SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – Star quarterbacks Drew Brees, Eli Manning and Aaron Rodgers are all playing in the two NFC playoff games this weekend. The fourth is 49ers QB Alex Smith.

“For him to be there, he kind of showed everyone,” John Madden told the KCBS morning crew. “Jim Harbaugh gets a lot of credit for it, and he should. The system gets a lot of credit for it, and it should. The running game gets a lot of credit, and it should. But there’s a part that Alex Smith had to do to get here, and he did that part.”

The weather will be clear and mild for the 49ers-Saints game at Candlestick Saturday afternoon. Madden said that isn’t necessarily good news for the home team.

“The Saints are truly fast break football,” the former coach said. “The way they play is as close to a video game as there is in the NFL… Any rain, wet, heavy field, those types of things – I think would help the 49ers. So if you’re local and you’re rooting local, you’d root for some weather here. And obviously you lost, because it’s going to be a nice day.” (7:35)

Listen to the John Madden segment live weekday mornings at 8:15 on KCBS All News 740 AM/106.9 FM.

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