5 NFL Players, Teams Who Look Exremely Vulnerable Heading into Playoffs

Arian Foster and the Houston Texans are but one team looking extremely weak heading into the 2012 NFL playoffs. 

The NFL playoffs take the six best teams from both the AFC and NFC, but that does not necessarily mean teams or players involved are playing at a high level. 

Houston is certainly not the only offender. Teams can have a great record but slump on the way to the postseason with no momentum.

The same can be said for players. Some players, such as Foster, have had outstanding years but have been dropping off as the season wears on toward the playoffs. 

Let's take a closer look at players and teams that are extremely vulnerable heading into the 2012 NFL playoffs. 

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers may have an outstanding record and a comfortable spot atop the NFC side of the playoffs, but all is not well. 

How the Packers finished the regular season in Week 17 against the Minnesota Vikings is not a good sign. 

Green Bay lost, 37-34, and several weaknesses were exploited. For a team that put up 55 points the week before, the Packers are wildly inconsistent and in danger of being bounced from the playoffs early. 

The NFC is amazingly good from top to bottom this year, and the team that just beat up on the Packers in Week 17 is but one team that the Packers could encounter in the postseason. 

When Green Bay is on, they are a tough team to beat. However, the Packers are not consistent enough, which makes them vulnerable. 

Christian Ponder, QB, Minnesota Vikings

Set aside Christian Ponder's late-game heroics in Week 17 against the Green Bay Packers for a moment and you will find a quarterback who simply cannot get it done in the playoffs. 

Ponder was electric against a banged-up Green Bay defense as he threw for over 230 yards and three touchdowns. 

That marked only the seventh time all season Ponder threw for over 200 yards in a game this season and was also the first time he had thrown more than two touchdowns in a contest this year. 

Ponder has thrown for just over 2,700 yards this season to go along with 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. 

What makes Ponder vulnerable is the fact that, all season long, defenses have paid no attention to him, thanks to Adrian Peterson, and Ponder has still been unable to get it done. 

Ponder is a liability who will be exposed in the playoffs when the Vikings encounter some of the best teams the NFC has to offer. 

Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens are slumping in a big way. The team has lost three of its last four games, most recently a Week 17 matchup against the AFC North rival Cincinnati Bengals. 

The Ravens are seriously banged up, meaning the team is vulnerable to being upset at any given moment. 

Defensively, the Ravens have been mediocre at best as of late, which is an extremely bad sign in the AFC—a conference that is very explosive this postseason. 

Quarterback Joe Flacco has not been great the past few weeks, but the main issue remains the defense. It has surrendered 20 or more points in four of its last five contests. 

Baltimore is slumping and is picking a horrible time to do so. A first-round upset is not out of the question. 

Arian Foster, RB, Houston Texans

The Houston Texans have mishandled Arian Foster all season long, and it will end up costing both he and the team in the playoffs. 

Foster has carried the ball 351 times for 1,424 yards and 15 touchdowns over the course of the season. They are great numbers, but that does not tell the whole store. 

The Houston coaching staff has worn Foster doing by using him too much. In four of his last five games, Foster has failed to reach the 100-yard mark. 

Houston has one of the best backup running backs in the NFL in Ben Tate, so it is dumbfounding as to why the Texans did not better divide up the carries between the two. 

Foster's tank is on empty, and he is looking seriously winded as the playoffs approach. The only group that deserves the blame for that is the Texans coaching staff. 

Houston Texans

The Houston Texans went from being the No. 1 seed on the AFC side of the playoffs to having to play in the Wild Card Round against the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Houston has lost its last two contests against the Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts, respectively. The team has no momentum at all heading into the showdown. 

A bye week would have helped, but the Texans lost that right. 

The Texans have a variety of problems. Most notably, their star offensive weapon, Arian Foster, is exhausted, thanks to being over-used. Defensively, the secondary has been playing flat-out horrible and is costing the team games. 

Houston is flat. Do not be at all shocked when they come out and lay an egg in the first round of the playoffs. 

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