NFL Predictions: 5 Games That Will Decide Super Bowl Matchup

With the 2011 NFL Season just days away, the excitement building up to opening night is already off the charts and will culminate in one of the most exciting opening games in league history.

After an extensive lockout and an abbreviated offseason that felt more like an Usain Bolt race than a free-agency period, the fans of the NFL can’t wait any longer to watch their favorite players and teams return to the field.

With that much excitement, it’s never too early to look ahead at the schedule and see which matchups have us foaming at the mouth in anticipation.

While there are many games that mean nothing, there are games that could be previews of Conference Championship games or even the Super Bowl, and that gets diehard fans excited.

The following list is of the top five regular-season matchups that will have the most influence on who plays in the Super Bowl in 2012. Enjoy!

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5. Dallas Cowboys vs. New York Giants­—Week 17

The Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants will be trailing the Philadelphia Eagles by this point in the season and both will be fighting for their NFC Wildcard lives.

If both the Giants and the Cowboys have the kind of year they are talented enough to have, this game could be the deciding factor in who makes the playoffs and who goes home early.

With the game taking place in New York, the Giants will have the advantage as of now, but 17 weeks of football can do a lot of damage to a prediction.

4. Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans—Week 16

With a Thursday Night, Primetime game, the hotly contested AFC South battle for supremacy will come to a head as the Houston Texans and the Indianapolis Colts square off at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

While the Colts may be down Peyton Manning for the time being, they will have him back soon enough and the star quarterback will keep the Colts in contention until the last snap of the last game.

The Texans have improved drastically on the defensive side of the ball, and the last divisional matchup between the two teams could decide who wins the division and makes the playoffs and who doesn’t.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Atlanta Falcons—Week 17

The NFC South will be one of the wildest divisions of all of football, boasting three possible playoff caliber teams in the New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons.

The best matchup of the season could come in the final week of the regular season when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could play the role of spoilers by taking the Atlanta Falcons out of the Wildcard hunt.

New Orleans will win the division and one team in the NFC East will have the same record as the Atlanta Falcons, but the Bucs will be able to beat them and keep both teams from the postseason.

2. Green Bay Packers vs. New Orleans Saints—Week 1

Nothing says the Opening of the 2011 NFL Season like pitting the last two Super Bowl Champions against each other in a special Thursday game.

That’s exactly what the NFL is doing when they send New Orleans to Green Bay to face off against the defending Super Bowl Champions in Lambeau Field, and this game will go a long way in seeing which team makes it to the Conference Championship.

The New Orleans Saints didn’t fulfill their lofty expectations last season Green Bay overachieved, so this matchup should expose the truth about who each of these teams really are.

1. Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots—Week 12

There is no more important matchup than the game that is the precursor to the 2012 Super Bowl, and that’s exactly what the fans will get when the New England Patriots arrive in Lincoln Financial Field to play the Philadelphia Eagles.

This is the heavy favorite to be the Super Bowl matchup, and this game will expose what weakness both teams have on defense because of each team's amazing ability to put points on the board.

Although Week 12 may be a while away, the matchup will be the most anticipated of the year, and it will be Philadelphia’s biggest test to see if they really are ready for a championship run.