Sunday’s matchup versus the Denver Broncos and the Pittsburgh Steelers looks to be a battle against the leagues’ best defense and what is quickly becoming the league’s most explosive offense. Sound familiar? Yeah, well, let’s just hope the Broncos come out on the right side of that showdown this time.
And as we wrote yesterday, there’s a very good chance they do. While the Steelers are undeniably explosive on the offensive side of the ball, Denver’s defense pretty much tops the league in every defensive category. And as Ben Roethlisberger said on Wednesday, they don’t really have a weakness.
“I haven’t found out yet,” Roethlisberger said, via denverbroncos.com. “Their pass rush and rushing coverage work together. Their pass rush is unbelievable; they have edge rushers getting around the outside and inside guys getting a push. Their secondary guys are being physical, making plays. The ball is in the air, they intercept it and they score. So, there’s a reason they’re No.1 in almost every category.”
That’s not entirely true, though; the Broncos do have a weakness, and it’s their health.
As of Thursday’s practice, there were 10 Broncos defenders on their injury report, including the team’s top four safeties. If there’s anything that holds them back against Pittsburgh, it’ll be their ability to get enough defenders on the field. And the Steelers aren’t going to make it easy.
“We always say that we want to be the best,” Roethlisberger said. “To be the best, you have to beat the best and this is the best defense in the NFL. They prove it week in and week out. For all of us, not just the wide receivers—I think if you ask anybody on offense, we want to try to be the best. It’s going to be a challenge and a test for all of us.”
If the Broncos come out on top, it’ll be another notch in their championship belt.