The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off a combative, emotional win in the Wild Card round against the Cincinnati Bengals, and they hit the road again to face Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos in the Divisional round. Things aren't likely to be as chippy as they were against the Bengals, but it could get interesting as the Broncos are out for revenge following a head-first hit by Steelers center Cody Wallace the last time they met in Week 15.
Steelers vs. Broncos preview 2016 NFL playoffs: AFC blue bloods collide again in postseason
Peyton Manning vs. Ben Roethlisberger is a tale of two veteran quarterbacks.
The Steelers are banged up after last week's hard-hitting rivalry matchup, but injuries are nothing new to their offense. They lost starting running back Le'Veon Bell early in the season, and his backup, DeAngelo Williams, has been out since Week 17 with a foot injury and will sit out Sunday again. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger missed four games in the middle of the season due to various injuries, and left the field on a cart against the Bengals only to return late in the game to lead the Steelers to a last-minute win.
Despite being able to come back and finish the game, it was announced he had a sprained AC joint and some torn ligaments in his right shoulder. Roethlisberger is expected to tough it out, though he could be limited. Usually an injury like that takes 3-4 weeks to recover, and he only gets a week of rest before he has to go up against the formidable Broncos defense.
Making Roethlisberger's job even more difficult is that he will be without his No. 1 target, Antonio Brown. Brown spent the week going through the concussion protocol and has yet to be cleared following a hit that resulted in a three-game suspension for Vontaze Burfict.
Denver boasts the best total defense (283.1 yards per game) and pass defense (199.6 yards per game) in the league, but will need the offense to step up in order to ensure a win over the Steelers. With Peyton Manning's lingering foot injury and Brock Osweiler's inexperience, the Broncos haven't had much consistency under center. Add to that a new head coach in Gary Kubiak and there were plenty of growing pains along the way.
But Denver still finished as the No. 1 seed in the AFC with a 12-4 record, and the team won the AFC West for the fifth consecutive year. The Broncos had two 700-yard running backs this season, with Ronnie Hillman rushing for 863 yards and seven touchdowns, while C.J. Anderson added 720 yards and five touchdowns. Downfield, wideout Demaryius Thomas led the receiving corps with 1,304 yards on 105 catches for six touchdowns, making franchise history with four consecutive 1,200-yard receiving seasons.
Digits
The Broncos lead the all-time matchup 14-8-1 over the Steelers, and have won four of the last six meetings. The last time the Steelers and Broncos met less than a month ago, Brock Osweiler was under center for Denver. Despite the Broncos taking a 27-10 lead in the second quarter, Pittsburgh's offense turned it up a notch in the second half for a 34-27 comeback win. Roethlisberger completed 40 of 55 passes for 380 yards and three touchdowns, though he did throw two interceptions against the Broncos' shutdown secondary.
The veteran quarterback finished the season completing 68 percent of his passes for 3,938 yards for 21 touchdowns. He also threw 16 interceptions, had two fumbles and was sacked 20 times for a loss of 141 yards.
The 39-year-old Manning hasn’t been completely healthy all season, leading to notably low stats for the veteran. Aside from missing six games, he finished the regular season with numbers approaching the worst of his career. He completed 198 of 331 passes (59.8 percent) for 2,249 yards and nine touchdowns. He turned the ball over frequently as well, including 17 interceptions and one fumble, along with 16 sacks for a loss of 95 yards.
This will be the eighth time these two teams have met in the postseason, most recently in the 2011 season, when the Broncos won 29-23 in overtime.
Who to Watch
Running backs Fitzgerald Toussaint and Jordan Todman were forced to step up with DeAngelo Williams being sidelined, and they could be critical if the Steelers want to continue advancing through the postseason. Head coach Mike Tomlin noted their "contributions were impressive," and he also said they might be needed again when the team faces Denver. The two backs combined for 28 rushing attempts for 123 yards against the Bengals, with Toussaint also recording 60 receiving yards. If the team wants to rely less on the passing game, it could be up to Toussaint and Todman to allow them to do so.
Quarterback Peyton Manning didn’t look like himself at the beginning of the season, but in November it was announced Manning would miss several games due a torn plantar fascia, something he had been dealing with since August. The veteran quarterback sat on the bench in Week 17 until Osweiler needed a reprieve following five turnovers. Manning didn’t put up huge numbers, but he helped get his team a win and also earned back his starting spot. All eyes will be on the veteran gunslinger to see if a healthy Manning can get back to greatness.
How to Watch
When: 4:40 p.m. ET
Where: Sports Authority Field at Mile High, Denver
TV: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Phil Simms, Tracy Wolfson
Online: CBS Sports
Preliminary Judgment
The majority of experts at both CBS Sports and ESPN are expecting Denver to advance. Here at SB Nation, all but one expert -- PFT Commenter -- agrees with the Broncos getting the Divisional round win over the banged up Steelers.
Odds
The Broncos are a 6.5-point favorite and the over/under is 40.5, according to OddsShark.com.
Further Reading
For more on the Steelers, head over to Behind the Steel Curtain. Your source for everything Broncos is at Mile High Report.
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