San Francisco 49ers 2012 Schedule: Breaking Down Niners' Toughest Matchups

The San Francisco 49ers were one of the most surprising teams in the NFL last season, coming a few bad bounces away from going to the Super Bowl.

In 2012, the 49ers won't be sneaking up on anybody like they did in 2011. Teams around the NFL know what the 49ers bring to the table, and they know how good the 49ers are. They are in line to be humbled after humbling so many teams in 2011.

It doesn't help that the 49ers have a pretty tough schedule lined up. Their division matchups won't be too tough, but the 49ers will face some tough teams outside their own division.

Here's a look at their five most difficult matchups in 2012.

Week 1: at Green Bay Packers

The 49ers didn't have the pleasure of playing the Packers last year, so they never got a chance to put their NFC-best defense up against the most explosive offense in the NFL.

Green Bay's offense isn't going to be any less explosive in 2012. For that matter, the 49ers' defense will be just as dangerous as it was in 2011. 

So their meeting against the Packers in Week 1 will be a classic matchup between an unstoppable force and an immovable object. We tend to think that a good defense will always beat a good offense, but you have to think twice when talking about the Packers at Lambeau Field.

If the 49ers win, it will be apparent that they're the elite team in the NFC. If the Packers win, the 49ers will be just another team in the hunt.

Week 2: vs. Detroit Lions

The 49ers will go from facing an elite offense on the road in Week 1 to facing an elite offense at home in Week 2.

The Lions revolve around the connection between Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson, which few teams could stop last season. The 49ers did a good job of limiting Megatron, however, as he only had seven receptions for 113 yards and no touchdowns against them in mid-October. Overall, the 49ers held the Lions to 310 total yards.

The Lions have high hopes this season and there's going to be far more pressure on them to win this game than the 49ers. The Lions will enter 2012 with more to prove than the 'Niners.

This is a game the 49ers should win, but that will depend entirely on how good the Lions are this season. They have every excuse to be one of the top teams in the NFC.

Week 6: vs. New York Giants

The 49ers beat the eventual Super Bowl champion Giants in San Francisco in the regular season last year, and they should have beaten them in the NFC Championship Game too.

The 49ers will have revenge on their minds when the G-Men come to town on October 14th. The big question will be whether they'll be able to contain Eli Manning, who played very well against the 49ers last season. 

The 49ers will also need a big game from Alex Smith, who will be going up against one of the league's most dangerous defensive lines. He'll need some help from former Giant Mario Manningham and speedy veteran Randy Moss, who can help Smith by getting the better of New York's sometimes-shaky secondary.

Either way, it will be a fun game to watch. I doubt either team will win it going away.

Week 12: at New Orleans Saints

This game is already being singled out as one of the marquee games of the 2012 season because of the now-infamous Gregg Williams recording.

That's much ado about nothing. Williams won't be anywhere near New Orleans when this game kicks off, and head coach Sean Payton will be at home watching. The 49ers will be more worried about the task at hand than they will be about getting revenge against people who won't be there.

The hard part will be limiting Drew Brees and the Saints' offense, which is something they did reasonably well in the playoffs. Brees ended up with solid numbers, but he struggled for much of the game, and the Saints as a whole were awful early on.

The 49ers won because they were more physical than the Saints in the early going and because Smith and others played once-in-a-lifetime games. On the road and in the regular season, odds are they're not going to play as well as they did in the divisional round again.

This is going to be a tough game for the 49ers to win.

Week 15: at New England Patriots

Had things gone differently in the NFC Championship Game, the 49ers would have met the Patriots in the Super Bowl.

They'll get that chance in December and it's going to be a game with huge playoff implications.

The 49ers have the defense to hang with Tom Brady and New England's offense. The trouble is that the Brady-Belichick Patriots rarely lose at home, making this a very tough draw for the 49ers. 

Beating the Patriots is not as big a deal these days as it would have been in 2007 or 2010. The Patriots have a great offense and they're a great regular season team, but everyone knows that they're far from an imperfect team.

This is going to be a show-me game for both teams. The Pats will have to show they can go toe-to-toe with an elite contender with a great defense and the 49ers will have to show they can win games in the toughest of environments against one of the toughest teams in the league.