ers: Why Alex Smith Can Lead Niners Deep into the Playoffs

When the San Francisco 49ers make their inevitable trip to the 2011 NFL playoffs, quarterback Alex Smith has proven that he has the capability to take the Niners deep into the month of January.

After six tumultuous seasons as the 49ers' off-and-on-again quarterback, many thought that the 2010 season would be Smith's last.

Fortunately for Smith, the NFL lockout gave him the opportunity to win back the starting job as the 49ers quarterback, and he has certainly run with the opportunity.

So now that the critics are slowly starting to back off of their assessment of Smith being a "game manager," what's the next step for Smith in his road to restore his tarnished NFL reputation?

With the 49ers already printing their playoff tickets, the question still remains whether or not Smith can win in the postseason.

Here's a list of six reasons why he'll be able to carry the 49ers deep into the NFL playoffs.

6) Has Thrived in High-Pressure Situations

From the comeback victories against the Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions, which were both played away from home, to the eye-opening performance against the New York Giants, Smith has proved that he does not crumble at the sight of adversity.

Smith has already lead the 49ers to four fourth-quarter comebacks, and the one that took place in Philadelphia was arguably the most impressive. 

The 49ers were down by 20 at one point in the contest, but Smith completed 13 of 17 passes for 201 yards and a couple of touchdowns in the second half and marched the Niners back to beat the Eagles in Philadelphia.

His performance against the Detroit Lions wasn't his most impressive game, but he made plays when the game was on the line, and that's exactly what winning quarterbacks do in the NFL.

5) Excelled with a Game Plan Being Centralized Around Him

The 49ers made it very clear what their team philosophy was going to be in 2011.

They are going to run the ball right at the defense with some smash-mouth football, control the clock and rely on the defense to keep them in games.

In the beginning of the year, Smith was able to get by with just managing the game and making the short throws to move the chains when needed.

But opposing defense started to figure out the 49ers game plan and began stacking the box in order to stop the run.

It was a challenge directed right at Smith, daring him to be the focal point of the offense. The New York Giants were the first team to come out and publicly challenge Smith, and he gladly accepted.

The Giants continually put eight to nine defenders in the box in an attempt to contain Frank Gore and the 49ers running game, but Smith came out throwing the ball early and often.

He only threw for 242 yards and a touchdown, but his poise in the pocket and his pinpoint accuracy throughout the game made 49ers fans throw their hands up in the air and ask where the hell did this come from?

It was arguably Smith's best individual performance in the NFL.

4) 49ers Will Use Remaining Divisional Games to "Practice" Passing Game

It is something that we have seen already in the works during the past couple of weeks.

Dating back to the Giants game in Week 10, the 49ers have been deviating away from their "smash-mouth football" scheme and working on tidying up the passing attack.

Defenses know the 49ers want to run the ball, so what better way for the 49ers to prove that they are not a one-dimensional football team than putting the ball in Smith's hands and letting him win the game through the air?

Alex Smith threw the ball 68 times over the past two games against the Giants and the Cardinals, and expect more of the same during the four remaining divisional matchups.

The Cardinals have the 27th-ranked pass defense in the NFL, but the Seattle Seahawks and St. Louis Rams aren't too shabby when it comes to defending the pass.

The Seahawks ranked 15th and the Rams rank ninth, but that won't stop the 49ers from letting Smith continue to mature in the passing game.

Even if Smith struggles during those games, they are games that the 49ers should win.

3) Showing Poise in the Pocket

Whether it's the improved play from the offensive line, which has drastically progressed throughout the season, or the confidence that Jim Harbaugh has in him, Smith finally has the swagger of an NFL quarterback.

He's not afraid to hang in the pocket and take a hit in order to deliver a accurate pass. Only one year ago, Smith would've gotten the happy feet at the first sight of pressure and just dumped the ball off to his running back.

And don't forget about Smith's uncanny ability to escape from pressure in the pocket in order to extend the play. He's one of the best in the NFL at doing just that. 

On top of that, Smith is doing something that he's never been able to execute during a regular season game: go through his progressions.

During his first six seasons with the 49ers, if Smith's first target was not open, he would either dump it off to his running back or scramble to his right, which is something that opposing defenses knew he had a knack of doing.

Not only has Smith been playing well this season, he finally has the look and the confidence of a quarterback who can lead a team. That confidence, which has been missing throughout Smith's NFL career, could be all he needed to succeed in this league.

2) Potential Playoff Opponents Don't Excel in Pass Defense

Here's a list of all the potential opponents the 49ers could face in the playoffs and where their pass defense ranks in the NFL. 

1. Detroit Lions (7-3) 5th in NFL

2. Dallas Cowboys (6-4) 13th in NFL

3. New York Giants (6-4) 18th in NFL

4. New Orleans Saints (7-3) 19th in NFL

5. Atlanta Falcons (6-4) 26th in NFL

6. Chicago Bears (6-4) 30th in NFL

7. Green Bay Packers (10-0) 31st in NFL

Besides the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys, two defenses which Smith and the 49ers offense has already seen, no opposing secondary poses as a legitimate threat to shut down the passing game.

Even though Dallas' pass defense ranks 13th in the NFL, Smith has already posted a 99.1 quarterback rating against them during the second game of the season.

The secondaries of Green Bay and Chicago look good on paper, but they are both full of aggressive defensive backs who make big plays, but also give up their fair share of them as well.

Even against the Cleveland Browns, who currently have the top-ranked pass defense in the NFL, Smith had a 98.8 quarterback rating.

1) Proved He Can Move the Ball with Absence of Running Game

When Frank Gore left the game early on against the Giants, the spotlight started to shine brightly on Smith, but he didn't not flinch.

Instead, Smith thrived under the pressure and took full advantage of his opportunity to show the country that he isn't a game manager that relies on a strong running game to win football games. Rather, that he is a quarterback that can lead a team to victory when facing adversity.

Even though it looked like the game plan was already built around Smith being the focal point of the offense from the get-go, having Gore leave the game hurt the offense any way you look at it.

Gore, at the very least, could've been a decoy if he was able to stay in the game. But the fact that Gore was on the sidelines for the entire game and it still didn't deter Smith from leading the 49ers to victory spoke volumes about his progression into a legitimate NFL quarterback.

With a healthy Gore in the backfield, it will force defenses to put more defenders in the box in order to stop the 49ers' potent running game.

But if Smith continues to throw the ball like he has this season, opposing defenses won't know who to game-plan against. The 49ers could either come out and run the ball like they did against the Detroit Lions—203 yards rushing—or they can come out passing like they did against the Giants.

Not only will the the element of surprise make the 49ers' offense very difficult to prepare against, it will make them a very tough offense to stop as well.