Pittsburgh Steelers @ Denver Broncos Sun. Jan. 8, 2012 4:30 p.m. EST

Tim Tebow mania in the Mile High City will continue for at least one more week with the Denver Broncos winning the AFC West division title and clinching the first playoff berth in quite some time. Despite finally getting back into the postseason, the Broncos will have their work cut out for them as they will have to contend with arguably the best defense in the NFL led by Troy Polamalu.

With a three-game losing streak coming into the first-round of the playoffs, the Denver Broncos have really begun to struggle in the last few weeks of the NFL regular season and that could very well bleed over into the playoffs. Even though the Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t exactly been the most consistent football team in the league this season, Ben Roethlisberger has played well throughout, but will be pretty banged up heading into this game with a weak ankle.

Not only will Big Ben be hurting coming into this matchup, but the Steelers will be without a solid running game as running back Rashard Mendenhall is out for the season with a torn ACL in his right knee. With the running game being handed over to Isaac Redman, the Steelers could be ineffective in the ground game and as a result might not be able to score against the vastly improved Denver Broncos’ defense.

Despite all the injuries and the questions surrounding the age of this football team, the Pittsburgh Steelers are heavy favorites to come out on top in this matchup with a -9 point spread. Even though the Steelers should win and advance, I can’t see them covering this spread with the players they have on the field this Sunday.

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