When news broke this morning that All-Pro wide receiver Antonio Brown has officially been ruled out for Sunday’s AFC Divisional playoff game against the Denver Broncos, the daunting challenge of advancing to the AFC title game got all the more difficult.
Already dealing with the absence of DeAngelo Williams and the reality of Ben Roethlisberger being nowhere close to 100 percent with a shoulder injury, the loss of Brown makes the odds of pulling off the upset pretty steep.
Winning the Powerball steep? Not quite, but pretty steep.
The Broncos are 15-5 all-time in home playoff games, come off of a bye-week as healthy as they have been all season and oh yeah, that Peyton Manning guy is back behind center.
Like I said, not quite as bad as hoping to cash in on a Powerball ticket, but the odds are stacked against the Steelers.
So how in the world can the Steelers overcome so much and put themselves one game away from their ninth Super Bowl appearance?
Look no further than the Steelers defense.
Insanity, right? How the much maligned unit find a way to carry the load in Denver? The same unit that has spent the entire season ranked near the bottom in passing yards allowed? A unit that now must face one of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the league with two of the best receivers in the AFC to throw to?
They have no choice this time around. In order to leave Denver victorious, they will have to accentuate their strengths as a unit and carry the load.
So yes, “‘m saying there is a chance and here are a few reasons why:
*Turnovers to be had with Manning at QB – Few teams have been better at creating turnovers than the Steelers defense. In fact, they ranked first in the AFC with 30 forced turnovers this season, 17 of which were interceptions. Couple that with the fact that 39-year-old Manning has 17 interceptions despite only starting nine games this season, and the Steelers opportunistic pass defense might be able to add to that eye-popping total.
*Pressure Manning and he’ll force the issue – Much of Manning’s struggles come from his body failing him in the twilight of his career. Foot issues have made it hard from him to operate like the player we grew so accustomed to, and with a Steelers pass rush that ranked third in the NFL with 48 sacks, there’s reason for hope.
If you can get to Manning, he’ll get frustrated and try to do to much. It’s a big reason why is his passer rating is a dismal 68.0, which is the first time he’s dipped below 101.6 since 2010. Get to Manning and he’s bound to give the Steelers some gifts.
*Steelers run defense is a strength – The Steelers run defense has given up 91 yards per game, good for fifth-best in the league. Although the Broncos running tandem of C.J. Anderson and Ronnie Hillman are dangerous, the Steelers proved last week against the Bengals that they can limit top running attacks.
As crazy as it might sound on the surface, making the Broncos one-dimensional and forcing them to rely on the pass might be the best way to win. For the reasons detailed earlier, it could mean plenty of turnovers and sacks if Manning is forced to drop back to throw 30-plus times.
The odds are definitely stacked against the Steelers, but a strong effort by the Steelers defense could carry them to a big upset and their third AFC title game under Mike Tomlin.
