NFL Playoff Picture: 4 Teams That Will Rue Their Seeding Come January

It's always a good thing when you make the postseason. Thereafter is when the next set of issues arise.

This season we see teams like the Green Bay Packers and New England Patriots who have earned playoff byes—but what about the other teams?

To that end, here are four teams who will regret their 2011 January seeding when their season ends.

Denver Broncos (AFC No. 4 Seed)

Denver's only shot to get into the playoff is as the AFC's No. 4 seed. A loss will doom their odds unless the Raiders also lose.

Nonetheless, a win over Kansas City at home in Week 17 gets the Broncos in.

However, they then will host either Baltimore or Pittsburgh of the AFC North. With that division having yet to be decided, it's really splitting hairs as to whom you want to face.

Both have excellent defenses that will shut down Denver's offense, and both have an offense that's capable of scoring at least 21 to 28 points—something that the Broncos fail to do against teams with either high-scoring offenses or better than advertised defenses.

At least not yet are the Broncos good enough to solely rely on their defense winning games. They may be able to limit your average offenses, but effective units like the Steelers and Ravens will score enough to get Denver out of their offensive strength—running the rock.

With the NFL's No. 31 ranked passing offense and a QB in Tim Tebow who struggles to complete 50 percent of his passes, not only will Denver beat themselves, but Pittsburgh/Baltimore will prevent Tebow-mania from ever having a glimpse of making a comeback.

Detroit Lions (NFC No. 6 Seed)

In Week 17, the Lions play at Green Bay and although it's smart for the Packers to rest their starters, the Lions have already locked up a playoff spot, so why should they play their starters?

Obviously the Lions would rather play at the Giants/Cowboys instead of New Orleans, but don't think for a second that Green Bay is just going to lay low. The Packers are at home and despite having home-field advantage, sitting and getting out of rhythm now could be concerning in the postseason.

Expect Green Bay to play their starters for most of the game to get a feel for playing the game in harsh conditions. It's the only way they can truly prepare for winter in Titletown.

That said, the Lions will fall in Week 17 and the Falcons beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at home. Hence, Detroit falls to the No. 6 seed as Atlanta has the tiebreaker and the Lions play at New Orleans in the Wild-Card round.

Although this is a major step for The Motor City's football franchise, getting bounced early could put a damper on the start of 2012. In any event, no one would want to play the Saints in The Superdome right now, so don't anticipate Detroit lasting long in January.

Houston Texans (AFC No. 3 Seed)

Mainly because of injuries is why the Houston Texans will be one-and-done in the playoffs.

On top of that, odds are that they play a team whom they've already faced this season. Right now the Cincinnati Bengals, Oakland Raiders, New York Jets and Tennessee Titans all have a shot at the AFC's No. 6 seed.

Houston has played all except the Jets and will have played the Titans twice after the regular season.

So, their opponent will most likely know them and be able to oust them when it matters most. The Raiders for one beat the Texans in Houston and the Bengals lost by just one point. Unless it's the Jets who manage to beat the Dolphins in Miami and sneak in, Houston is in big trouble come Wild-Card Weekend.

And, if Houston manages to survive they then will either have to play at New England, Baltimore or Pittsburgh (pending on how Week 17 pans out). Sure they've already played Pittsburgh and Baltimore, but neither of those games are easy by any means.

In spite of their injuries alone, the Houston Texans have arguably the toughest feats to overcome in the playoffs—not to mention their inexperience.

New York Giants (NFC No. 4 Seed)

So the Giants end up beating Dallas to win the NFC East but then draw the experienced Atlanta Falcons in the Wild-Card round.

Now, Atlanta has choked away postseason opportunities before, however they're virtually an exact replica of New York, so the Giants will be exploited even if they win.

The Falcons have a weak pass defense, decent pass rush and an offense capable of putting up points. Similar to Big Blue but the only difference is that New York has trouble stopping the run, whereas Atlanta ranks No. 8 against it.

The Giants, though, will outscore The Dirty Birds but then have to play at Green Bay since New Orleans beats Detroit.

New York almost beat Green Bay in 2007, but both of these teams are much different now than they were four years ago.

That Giants team had an effectively balanced offense with a great front seven on defense. Things are much different now and New York is lucky if they hold someone to under 30 points (allow an average of 25.7 per game, rank No. 28).

And no matter who the Giants face, the road is insanely difficult.

In addition to Green Bay there's San Francisco and New Orleans, two other teams that beat the Giants in the regular season. I'm not saying that Big Blue can't repeat their 2007 performance, however this season is much, much more difficult.

Follow John Rozum on Twitter @ Sportswriter27