NFL Playoff Schedule 2012: Breaking Down Sunday's Wild Card Showdowns

I can't think of many things better than a second day of NFL playoff action that features intense matchups between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos and the Atlanta Falcons and New York Giants.

As if the first day of Wild Card Weekend isn't enough to wet your whistle with playoff football, day two is going to be incredible.

First we've got a matchup between a Giants team that knows all about making Super Bowl runs, and a Falcons squad hungry to prove that their high-powered offense has what it takes.

After that is a game that features the defending AFC champions and the quarterback who stole the attention from everyone else in the NFL, Tim Tebow.

What to expect from these two Sunday wild-card showdowns? 

Let's break it down:

Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Giants—Sun. Jan. 8 at 1 p.m. EST on FOX

This contest between the 10-6 Atlanta Falcons and 9-7 New York Giants is going to be a highly contested game that should come right down to the wire.

The Falcons are bringing in an offense that was eighth best in the NFL in passing, averaging 262 yards per game through the air, and a rushing attack that averaged 114.6.

Quarterback Matt Ryan is looking to take that next step to prove that he deserves to be mentioned among the best in the league, and he's got very dangerous weapons in rookie Julio Jones and stud receiver Roddy White, who both caught eight touchdowns on the year.

If the Falcons want to win this game they are going to have to get ahead and utilize Michael Turner and the running game.

The Giants, on the other hand, are led by Eli Manning and a potent passing attack.

Manning boasts excellent receivers, and arguably the breakout player of the the year in wideout Victor Cruz, who accumulated 1,536 yards and nine touchdowns on the season.

If the Giants want to win though, they are going to have to rely on their scary-good pass rush, headed up by Jason Pierre-Paul and his 15.5 sacks on the season.

This game is going to come down to whichever quarterback plays the more composed game in the heat of the battle.

Predicted Winner: Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Denver Broncos—Sun. Jan. 8 at 4:30 p.m. EST on CBS

Can Tim Tebow really lead the Denver Broncos to a playoff victory?

That's going to be the question on the minds of all NFL fans come Sunday evening.

Unfortunately for Tebow and Broncos fans, it doesn't look like a strong possibility.

While the Broncos do come into this game boasting the league's best rushing offense, averaging 164.5 yards per game, they are also coming in on a three-game losing streak, having won the AFC West via tiebreaker. 

While the Steelers are limping into this game, they still look to be the far better team.

Their defense is best in the league at stopping the pass, which will allow them to focus on stopping Tebow and the running game.

On the other side of the ball, the Steelers are led by a two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger, and the Broncos have had a really hard time keeping up with great quarterbacks, giving up a combined 995 yards and nine touchdowns to Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford and Tom Brady this season.

The Broncos don't have the offensive firepower to keep up with the Steelers.

Predicted Winner: Steelers