Pittsburgh
1st AFC North1-0
Denver
3rd AFC West0-0
Pittsburgh @ Denver preview
Empower Field at Mile High
Last Meeting ( Jan 17, 2016 ) Pittsburgh 16, Denver 23
The Pittsburgh Steelers snatched victory from the jaws of defeat last week and will carry a six-game winning streak into Denver for a matchup with the Broncos on Sunday. After falling behind 16-0 at Jacksonville, the Steelers scored 20 unanswered points -- a rally capped by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's dive to the goal line in the closing seconds -- to steal a monumental road win.
The six-game streak is the third-longest in the NFL and has Pittsburgh on a rather comfortable perch atop the AFC North, but nobody with the team is looking too far ahead. "We try to be good enough to win on Sundays. We acknowledge on Mondays we better get back to work because you better be good enough to win the following Sunday," coach Mike Tomlin told reporters of the need to focus on the task at hand. "We take that approach and work hard to live it out and stay singularly focused on the things that are important to us." The Broncos emerged from a bye week to defeat the Los Angeles Chargers 23-22 on the road last Sunday. A 34-yard field goal by Brandon McManus as time expired sent Denver to just its second win in the last eight games.
TV: 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS. LINE: Steelers -3. O/U: 46.5
ABOUT THE STEELERS (7-2-1): Antonio Brown has been Pittsburgh's leading receiver for five straight years but could pass that mantle to JuJu Smith-Schuster, who tallied 10 catches for 104 yards to lead the comeback against the Jaguars and draw comparisons to another franchise great at the position. "He's Hines Ward-like," Tomlin said at his weekly news conference of Smith-Schuster. "I realize what I said when I said that. But this guy enjoys it. He's embracing it, and I think it helps us. I don't know that we've had a guy that I can even make that loose comparison to." Brown, Smith-Schuster and others have helped Roethlisberger put together one of his best seasons at the age of 36, as he is on pace for a career-high 37 touchdowns and to eclipse 5,000 yards for the first time.
ABOUT THE BRONCOS (4-6): Quarterback Case Keenum threw for 205 yards against the Chargers and went without an interception for the second straight game after starting the year with eight consecutive contests with at least one pick, and he continued to display a calm demeanor in crunch time. "I think he likes the challenge of bringing our team back," Broncos coach Vance Joseph told reporters Monday. "He's always been that way, from college to his NFL career." Last week's victory has Denver still hoping to be in the playoff mix and a win over the Steelers would give the team loads of momentum heading into a four-game stretch against teams with a combined record of 12-27-1.
EXTRA POINTS
1. The Broncos waived veteran CB/KR Adam Jones.
2. Brown has 10 TD catches over the last eight weeks and is tied for the NFL lead with 11 overall.
3. This is the first meeting since Jan. 17, 2016, when Denver defeated Pittsburgh 23-16 at home in the divisional round of the playoffs.
PREDICTION: Broncos 24, Steelers 23