Big stars, big stats, the NFL playoffs is where the action heats up. So, who should you keep an eye on over the wild-card weekend? Here is one name from each team to watch out for.

Michael Turner isn’t as sexy a difference-maker as Julio Jones or Roddy White, but he is just as effective. Turner has been the constant for an offense that has often struggled to find its rhythm, and I don’t expect that to change all that much in the wild-card round. The Giants have extremely talented pass rushers, but they don’t hold the edge all that well against the run and that will allow Turner to have some opportunities in the off-tackle run game. On defense, the Falcons will need to limit the yards after catch of Victor Cruz and that means making sure tackles at all levels of the defense. Brent Grimes has missed some time in the last month, and they need him to play better in the playoffs as they could face the likes of Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers and Matthew Stafford if they get past Eli Manning.
 

Eli Manning entered this season without two of his favorite targets after the Giants let Steve Smith and Kevin Boss walk in free agency, but he has responded quite nicely to the additions of Victor Cruz and Jake Ballard. The Giants haven’t gotten much out of the rushing tandem of Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs, but it just seems like they are capable of blowing up at any time. On defense, they are extremely vulnerable in the secondary and to make up for it they pressure opposing quarterbacks with edge speed rushers in Justin Tuck and Jason Pierre-Paul, which leaves them susceptible to the run. I’m not sure they match up with the Falcons very well in this capacity and will need to put up a lot of points to stay on pace with Atlanta.
 

New Orleans is arguably the hottest team in the field, and that is largely because of its offensive balance. As he should, Drew Brees gets the majority of the credit for this explosive offense, but Darren Sproles may be just as important. OK, that is an exaggeration, but you understand the point. When Marques Colston and Jimmy Graham stretch the defense down the field, all Brees has to do is dump it off to Sproles and he is capable of an 80-yard gain every time he touches it. I am not sure there is anyone else in the NFL with the burst that Sproles has when he gets the ball in his hands. On defense, there isn’t a team in the NFL that has blitzed more than the Saints, and that means they will be manning up Calvin Johnson in the back half. That could leave them vulnerable to some big plays, but I don’t expect Gregg Williams to change his game plan all that much for this game.
 

Matthew Stafford has been playing his way onto the “next level” list of quarterbacks in the NFL, and that is in large part due to Calvin Johnson. Johnson is sure to see a lot of double teams in the playoffs, but still, he is capable of out-jumping both defenders and making huge gains in the passing game. The Lions are 31st in the NFL in total rushing attempts, which means that all of the offensive productivity will need to come through the air. On defense, they employ a defensive line that is more than capable of harassing Drew Brees in the pocket with Cliff Avril, Kyle Vanden Bosch, and Ndamukong Suh. If they can’t provide pressure with that front four and are forced to blitz, they will leave themselves extremely vulnerable in the secondary.
 

In my opinion, the Broncos are the most likely team to go one-and-done in the playoffs. To prevent that, they will need to win with defense and that will be challenging with a limited Von Miller. Miller has been a disruptive force all season, but in the last month he has been battling an injury that is basically forcing him to play with one arm. Because of that, teams have been able to block Miller without a double team and instead focus on Elvis Dumervil on the other side. On offense, Tim Tebow needs to prove that he can go through his progressions. Otherwise, Dick Lebeau will have him running for his life.
 

The Steelers can hardly be looked at as a wild-card team in this postseason. They are just as capable of making a Super Bowl run as any team in the field, but they are coming into this weekend a little banged-up at two key offensive positions. Rashard Mendenhall is out for the year, but that really isn’t as hard to overcome as it would appear on the surface level. The Steelers have transitioned from a power running team to a quick-strike passing attack that uses slants and shallow crossing patterns to draw the defense up and then hits them over the top with Mike Wallace. They can survive the first round with a less than 100 percent Ben Roethlisberger, but they need him at full capacity to make a run deep in the tournament.
 

With an offense featuring a rookie quarterback that started the season third on the depth chart, the Texans defense will need to play its best football of the year to make a run through the playoffs. A month ago, that didn’t appear to be much of a problem for the Texans, but this defense hasn’t been the same since Wade Phillips had emergency surgery a few weeks back. They pride themselves on pressuring the quarterback, and the tandem of J.J. Watt and Antonio Smith will be called upon to do just that. On offense, they will obviously rely on the two-headed monster of Arian Foster and Ben Tate, but the return of a healthy Andre Johnson will be critical. When they do run the ball, they can’t afford the costly turnovers that seemed to plague them the final three weeks of the regular season.
 

At the beginning of the year, Andy Dalton never figured to be playing a 17th game of his rookie season. The Bengals were never supposed to break .500, let alone actually qualify for the postseason, but none of that matters now. The Bengals will want to run the ball on early downs. When they go through the air, Dalton will obviously look for A.J. Green, but I think Jermaine Gresham could create the biggest mismatch. Jonathan Joseph is likely to man-up on Green, but the Texans secondary lacks a defender with the size and speed to lock down Gresham. On defense, it will be all about stopping the run, something they are actually configured quite well for. The defensive ends aren’t flashy pass rushers, but they are stout in the run game and hold the edge very well at the point of attack.