Tim Tebow's Shocking Run of Success Will Push Denver Broncos into Playoffs

The mania surrounding Tim Tebow continues to grow with each passing week. Someway, somehow, the Denver Broncos quarterback continues to help lead his team to unexpected victories. It's a shocking run of success that will ultimately lead to a playoff berth.

Tebow is now 7-1 as a starter this season after another comeback win, this one against a depleted Chicago Bears squad. The Broncos didn't score until there was barely more than two minutes remaining, but still managed to come out on top.

It's a story that keeps picking up steam on a national level as people tune in simply to see if Tebow can do it again. And, at least so far, he hasn't let them down.

Tebow isn't doing it alone, of course. The Broncos defense is improving on a seemingly weekly basis and has given its quarterback a chance to put on his Superman cape in the fourth quarter. Without the defense's immense contributions, this run wouldn't be possible.

Then there's kicker Matt Prater. He nailed two kicks of longer than 50 yards against the Bears, first to send the game to overtime and then to win it. It's unsung heroes like him that allow Tebow to become an unfathomable phenomena.

Sunday's win gave the Broncos a one-game lead over the fading Oakland Raiders in the AFC West. At this point the San Diego Chargers, who have made it a habit to make late-season dashes toward the playoffs, are probably a bigger threat.

Tebow and Co. will face an uphill battle against the New England Patriots next week but have two winnable games to finish the season. Assuming they can take care of business against Buffalo and Kansas City, they'll make one of the most surprising playoff appearances in recent memory.

The debate, which will continue to rage despite the team's success, will keep focusing on how important Tebow actually is to Denver's success.

There's no doubt the Broncos have played with a much higher intensity level since the Florida product took over under center. He's always been praised for his leadership abilities and this situation doesn't seem any different.

He might not be an elite passer and the games his team wins are rarely pretty, but when the final whistle blows all that matters is which team has more points. And more often than not since late October, that has been Tebow's Broncos.

Some fans may not enjoy the continuous hype train that he's created, but everybody better get used to it because conductor Tebow is guiding the Broncos straight into the playoffs.