NFL Playoff Bracket 2012: Steelers Win Will Make Patriots Regret No. 1 Seed

You certainly can't fault the New England Patriots for pursuing and securing the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC this season. After all, it earned them a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. Despite that, though, it may come back to haunt them.

When the Houston Texans and Cincinnati Bengals met on Saturday, the Patriots had to be rooting for the Bengals, as they would have been their opponent in the next round. Houston won decisively, however, and will take on the No. 2 seeded Baltimore Ravens by default.

This means that the Patriots will have to contend with the winner of Sunday's clash between the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Patriots beat the Broncos during the regular season and lost to the Steelers, so it's obvious who they'll be pulling for.

The problem, though, is that the Steelers are nine-point favorites and seem very likely to come out on top. Pittsburgh may be the No. 5 seed in title, but went 12-4 on the season and was a tiebreaker away from overtaking the Ravens for the No. 2 spot.

What this means, in effect, is that the Patriots will probably end up with a tougher matchup than Baltimore even though they have the higher seed. This exposes a fundamental flaw in the seeding system, as division winners are given precedence over wild-card teams.

That isn't to say that the Patriots can't beat the Steelers because they certainly can. Pittsburgh only beat New England by eight points at home, and the Steelers are quite banged up at the moment. The Patriots' defense is awful, but if quarterback Tom Brady and the offense keep playing the way they have been, they can beat anybody.

The point is that the Pats most likely will have a much tougher matchup than they should have. Houston would provide a challenge in its own right, but with rookie T.J. Yates at quarterback, the Patriots would have to feel much more at ease, especially at home.

Instead New England will have to face the polar opposite in Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. While Big Ben is banged up with an ankle injury, he has a wealth of postseason experience, two Super Bowl wins and is playing at a very high level.

If the Patriots lose to the Steelers, then they'll have nobody to blame but themselves, but it will necessitate a change in rules. I have no problem keeping division winners, but the seeding should be based solely on record. The Patriots might have to find that out the hard way.

AFC First-Round Byes:

1. New England Patriots

2. Baltimore Ravens

AFC Wild-Card Round:

No. 3 Houston Texans def. No. 6 Cincinnati Bengals

No. 4 Denver Broncos vs. No. 5 Pittsburgh Steelers

NFC First-Round Byes:

1. Green Bay Packers

2. San Francisco 49ers

NFC Wild-Card Round:

No. 3 New Orleans Saints vs. No. 6 Detroit Lions

No. 4 New York Giants vs. No. 5 Atlanta Falcons