A year ago, the New York Giants became the first No. 5 seed to win the Super Bowl since the current postseason format began in 1990.

And this season, Indianapolis, the fifth seed in the AFC, and Atlanta, seeded fifth in the NFC, have inside tracks to advance deep in the playoffs and possibly to Super Bowl XLIII, even though they won't have the benefit of a home playoff game.

The Colts and Falcons can thank the AFC and NFC West divisions for their opportunities in this weekend's wild-card round because their first-round opponents in Saturday's wild-card games are flawed teams.

The Colts, 12-4, will face San Diego, 8-8, which needed a near-miraculous recovery of an onside kick to beat the Chiefs on Dec. 14 but won its last four games and became the first 8-8 team to reach the postseason since Marty Schottenheimer's Cleveland Browns in 1985. (Denver's losing its last three games also made this possible.)

San Diego may be at home on Saturday against the Colts, but the game is considered even by the oddsmakers because Indianapolis, 12-4, is the hottest team in the NFL. The Colts, who opened the season 3-4 while quarterback Peyton Manning was recovering from a procedure on his left knee during training camp, have won nine straight, including victories over AFC division champions Tennessee and Pittsburgh as well as New England and a 20-17 victory at San Diego on Nov. 2.

And Manning is the NFL's hottest player and may have clinched the MVP award during the nine-game winning streak in which he has 17 touchdown passes and just three interceptions.

In the NFC, the Falcons, 11-5, will travel to Phoenix and face the Cardinals, 9-7, who wrapped up the weak NFC West early and dropped four of five games before closing the season with a 34-21 win at home against Seattle. In those four losses, Arizona allowed an average 41.7 points per game.

The Falcons won their last three down the stretch, including a win at NFC North champion Minnesota, and are favored by 2 points over the Cardinals.

"It used to be that wild-card weekend doesn't mean much, these are the lower seeds, and the top four teams get byes, and the big games will be the next week and the week after that because they'll probably be the Super Bowl teams," said NBC analyst John Madden, who will call the Colts-Chargers game on Saturday night.

"But two of the last three Super Bowl champions came out of the wild card, and the blueprint is so fresh of the New York Giants. They had to play every game on the road; they went to Tampa, they went to Dallas and to Green Bay and then beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl.

"I can see San Diego or the Colts going to the Super Bowl because both are peaking at the right time."

Besides the Giants winning as a No. 5 seed last year; the Pittsburgh Steelers won the Super Bowl following the 2005 season as a sixth seed. The two No. 1 seeds have not reached the Super Bowl since 1993.

Colts coach Tony Dungy, who won the 2006 Super Bowl as a third seed, likes his team's chances as a fifth seed because it had to overcome the slow start and myriad injuries to reach the postseason.

"We've had to do it the tough way," Dungy said. "Because we've done it on the road, in close games, come from behind in a lot of games ... each game has unfolded differently and we've found ways to win. That builds a sense of camaraderie and a feeling they can get the job done. Now we're going to have the tough road (in the playoffs), but having done it before helps."

Even the Chargers, who lost to Indianapolis 23-20 on Nov. 23, sense the Colts may be the team to beat in the AFC.

"You talk about a team that people don't want to play, this has to be one of those teams," said Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson. "They've been playing great Football. This is a tough team to have to play in the first round, and they're good on the road."

Atlanta, along with Miami, is one of the two feel-good stories of the NFL season. The Falcons have a rookie coach in Mike Smith and a rookie quarterback in Matt Ryan -- selected Tuesday as the 2008 NFL offensive rookie of the year -- and the league's second-leading rusher in free-agent signee Michael Turner, who went for 1,699 yards and 17 touchdowns.

The club has put the nightmare of Michael Vick and former coach Bobby Petrino behind it in returning to the postseason for the first time since losing in the NFC championship game in 2004.

The Cardinals, meanwhile, will be playing in their first postseason game since 1998 and their first home playoff game since winning the NFL championship as the Chicago Cardinals in 1947.

Little wonder the NFC West champion has garnered such little respect and at 40-1 has the longest odds to win the Super Bowl.

"We're the Cardinals, man," said safety Adrian Wilson, who is in his eighth year with the franchise. "Nobody gives us respect. It's always something with this team. ... But I know we play well at home, and it's going to be a tough game."

@ Go to KansasCity.com for updates in the Red Zone blog.

To reach Randy Covitz, NFL reporter for The Star, call 816-234-4796 or send e-mail to rcovitz@kcstar.com

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