These teams will need the extra week off between the conference championship games and Super Sunday. The NFC will be decided by the rubber match of the season pitting the North Division champion Chicago Bears and their division and long time rival Green Bay Packers. These teams hate each other and will go at it in the early game at Soldier Field.

The AFC is up next and the Cinderella New York Jets hope to keep the glass slipper on when they visit Heinz Field for the second time since December to take on the Steelers. The Week 15, 22-17 victory by Gang Green may be in the past, but it came at a crucial time for Rex Ryan and his bunch after they dropped two straight.

Just for shits and giggles, let’s take a look towards February 6 in North Texas at what might be:

PACKERS VS. JETS – Back on Halloween, Green Bay came into the New Meadowlands Stadium and shut out the Jets, 9-0. The home team was soundly booed and rightfully so, playing an atrocious game versus a quality opponent. The Pack didn’t exactly light it up, but their defense was on point.

That shouldn’t be the case if they meet again next month. The Jets will score more points, as will the Packers. This would be a great match-up and could go either way. What would be the main thing to watch here is how the Jets can exploit the Packers’ lack of a running game. Ryan can blitz all night long and still have Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie blanketing the receivers.

PACKERS VS. STEELERS – With Pittsburgh going for their second ring in three years, it would be a shock if they were beat by Green Bay in this potential contest. The Steelers, like the Jets, would be able to put a lot of pressure on Aaron Rodgers and the one-dimensional offense.

BEARS VS. JETS - When the Jets visited Chicago late in the season, they allowed way too many yards and points. Jay Cutler had all day to find his receiving corps and didn’t disappoint. Mark Sanchez had a decent game but the defense didn’t get the job done. For anything to turn out differently at Cowboys Stadium, a pass rush must be more like it was in the Divisional round versus New England.

Cutler is the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of the NFL. If he is having a good game and gets protection, he can light up the scoreboard. But if is hurried and banged around, the sacks and interceptions will be a plenty. This game would be decided by that factor.

BEARS VS. STEELERS - Pittsburgh would have the best chance to stitch Mr. Hyde on the back of Cutler’s jersey and would in all likelihood be able to handle Chicago without much of a problem.

Photo: William J. Hauser

Take your pick from defending champion Dexter Jackson, his predecessor Jay Cutler, Phil Heath, Victor Martinez, Kai Greene and Dennis Wolf. Just for shits and giggles, let’s add Branch Warren, Toney Freeman and Silvio Samuel. And let’s not forget the fact that Ronnie Coleman is still undecided if he is going to make a comeback or not.

From a strategic standpoint, the ‘bigger is better’ mantra looks to be en vogue with the recent guest posing appearances by Heath, Cutler, Jackson and Coleman. While Cutler and Coleman have always possessed the ‘freaky’ physique, Heath and Jackson’s look was of the more aesthetic kind. Both appear to have added a good amount of weight and depending on their diet, may come into the Orleans Arena looking much different than they have in the past.

Greene, who won the 2009 Arnold Classic, is not as big as some of his fellow competitors but is wide in the right places to give him the appearance of being much larger. Martinez may be the favorite going in if he has made the slight improvements needed since March, when he finished as the runner-up in Ohio. Recovering from his injury has taken him a little longer than expected.

Warren may be a huge fan favorite and deserved his third place award at the Arnold, but he may have to be content with a good placing in the two most prestigious contests in the world. Freeman is in the same boat, and Samuel may have competed too many times in the calendar year to stay in top condition in September.

That leaves Wolf, who was lucky to finish as high as he did last year. Fourth place is nothing to be ashamed of but he even admitted that his timing was way off and he made mistakes in his diet preparation at the end. He then had to sit out the Arnold due to hernia surgery and has stated that he is fully recovered and ready to go.

Because he has the size and height advantage of the majority of the line-up, Wolf needs to work with what he has and not try to bulk up too much. If he can get a little more symmetrical and get his arms to catch up to his massive delts, he has to be considered a top dog going in.