NFL Playoff Predictions 2012: 4 Teams with Winning Records That'll Miss Playoffs

The 2012 NFL playoffs are nearly upon us with a variety of teams still in the hunt with winning records and looking for a wild-card spot, but there are a few teams who currently have winning records that will ultimately miss out on postseason action. 

There are currently eight teams with winning records fighting for two wild-card slots in each conference. As of now, there are four teams with positive records that will end up on the outside looking in when all is said and done. 

Let's break down four teams that simply don't have enough in the tank to make a postseason surge despite having winning records. 

Minnesota Vikings (7-6)

The Minnesota Vikings are currently tied with three other teams at 7-6, all of which are on the outside looking in as both the No. 1 and No. 2 wild-card seeds in the NFC have 8-5 records. 

Minnesota is one of the surprises of this year behind the legs of running back Adrian Peterson, who has a chance to break the 2,000-yards rushing mark. 

Unfortunately for the Vikings, the postseason hopes in Minnesota aren't looking so hot. The Vikings have a tough west coast trip ahead of them in Week 15 against the St. Louis Rams. Following that, Minnesota finishes the last two weeks of the season against two of the NFL's best in the Houston Texans and Green Bay Packers. 

In that stretch, Minnesota will be lucky to go 1-2, and could even lose out. Peterson is hot, but overall the chances the Vikings sneak into the postseason are minimal. It's been a nice building-block type season in Minnesota, but it won't end in a playoff appearance. 

Dallas Cowboys (7-6)

The Dallas Cowboys are hot right now, having won four of their last six contests, with the most recent being an emotional victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in the face of tragedy. 

Dallas also sits at 7-6 on the outside looking in, and it's going to take close to a miracle for the Cowboys to grab one of the wild-card slots. 

The final three weeks of the year aren't easy for Tony Romo and Co., and it begins against the Pittsburgh Steelers, another team fighting for a playoff berth. Following that, the Cowboys encounter the explosive New Orleans Saints and finish the season against the red-hot Washington Redskins. 

When all is said and done, the Redskins are likely going to steal the final wild-card spot. Dallas has too many injuries on defense and the offensive line is a mess. 

Injuries and horrendous play in the trenches offensively were going to catch up to Dallas at some point, and that time is now, when it matters most. 

Chicago Bears (8-5)

The Chicago Bears are currently in a massive slump, having lost four of its last five contests, most recently against a divisional foe and playoff hopeful in the Minnesota Vikings. 

That trend won't stop anytime soon. 

The Bears are currently holding on to the sixth and final seed in the NFC, but will ultimately end up losing it to Robert Griffin III and the Washington Redskins. 

With reports surfacing that RG3 is healthy enough to finish out the season (h/t USA today), there's simply no stopping the NFL's hottest team. Chicago also doesn't have enough fire power to steal the fifth seed from the Seattle Seahawks, who own the tiebreaker over Chicago thanks to a head-to-head victory.

Chicago has a tough task in front of it against the Green Bay Packers, and finishes out the season in a trap game against the Detroit Lions. 

Quarterback Jay Cutler is not 100 percent healthy, and the heart and soul of the Chicago defense, Brian Urlacher, is out for the remainder of the season. 

The Bears aren't healthy and have a tough stretch upcoming. Chicago won't be able to break out of its funk and will ultimately miss the postseason after being one of the NFL's hottest teams earlier in the season. 

Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6)

The Pittsburgh Steelers are currently desperately holding on to the last wild-card slot in the AFC with a 7-6 record, but the Cincinnati Bengals hold the same record and have a shot at stealing the seed from Pittsburgh. 

Pittsburgh has lost three of its last four games, including losses to the mediocre Cleveland Browns and being embarrassed at home last week against the lowly San Diego Chargers. 

The 2012 Steelers are doing something Pittsburgh isn't known for: playing to the level of the competition, or sometimes lower. 

That's exactly what the Steelers cannot do with the season on the line. Pittsburgh travels to Dallas to face the surging Cowboys in Week 15, which could be a loss if the recent trend continues. 

Week 16 decides the Steelers' fate as it welcomes the red-hot Bengals to Pittsburgh. The Steelers currently hold the tiebreaker over Cincinnati, but the Bengals are on fire, having won four of its last five, and have an elite defense to pair with one of the NFL's best all-around offenses. 

Pittsburgh then concludes the season against a team that already got the best of it once in the Browns. 

With quarterback Ben Roethlisberger banged up,an abysmal rushing attack and the team's habit of playing down to the competition, the Steelers will end up losing the sixth seed in the AFC and miss the playoffs for the first time since 2009. 

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