The Steelers quest for a playoff spot continues Sunday as they go up against the Denver Broncos in the regular season Heinz Field finale.
The 10-3 Broncos are looking to clinch their post-season spot with a win against the 8-5 Steelers while the Steelers are trying to win-out to avoid sitting out of this year’s playoffs.
The storyline of this game could be a lot different if Peyton Manning was starting as it would be two of the game’s greatest quarterbacks battling it out but instead it will be a battle of the NFL’s top-rated defense against the second-highest rated offense.
Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers offense are averaging over 400 yards per game and have scored 30 or more points for the last five games.
The Denver Broncos defense leads the league in total defense as well as passing defense and is third-ranked against the run. They’re putting up numbers that rival the 2008 Steelers defense.
According to Teresa Varley Roethlisberger is well aware of what he’s going up against with this stout defense.
"“They do everything. They get out, they press, they are physical, and they can play zone. They just take good angles to the ball. They are fundamentally sound. When the ball is in the air they make plays on it.” – Ben Roethlisberger"
The Steelers are going to need some big performances out of all three phases today. The margin for error is very slim. The Broncos may be coming off of a loss against the Raiders but that doesn’t give any reason to take this team lightly.
The Steelers have a history of turning the heat up in December and we could use some warmth today.
Here are all the details on how to catch the action:
Date/Time: Sunday, Dec. 20th 4:25 pm EST
Location: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, PA
TV: CBS (KDKA 2-Local Pittsburgh), Direct TV NFL Sunday Ticket
Radio: SteelersNationRadio.com, 102.5 WDVE
Live Stream: nfl.com, nflst.directv.com
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Phil Simms, Tracy Wolfson
Here we go Steelers! Here we go!