NFL Playoff Picture: Predicting the Postseason Field After Week 17

Number 31 was still in the starting lineup the last time I was this excited for an Indiana Pacers team.

Expectations are high in Indiana this year.  A strong post-season performance last year against the Bulls, even if it didn't result in many wins, has fueled Pacer fans' devotion to the 2011-2012 bunch.

The draft night acquisition of George Hill, the signing of David West and the strange growth spurt of Paul George have all added to the excitement.

Although the Pacers have 15 players on their roster according to the team's website, I have ranked the top 12.

Out of those 12 players, who is the most valuable to the Pacers in their quest for a higher playoff seed and perhaps a post-season run? This isn't necessarily the best player, or Danny Granger and David West would likely be first and second.  It is instead the value the player has to the teams chances of succeeding.

Here is a ranking of the value of each player to the team's chances.

NFC No. 1 Seed: Green Bay Packers

At 14-1, the Green Bay Packers have the top seed in the NFC locked down, and with it comes a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. These are huge benefits to a team heavily favored to reach and win their second Super Bowl in as many years.

Though the Packers have their flaws, they've managed to overcome them well, as their record clearly indicates. There's no bigger team to beat in this year's NFC playoffs.

NFC No. 2 Seed: San Francisco 49ers

So much in the NFL can change in the span of a single offseason, and the 2012 San Francisco 49ers are the best example of this fact.

At 12-3 on the year, they had the NFC West locked down weeks ago. They have the conference's best defense, and while their offense isn't on par with some of the top ones around the NFC, that defensive strength will prove invaluable to the 49ers as they advance in the playoffs.

NFC No. 3 Seed: New Orleans Saints

The Green Bay Packers aren't the only team that boasts an elite offense in the NFC. In terms of total yardage, the New Orleans Saints have the most productive offense in the league this year thanks to quarterback Drew Brees and his record-setting season.

No stranger to the playoffs, the 2009-2010 Super Bowl champion Saints are looking to raise the Lombardi Trophy yet again.

While the NFC boasts the league's strongest playoff squads, the Saints are among those that will be tough to beat, especially considering that they've won their last seven regular-season games in a row.

NFC No. 4 Seed: New York Giants

The NFC East's playoff spot has yet to be filled and it's come down to the final game of the final week of the regular season to determine whether the Dallas Cowboys or New York Giants will earn it.

However, with the season's final game being played in New York and the Giants able to do more with less, I see the Big Blue earning the NFC East's sole playoff spot.

Consistency is an issue for the Giants and might cause them a great deal of trouble in the playoffs, especially considering the other teams that they'll have to face. But the Giants know what it takes to reach a Super Bowl and will likely strengthen once they hit the postseason.

NFC No. 5 Seed: Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions entered the 2011 season with a lot of buzz surrounding them and they've more than lived up to the hype. In the difficult NFC North division, the Lions managed not only to win 10 of their 15 games but clinch their first postseason berth since 1999.

With the New Orleans Saints and Green Bay Packers putting up impressive offensive performances on a weekly basis, the Lions' own strong offense has fallen by the wayside. However, they're an extremely formidable team on both sides of the ball and have a great shot at a deep playoff run this year.

NFC No. 5 Seed: Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons have made the playoffs for the third time in the last four years, doing so this season by fielding one of the most complete and balanced squads in the league. With a number of serious contenders around the NFC, it was no small feat for the Falcons to secure themselves a playoff spot this year.

To be sure, the Falcons are prone to missteps, as evidenced by their 45-16 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 15. If they want to make it beyond their first playoff game, they're going to have to minimize these kinds of mistakes.

AFC No. 1 Seed: New England Patriots

The New England Patriots could lose their hold on the top spot in the AFC this week with a loss and a Pittsburgh Steelers and/or Baltimore Ravens win, but it doesn't seem likely for the conference's top offense.

The only thing that harms the Patriots' chances for yet another Super Bowl appearance is their league-worst passing defense that's giving up nearly 295 yards per game.

Without significant improvements in their secondary, it's going to be a long and difficult postseason for this otherwise dominant team.

AFC No. 2 Seed: Pittsburgh Steelers

With a win this week and a loss by the Baltimore Ravens, the Pittsburgh Steelers are vaulted into the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, secure a first-round bye and end the year as AFC North champions. This is the exact scenario I see playing out in Week 17.

The Steelers have the most playoff experience of any team in the AFC, missing the postseason just three times since 2001 and reaching three (and winning two) Super Bowls since 2005. They, more than any other team, know how to reset for the playoffs, turning it into a second season in which this tough team only gets tougher.

While not as dominant as they were last season, the Steelers are still the team to beat in the AFC playoffs this year.

AFC No. 3 Seed: Houston Texans

The Houston Texans locked up a playoff berth and the AFC South title weeks ago, which was lucky for them considering the number of injuries they had already sustained and continue to sustain this season.

They're quite the troubled team heading into the postseason, with rookie quarterback and former third-stringer T.J. Yates pushed into the starting role after both Matt Schaub and backup Matt Leinart went down with season-ending injuries.

However, they have one of the strongest running games in the league and a top defense, both of which will prove invaluable to the team during their first playoff run in franchise history.

AFC No. 4 Seed: Oakland Raiders

Though the Denver Broncos have control of the AFC West's playoff berth heading into Week 17, they can lose it with a loss this week and a win by the Oakland Raiders.

With the Raiders putting so much into making the postseason in 2011, I see them winning out (and the Broncos losing) in Week 17 and getting that much-wanted No. 4 seed.

The Raiders have a lot of assets on their team but those same assets carry with them a great deal of risk. Quarterback Carson Palmer is prone to fits of inaccuracy, his young receivers are fast but have questionable hands and it's hard to tell which iteration of the Raiders defense will show up in a given game.

Oakland is never a team worth underestimating, however, and should be surprisingly formidable once in the postseason.

AFC No. 5 Seed: Baltimore Ravens

If the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Cleveland Browns in Week 17 and the Baltimore Ravens fall to the Cincinnati Bengals, then the Steelers win the AFC North division and the Ravens take the No. 5 seed in the playoffs once held by Pittsburgh.

This is how I see Week 17 and thus the playoffs playing out, with the Ravens as the wild-card team heading into the postseason.

The Ravens have the top defense in the AFC, which is nothing new for a team known as a defensive powerhouse for years now. It's their offense that is the major question mark for the team this year, with quarterback Joe Flacco prone to inconsistent play and costing his team wins because of it.

Baltimore has struggled in the playoffs in recent years. Though they have a glut of experience, they don't have a glut of wins. But this is the best Ravens squad that's ever been in playoff contention and should put together quite the deep run this year.

AFC No. 6 Seed: Cincinnati Bengals

If the Cincinnati Bengals defeat the Baltimore Ravens this week, they'll secure the second AFC Wild Card playoff spot.

They can also get in with a combination of losses by other teams in contention, but that won't be necessary as I see them getting the Week 17 win and earning the third playoff spot by an AFC North team this year.

To say the Bengals have outperformed expectations this season would be an understatement. With a rookie quarterback under center and a rookie wide receiver his primary target, no one thought that Cincy would end the year above .500 let alone secure themselves a playoff spot.

But that quarterback, Andy Dalton, has thrown for well over 3,000 yards this season aided greatly by Pro Bowl rookie wide receiver A.J. Green. Their defense has played strongly and their running game has also remained effective.

It's going to be a tough road for the inexperienced Bengals in the playoffs this season, but considering how well they've performed, they've clearly earned the chance.