Steelers vs. Broncos: Pittsburgh Needs Defense to Come Up Aces in Denver

NEWSFLASH: The Pittsburgh Steelers must rely on their defense to carry the day if they are to beat the Denver Broncos in the final game of NFL Wild Card weekend.

OK, so maybe that's not much of a newsflash, given that the Steelers have been built around their defense for as long as anyone can remember, Chuck Knoll and Bill Cowher included.

Still, Pittsburgh will need its defense to do more than just stop Tim Tebow and the Broncos' strong running game. Rather, the Steelers will need to force turnovers to create short fields for their hobbled offense and/or score points to stay ahead.

That may seem like a cinch, what with Tebow having turned the ball over 10 times in his last five games and Denver averaging fewer than 14 points per game over its last four.

But don't go waving your Terrible Towels around town just yet, Steelers fans. Pittsburgh finished dead last in the NFL in takeaways this season with just 15 total turnovers forced and will be without Ryan Clark.

The Pro Bowler became the first safety in Steelers history to lead the team in tackles. His presence in the secondary has allowed fellow Pro Bowler Troy Polamalu to roam the field at every level as he has for the better part of a decade, wreaking havoc and forcing fumbles and interceptions amidst his flowing Samoan locks.

Without Clark, the Steelers will have to rely on Ryan Mundy, a Pittsburgh native, to fill the void next to Polamalu. If Mundy struggles in Clark's role, then Polamalu may have to play more conservatively, leaving the already turnover-deprived Steelers defense even more impotent in that department.

Such would leave Tebow and the Broncos offense with relatively free reign to run the ball and control the clock, and a hobbled Ben Roethlisberger with fewer opportunities to move the Steelers down the field as a result.

The loss of Rashard Mendenhall, at least as a pure runner, isn't as devastating as it would seem—Mendenhall averaged 4.1 yards per carry this season, Isaac Redman 4.4, Jonathan Dwyer 7.7.

However, Big Ben's ankle remains an issue, and if he has to make plays with his feet behind Pittsburgh's shoddy offensive line, with Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil bearing down on him play after play, then the Steelers may be that much more hard-pressed to put points on the board.

Hence, it's incumbent upon the defense to find the end zone or set up some short fields, at the very least. That will require the Steelers to do plenty of what they've hardly done all season.

Create turnovers.

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