Philadelphia Eagles

	Donovan McNabb Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

• Record and seed: 12-4, No. 1.

• What have you done for me lately?: Won 10 of 11 since starting season 2-3.

• Difference maker on offense: QB Donovan McNabb threw 13 of his 16 touchdown passes and ran for three scores in his team's final 10 games. He had just two scoring passes and no rushing touchdowns in the season's first six games.

• Difference maker on defense: Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson. The Eagles' defense features a cast of talented players, but no one shining star with eye-popping statistics. Johnson's schemes are as integral to Philly's success as any player.

• Did you know?: The balanced Eagles didn't have a 700-yard rusher or a 600-yard receiver. But they had four rushers with at least 355 yards, and six receivers with 321 yards or more.

• Most recent playoff appearance: Lost to Tampa Bay in NFC Championship Game in 2002 as No. 1 seed.

• Head coach's playoff record: Andy Reid is 4-3, with Philadelphia.

• And another thing ... With Tampa Bay missing the playoffs, the Eagles own the league's longest active streak of playoff seasons. They've made the postseason four consecutive years, starting in 2000.

St. Louis Rams

Torry Holt Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

• Record and seed: 12-4, No. 2.

• What have you done for me lately?: The Rams had their seven-game winning streak snapped by Detroit on Sunday. St. Louis had won 11 of 12 before the loss to the Lions.

• Difference maker on offense: WR Torry Holt led the NFL in both receptions (117) and receiving yardage (1,696).

• Difference maker on defense: SS Aeneas Williams had eight of the Rams' league-high 46 turnovers created. Williams had four interceptions and four fumble recoveries. St. Louis finished tied for fourth in interceptions with 26, and first in recovered fumbles with 22.

• Did you know?: The Rams' defense gave up 328 points this season, more than any other NFC playoff team. In its last nine games, St. Louis averaged 22.1 points allowed.

• Most recent playoff appearance: Lost to New England in Super Bowl in 2001 as No. 1 seed.

• Head coach's playoff record: Mike Martz is 2-2, with St. Louis.

• And another thing ... Though it cost them home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, the Rams' season-ending loss at Detroit could be a good omen. When St. Louis won the Super Bowl in 1999, it also dropped its final regular-season game on the road to a losing team, falling at Philadelphia in Andy Reid's first season as Eagles head coach.

Carolina Panthers

Stephen Davis Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

• Record and seed: 11-5, No. 3.

• What have you done for me lately?: Won three in a row after dropping five of eight in midseason.

• Difference maker on offense: RB Stephen Davis rushed for at least 100 yards in seven of the 14 games he played this season. But six of those performances came in the first eight games. In the season's second half, Davis gained just 452 of his 1,444 rushing yards.

• Difference maker on defense: DE Mike Rucker had a team-best 12 sacks, the third consecutive season he has improved his sack production.

• Did you know?: By making the playoffs for the first time since 1996, Carolina broke the third-longest playoff drought in the league, behind Cincinnati (1990) and San Diego (1995).

• Most recent playoff appearance: Lost to Green Bay in NFC Championship Game in 1996, as No. 2 seed.

• Head coach's playoff record: John Fox is a first-time qualifier.

• And another thing ... The Panthers get a visit from Dallas in a Saturday first-round game. The Cowboys haven't won a playoff game since Carolina defeated them 26-17 in a 1996 Divisional game at Ericsson Stadium.

Green Bay Packers

Ahman Green Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

• Record and seed: 10-6, No. 4.

• What have you done for me lately?: Won four in a row and six of seven since being 4-5 after Week 10.

• Difference maker on offense: RB Ahman Green obliterated the Packers' rushing record book in 2003, setting marks for season rushing (1,883 yards), 100-yard games (10), single-game rushing (218 yards), longest touchdown run (98 yards), in addition to total touchdowns (20).

• Difference maker on defense: DE Kabeer Gbaja-Bimila finished with 10 sacks, making him the first Packer to reach double-digits in that category three years in a row. KGB's sack total, however, has decreased from 13 1/2 to 12 to 10 in that span.

• Did you know?: Green Bay's 442 points scored was the second most in franchise history, trailing only the 456 that the 1996 Super Bowl champions hung on the scoreboard.

• Most recent playoff appearance: Lost to Atlanta in first round in 2002 as No. 3 seed.

• Head coach's playoff record: Mike Sherman is 1-2, with Green Bay.

• And another thing ... With a league-high nine trips to the post-season in the past 11 years (they missed only in 1999-2000), the Packers are the most playoff-experienced team in the NFL in that span. But they have just one Super Bowl title to show for it (1996).

Seattle Seahawks

Matt Hasselbeck Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

• Record and seed: 10-6, No. 5.

• What have you done for me lately: Won their last two games to rebound after losing five of eight.

• Difference maker on offense: QB Matt Hasselbeck set career highs in completions (313), passing yards (3,841), touchdowns (26), interceptions (15), sacks (42) and passer rating (88.8).

• Difference maker on defense: LB Chad Brown thrived in defensive coordinator Ray Rhodes' blitz-friendly system, racking up seven sacks, the third-highest total of his seven-year Seattle tenure.

• Did you know?: The Seahawks reached 10 wins for the first time since 1986. It's the first time since 2000 that all 12 playoff teams have at least 10 wins, and only the second time since 1988 that the postseason is entirely comprised of double-digit winners.

• Most recent playoff appearance: Lost to Miami in first round in 1999 as No. 3 seed.

• Head coach's playoff record: Mike Holmgren is 9-6, with Green Bay and Seattle.

• And another thing ... The Seahawks and the Panthers are the only NFC playoff teams with both a 1,000-yard rusher and receiver. Seattle running back Shaun Alexander (1,435) and receiver Darrell Jackson (1,137) combined for 2,572 yards of offense, besting the Carolina tandem of Stephen Davis (1,444) and Steve Smith (1,110), who produced 2,554 yards.

Dallas Cowboys

Quincy Carter Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

• Record and seed: 10-6, No. 6.

• What have you done for me lately?: Lost four out of their last seven games, after starting 7-2.

• Difference maker on offense: QB Quincy Carter is the Cowboys' barometer. In their 10 wins, Carter has 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions, and has thrown for more picks than scores in just three of those games, each time by just a single interception. In the Cowboys' six losses, Carter has five touchdowns and 14 interceptions, and he has had a negative touchdown-to-interception ratio in five of those games.

• Difference maker on defense: LB Dat Nguyen doesn't have flashy numbers, but he's literally in the middle of everything for Dallas' top-ranked defense. The undersized Nguyen leads the Cowboys with 119 tackles, and he has added two sacks, 11 passes defensed, two forced fumbles and two recoveries.

• Did you know?: The Cowboys have only beaten two teams that finished with a winning record, but one of those wins was against Carolina on Nov. 23 in Dallas. The Cowboys travel to Charlotte for Saturday's first-round NFC playoff game.

• Most recent playoff appearance: Lost to Minnesota in first round in 1999, as No. 5 seed.

• Head coach's playoff record: Bill Parcells is 11-6, with N.Y. Giants, New England, N.Y. Jets.

• And another thing: For all the accolades that Parcells deservedly received this season, it has been a while since he enjoyed the ultimate success. Since leaving the Giants in the wake of his second Super Bowl title in January 1991, Parcells is just 3-3 in the postseason, with the Patriots losing the Super Bowl to Green Bay in 1996 and the Jets falling to Denver in the 1998 AFC title game.

• Click here for the complete AFC playoff field breakdown.

Don Banks covers pro football for SI.com.