NFL 2012: Biggest Questions for NFL's Top Contenders

Generally speaking in the National Football League, the chances of a team making a deep run into the playoffs are inversely proportionate to the number of questions surrounding that squad.

If a team's roster contains more questions than answers, then odds are the players are going to be watching football in January just like the rest of us.

However, that doesn't mean that the best of teams don't have dilemmas of their own. Using my first set of NFL Power Rankings (the accuracy of which is a debate for another day) as a benchmark, here's a look at the biggest question marks facing some of the league's elite teams as we head into the 2012 season.

Lead image courtesy of usatoday.com.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Biggest Question: Running Back

Entering the 2012 NFL draft, the offensive line was a huge question mark for the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, the team did an excellent job addressing the position with the selections of Stanford guard David DeCastro and second-round pick Mike Adams out of Ohio State, who should provide a significant and immediate boost up front.

The ACL injury suffered by starting running back Rashard Mendenhall late last season leaves his early-season availability very much in doubt, as Mendenhall is likely to begin the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.

That would hand the reins in the Pittsburgh running game for the first six games to fourth-year pro Isaac Redman. Redman has shown some ability when afforded the opportunity in the past, but he's also shown a tendency to put the ball on the ground, which is cause for concern.

San Francisco 49ers

Biggest Question: Wide Receiver

The San Francisco 49ers' loss in the NFC Championship Game to the New York Giants plainly demonstrated that the team needed to upgrade at wide receiver. The 49ers did just that, adding Mario Manningham and Randy Moss in free agency, and taking A.J. Jenkins of Illinois in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft.

However, none of those players are exactly slam dunks, and each carries a significant question mark all his own.

Does Moss have anything left and will he behave himself in San Francisco?

How will Manningham respond to an increased role in a new offense?

Will Jenkins live up to his first-round billing, or prove the critics right, confirming his status as the biggest reach of Round 1 in this year's draft?

The NFC West would appear to be there for the taking for the 49ers again this year, but the answers to these questions will go a long way towards determining how far they advance in the postseason once they get there.

New York Giants

Biggest Question: Consistency

The New York Giants hoisted the Lombardi Trophy in February as Super Bowl 46 champions after a magical postseason run.

However, it can be easy to forget that the Giants were a 9-7 team last year that struggled through an up-and-down season and needed a Week 17 win over the Dallas Cowboys to even make the playoffs.

The Giants will enter this season with a bull's eye planted squarely on their backs. In an NFC East that will probably feature improved teams in Dallas and Philadelphia, the Giants are going have to find a way to play more consistently on a weekly basis, because you can't defend your championship unless you advance to the postseason.

New England Patriots

Biggest Question: Pass Defense

The New England Patriots advanced all the way to Super Bowl XLVI  despite an an atrocious pass defense that ranked last in the AFC in 2011, allowing nearly 294 passing yards a game during the regular season.

The Patriots spent a trio of draft picks on defensive backs in the draft. It's vital that those youngsters and returning players such as Ras-I Dowling and Devin McCourty step up their games in 2012, lest the Patriots once again find themselves in the unenviable position of burdening Tom Brady and trying to win shootouts on a weekly basis.

Green Bay Packers

Biggest Question: Defense

The Green Bay Packers' 15-1 regular-season record in 2011 went for naught when the Packers were upset at home in the first round of the playoffs by the New York Giants.

That upset was spurred on in large part by a defense that struggled mightily in nearly every facet of the game last season, ranking last in the NFL in total defense and 27th in sacks.

The Packers focused on the defensive side of the ball in this year's draft, spending six picks to upgrade the unit. How the Green Bay defense progresses this upcoming season will be a huge factor in determining how successful Mike McCarthy's squad is in redeeming last year's postseason disappointment.