Don’t worry, this is where it gets interesting.

Although the Wild-Card round was marred by sloppy, mistake-filled play and low-scoring games, the second round promises to provide much more excitement, with the top two teams in each conference refreshed after a bye week and only the strongest teams from last weekend advancing. Gone are the likes of Vikings backup quarterback Joe Webb and the horrendous defense of the Indianapolis Colts. From this point forward, only the top players and best teams will battle it out. Here are my picks for the NFL Divisional Playoff.

Baltimore Ravens (10-6) at Denver Broncos (13-3)
Kickoff: Saturday, Jan. 12, 4:30 p.m.

Peyton Manning against Joe Flacco. Peyton Manning against Joe Flacco. Peyton Manning against Joe Flacco.

If you have any doubts about choosing the Broncos in this game, refer to the paragraph above. While Manning tends to struggle at times in playoff games at home, the Ravens are simply too overmatched to pull off an upset. The Denver pass rush should pulverize Flacco and the Ravens’ offensive line, reducing the Baltimore plan of attack to an assortment of predictable Ray Rice running plays. Meanwhile, Manning will have no trouble completing “Madden”-like downfield passes against the beat-up Ravens’ secondary. Not even linebacker Ray Lewis’s impending retirement, which seemed to motivate the unit to overachieve against the Colts last week, will be able to stop the relentless Denver offense.

Broncos 31, Ravens 21

Houston Texans (12-4) at New England Patriots (12-4)
Kickoff: Sunday, Jan. 13, 4:30 p.m.

Two years ago, the Jets stepped onto the field in Foxborough a month after getting demolished by the Patriots on “Monday Night Football,” 45-3. With an awful quarterback in Mark Sanchez, an inconsistent ground attack, and a banged-up defense, just about everyone was prepared for a repeat.

Three hours later, it was New York that was headed for the AFC Championship Game.

So don’t chalk this game up as an automatic win for the Patriots just because of how easily they took care of the Texans a few Mondays ago. Like the Jets of yesteryear, these Texans are well-coached on defense and squeeze just enough out of their subpar offense to get by, as they did against Cincinnati last weekend. In the end, I don’t think Houston will be able to stop Tom Brady , who will have his top four receivers healthy for the first time all season, but don’t discount the possibility of a close game.

Patriots 28, Texans 24

Green Bay Packers (11-5) at San Francisco 49ers (11-4-1)
Kickoff: Saturday, Jan. 12, 8:00 p.m.

Tip for success in the NFL: Whatever you do, don’t make Aaron Rodgers mad.

When Rodgers was passed over in the 2005 draft by the 49ers, his favorite team from childhood, he got mad. Really mad. Now, he has a chance to go home to the Bay Area and blow the Niners out of their own stadium. How’s that for revenge?

In addition to a terrifyingly motivated Rodgers, the Packers have their best receivers and defensive starters healthy again after an injury-plagued year. San Francisco, on the other hand, will be playing with inexperienced quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who has beaten the Patriots and Bears but struggled against the woeful Rams, and a struggling defense that can’t seem to work around defensive end Justin Smith’s arm injury. Rodgers should be very satisfied come Saturday night.

Packers 41, 49ers 20

Seattle Seahawks (11-5) at Atlanta Falcons (13-3)
Kickoff: Sunday, Jan. 13, 1:00 p.m.

If they didn’t both have birds of prey as a mascot, these teams would be exact opposites.

The Seahawks have an uncanny ability to pull out close wins on the road. The Falcons have an uncanny ability to pull out close wins at home. The Seahawks have a talented secondary but terrible wide receivers. The Falcons have talented wide receivers but a terrible secondary. The Seahawks use an unconventional offense that emphasizes rushing plays. The Falcons use a conventional offense that has hardly a single rushing play in the book.

The Seahawks are a better team on paper, but looked unspectacular in their win over a one-legged Robert Griffin III and the Washington Redskins. Given how much this game means to Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan and coach Mike Smith, who have yet to win a playoff game in their five years together, I think they’ll play with just enough intensity to advance.

Falcons 27, Seahawks 24

Last Week: 2-2
Overall Record: 2-2
Tentative Super Bowl favorite: Denver Broncos