NFL Playoff Bracket 2012: Teams with Hardest Road to Super Bowl

Now that the bracket for the 2012 NFL playoffs is set and teams are locked into their seeding, we can see who has the most treacherous path to Indianapolis and the Super Bowl this February.

While no team can say that they have a particularly easy schedule, some, like the New England Patriots, have potential looming matchups that are ideal for them on paper.

These other teams don’t have that luxury.

Detroit Lions

The Lions are one of the more intriguing squads in the postseason but have far too much work to do and challenges to overcome for a team that hasn’t been in the playoffs since 1999.

They must face the red-hot New Orleans Saints in the Superdome to start their journey and should they win, head to the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field to play the Green Bay Packers.

Because of the No. 6 seed, they simply cannot avoid the Pack if they somehow even end up victorious over New Orleans.

By some miracle they beat both NO and GB, they then must beat a third franchise on the road in the NFC Championship Game.

Teams have gotten hot and made runs from the No. 6 spot (such as the Packers last year), but the opponents are tougher and the odds are slim this year for Detroit.

Houston Texans

Houston got lucky and drew the No. 6-seeded Cincinnati Bengals to open Wild Card Weekend, but may not advance farther than that.

T.J. Yates is playing with a severely banged up shoulder and the only real depth behind him is a washed-up Jake Delhomme.

They are going to need to rely on Arian Foster and Ben Tate to get the job done and then would face a stifling Baltimore Ravens defense or a New England offensive onslaught.

There is no way they get past either of these powerhouses with a one-dimensional offensive attack.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see a young guy like Yates excel in the playoffs, but the shoulder injury is going to hinder his potential to really step up and make a difference.

This simply isn’t the Texans' year to win it all.