6 NFL Playoff Contenders with Toughest Remaining Schedules

Not all NFL schedules are created equal.

While teams like the Houston Texans and Green Bay Packers have relatively clear paths to the playoffs, other postseason hopefuls aren't so fortunate.

Upstarts in the NFC West will travel some of the most most difficult paths in football as they continue to make the division elite, and the NFC North remains one of the most competitive in the league.

So, which teams have the toughest roads ahead?

Let's start in the AFC North, with a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

6. Baltimore Ravens

Toughest Games Remaining:

Week 7 at Houston Texans

Week 11 at Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 15 vs. Denver Broncos

Week 16 vs. New York Giants

The Baltimore Ravens offense has taken a lot of people by surprise this season, ranking third in the NFL in passing yards per game.

Baltimore will need that offensive prowess to get through the last six weeks of the 2012 campaign.

From Weeks 12 to 17, the Ravens play the San Diego Chargers, Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Redskins, Denver Broncos, New York Giants and Cincinnati Bengals, respectively.

The AFC North race is wide open, and Baltimore still has four division games to claim its dominance.

5. Seattle Seahawks

Toughest Games Remaining:

Week 6 vs. New England Patriots

Week 7 at San Francisco 49ers

Week 13 at Chicago Bears

Week 14 vs. Arizona Cardinals

The NFC West has emerged as one of the most competitive divisions in the NFL this season, and the Seattle Seahawks are a huge reason why.

Three of Seattle's games this season have been decided by six points or fewer, and more nail-biters are on the horizon.

The Seahawks have back-to-back showdowns with the Patriots and 49ers in Weeks 6 and 7. Continued top-10 play out of their defensive unit will be essential to competing with all of the high-flying offenses left on their schedule.

4. Chicago Bears

Toughest Games Remaining:

Week 10 vs. Houston Texans

Week 11 at San Francisco 49ers

Week 15 vs. Green Bay Packers

Week 16 at Arizona Cardinals

The NFC North is never easy to get through, and seeing the NFC West on the slate was supposed to provide some relief.

Not so fast.

The NFC West is for real, and so is a large portion of the Chicago Bears' remaining schedule.

The Bears have prime-time meetings with Detroit and San Francisco to highlight the year, and after their Week 6 bye there are no "sure wins" to be found.

Chicago is a good team, but consistency will be essential to get through this gauntlet.

3. Cincinnati Bengals

Toughest Games Remaining: 

Week 9 vs. Denver Broncos

Week 10 vs. New York Giants

Week 16 at Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 17 vs. Baltimore Ravens

The Cincinnati Bengals are not sneaking up on anyone this season, nor will they be able to prey on sub-.500 teams on their path to the postseason.

Cincinnati's Week 8 bye will arrive in the midst of three games with the Steelers, Broncos and Giants. That stretch will go a long way toward determining the Bengals' playoff validity, as will division showdowns in the season's final two games against the Steelers and Ravens.

2. Arizona Cardinals

Toughest Games Remaining:

Week 8 vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week 9 at Green Bay Packers

Week 11 at Atlanta Falcons

Week 17 at San Francisco 49ers

This season's Cinderella story to this point has been the Arizona Cardinals. 

At 4-1, the Cardinals have won with stout defense and a balanced, conservative offense. That strategy must continue to be perfectly executed to survive the next 12 weeks.

Arizona has meetings with the 49ers, Packers and Falcons in a four-week stretch from the end of October through November. The difficulty level does not get any better after that, as the Cardinals close the season with Seattle, Detroit, Chicago and San Francisco.

1. Detroit Lions

Toughest Games Remaining:

Week 6 at Philadelphia Eagles

Week 12 vs. Houston Texans

Week 14 at Green Bay Packers

Week 16 vs. Atlanta Falcons

Are the Detroit Lions still playoff contenders? There is simply too much talent on the team not to be in the playoff hunt.

However, it won't be easy for the Honolulu Blue and Silver to right the ship.

Detroit may have the most strenuous road ahead in the entire league. The Lions still have meetings with Philadelphia, Seattle, Green Bay (twice), Chicago (twice), Houston, Arizona and Atlanta.

Ouch.