Jan 23, 2016 3 min read

There was quite a bit of emotion in the Steelers’ locker room following the 23-16 loss in the AFC Divisional Playoffs at Denver, and for good reason.

The Steelers controlled that game for more than three quarters before allowing it to slip away. Leading up to the collapse, the Steelers were the better team, even without Antonio Brown, DeAngelo Williams and others.

Tip your cap to Peyton Manning, even if his arm strength might be the worst in the NFL, which was one of the reasons why the Broncos dropped so many passes against the Steelers. His flutterballs couldn’t cut through the gusting winds without changing trajectory.

Manning still has a mind capable of dissecting a defense. And that’s what he did on Denver’s 13-play, 65-yard drive to score the game-winning touchdown.

It wasn’t anything spectacular, but Manning was able to keep the Broncos moving by checking out of bad plays and into ones to keep moving the chains.

That 65-yard drive was one of just two Denver had in the game that covered more than 34 yards. They struggled moving the ball against the Steelers.

Pittsburgh struggled as well, but that was understandable considering the Steelers were missing Brown and Williams, their leading receiver and rusher.

And Denver’s defense is much better than Pittsburgh’s.

The Broncos are 3 1/2-point underdogs today in the AFC Championship game against New England, a team they beat, 30-24, in overtime during the regular season. But Brock Osweiler started that game at quarterback for the Broncos, leading Denver to 23 points in the fourth quarter and overtime.

The question is: Can Manning produce enough points?

In Manning’s five starts at home this season, he led the Broncos to 23 points once, that coming in a 29-10 win over Green Bay.

Brady has thrown more touchdown passes in Denver this season than Manning. He had three in that loss earlier this season, while Manning has one in five starts.

Denver’s defense will have to come up with something special to win this game. And with cornerback Chris Harris hurting – he’s a game-time decision with a shoulder injury – that’s less likely to happen.

Take New England, 27-17

Carson Palmer didn’t play well last week, though his final stats were bolstered in overtime as he threw for 349 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. But Arizona didn’t give him a lot of help, rushing for just 40 yards. The Cardinals will need to do better than that if they hope to win this game. Carolina, meanwhile, jumped out to a 31-0 halftime lead against Seattle before going into cruise control. This Arizona team is too talented to fall behind 31-0 as long as Palmer, who won his first playoff game in three tries last week, takes care of the football. These two teams haven’t played since 2013, a game won by the Cardinals at home, 22-6, so there’s no recent history. Both teams are missing key players in the secondary, Charles Tillman for Carolina, Tyrann Mathieu for Arizona. Mathieu is probably the bigger loss.

Take Carolina, 24-20

Last week: 2-2 ATS; 3-1 Straight up

Overall: 124-117-5 ATS; 155-91 Straight up

F. Dale Lolley can be reached at dlolley@observer-reporter.com.