NFL Playoffs 2012: Which Teams Are Most Likely to Pull Upset in Divisional Round

If we learned anything from the NFL wild-card round this past weekend, nobody can be guaranteed a win—even if they were in the Super Bowl just a season ago. This was most evident on Sunday, when the 8-8 Denver Broncos, led by yet another miracle run by quarterback Tim Tebow, defeated the 12-4 Pittsburgh Steelers in what many had assumed to be a dooming end in Denver.

With the divisional round just a week away, teams will once again be in position to make some noise—but this time at opposing arenas. 

Teams like the Green Bay Packers, New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens come into this weekend being heavily favored, but can anyone stop them?

It won't be easy for any of these teams to come take on their opposition on the road, but these teams will have a chance to just do that.

San Francisco 49ers over the New Orleans Saints

The 49ers will have the advantage of hosting the Saints in this game, but there is no denying the abilities of the New Orleans offense behind quarterback Drew Brees.

Both teams have been playing great football this season, but coach Jim Harbaugh will have his hands full in trying to stop this high-speed passing attack. 

In their defeat over the Detroit Lions this past weekend, the NFC South champs continued their dominance in accumulating yards by gaining a total of 626 yards. That included 466 yards from Brees in the passing game.

The 49ers have been phenomenal this season in stopping their opposition's offensive attack, but there is no prescription to stopping what the Saints are doing in the passing game. 

The one place where they will have to shine to beat this streaking Saints team is to stop the running game. The 49ers are holding teams to just 77.3 yards per game on the ground—a mark that ranks them as the best in the league.

The key to winning this game is slowing down the running game. There is no doubt what this passing game can do to a defense, but the 49ers will have to keep doing what they have done to make the Saints one-dimensional.

Led by veteran running back Pierre Thomas, the Saints have been averaging 132.9 yards per game. So not only are they the most dangerous team through the air, they are also one of the best teams in moving the ball on the ground.

NaVorro Bowman and Patrick Willis will need to keep up what the have done this season, as the two have combined for 240 total tackles. They are two of the most dangerous linebackers in the league, and they should definitely give the Saints a run for their money.

If they can continue to stop the running game, the only thing they will have to worry about is slowing down Brees' top targets, Marques Colston and Robert Meachem. Both wideouts have been dangerous this entire season, so they will likely demand the most attention from the 49ers' secondary.

Cornerback Carlos Rogers will likely have his hand's full, but with six interceptions on the year, he stands a chance at stopping Colston.

The only thing the 49ers will have to hope is that their offense will be able find that spark of success. The Saints are one of the worst teams in the league in stopping the pass, allowing 259.8 yards per game. They allowed the Lions star quarterback Matthew Stafford to throw for 380 yards while also tossing three TDs.

They will have to hope that QB Alex Smith will be able to find some similar magic, while also hoping that running back Frank Gore can be a beast on the ground.

This game may appear to be all locked up as a Saints win, but with home-field advantage and a fresh direction this season, the 49ers look to be poised to take down the former champs.

Houston Texans over the Ravens

If anyone watched the Texans game against the Cincinnati Bengals, they should be convinced that this team can still get it done with quarterback T.J. Yates and running back Arian Foster.

Not to mention the success of this team's defense.

The Texans looked to once again be a legit playoff team, but they will have a lot to still prove with quarterback Matt Schaub out with a broken foot.

In this Saturday's game, the Texans shut down a Bengals' offense that has been electric as of late. Rookie quarterback Andy Dalton had been incredible, while also making things happen with fellow rookie wide receiver A.J. Green. Still, they were no match for this Texans' defense.

They managed to hold them to just 300 yards, while also picking off Dalton three times.

Yates wasn't anything close to amazing, but he continues to just get the job done. He completed 11 of 22 passes for 157 yards and a touchdown, but that was all the Texans needed from him.

The Texans continued to find success through Foster on the ground, as he accumulated 153 yards on 24 carries while punching in two scores. After getting off to a slow start with a troubled hamstring injury this season, he is looking impossible to stop.

It also doesn't hurt that wide receiver Andre Johnson is back in full form, coming off of a 90-yard game on just five receptions. Even without Schaub, the Texans have two of their three biggest threats looking healthy and ready to make some noise.

There is no doubt that the Ravens are a completely different animal than the Bengals, so it won't exactly be the same game that the Texans just played. Houston will also be on the road, so it will be a true test for this team making its first playoff run in franchise history.

This Ravens team defeated the Texans with Schaub in the lineup back in Week 6. They left Houston with an easy 29-14 stomping, but coach Gary Kubiak has this team's defense moving in a different direction since early on this season.

They did see a significant drop in their play over the last three games of the regular season, as they dropped games against the Carolina Panthers, Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans. They looked like a completely different team against the Bengals, and they could be moving into the right direction at just the exact right time.

They will have to contain quarterback Joe Flacco and running back Ray Rice, a task that they appear to be able to handle after what this defense proved this past weekend.

Will they be able to handle these veterans like they handled the inexperience of the Bengals? It will remain to be seen, but for now it looks like the Texans are playing on the same level as the rest of their competition.