Broncos vs. Steelers: Best Games of All Time
By Tylor Walden
Jan 25, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Team Irvin strong safety T.J. Ward of the Denver Broncos (43) grabs the helmet of Team Carter wide receiver Antonio Brown of the Pittsburgh Steelers (84) in the 2015 Pro Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Whenever you hear a matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Denver Broncos, it provides quite an interesting game. While these two teams only face off only a few years at a time, it has started to develop into a mini-rivalry based on the time these two teams play.
Broncos and Steelers fans in the past have normally seen each other in the postseason. In fact, these two teams have faced off in the postseason seven times, which is most in NFL history.
While this will be a regular season game, it will have all the feel of a playoff game. The Broncos will be looking to clinch their ticket to the postseason while the Steelers will try to keep pace with Kansas City and the New York Jets.
One interesting tid bit of this series is that there has never been a winning streak longer than two games. The Broncos will be looking to break that streak after winning the two matchups in 2012. One in the Wild Card round and then the following season opener.
The Broncos currently hold a 18-10-1 series lead. Both teams will square off for the 30th time in the history of both franchises.
Now that I have your attention, let us take a look into five games that I thought were the best between these two teams. And as a spoiler alert, most of these will be playoff games.
#5- September 9th, 2012
The Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers met in the 2012 season opener. In an offseason that saw quite a few changes, the Broncos were looking to get their season off on the right foot.
This game marked the first game Peyton Manning has played in since the 2010 Wild Card round against the New York Jets, not to mention his first game as a Denver Bronco.
For the majority of this game, it was very competitive. The Steelers opened up the scoring on a 21 yard field goal. The Broncos would respond five minutes after that with a Knowshon Moreno touchdown to give them the lead.
The Steelers would then score ten unanswered points to give the Steelers a 13-7 lead. One of the scoring drives, which led to a field goal, lasted for nearly nine minutes. It was even noted that once Manning got onto the field, it had been an hour of real time since he took a meaningful snap.
However, the one hour did not phase the quarterback, as on the second play of the following drive, he hit Demaryius Thomas on a screen pass and the rest was history. After weaving though defenders, the wide out found himself in the end zone for the 71 yard touchdown.
This was significant because it was Manning’s 400th touchdown pass, and first as a Bronco. And just like that, the Broncos had a 14-13 lead.
From there it was back and forth. The game would not be decided until late in the fourth quarter, when Ben Roethlisberger threw a pick six to Tracy Porter, who was responsible for the pick six that gave the New Orleans Saints their first Super Bowl title. Manning was the quarterback in that game as well.
The Broncos would start off 2012 with a 31-19 win over the Steelers.
Next: Jason Elam for the win