This is the second in a 13-part weekly series examing the history of the Pittsburgh Steelers versus their 2020 opponents.
The second on the Steelers schedule is a matchup versus the Denver Broncos on Sunday, Sept. 20, at Heinz Field. The last time these two met was in Denver in November of 2018, and the Steelers lost 24-17. Since then, the Steelers have most notably lost wide receiver Antonio Brown and tight end, Jesse James. The Broncos are now without quarterback Case Keenum and wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders.
Let’s take a look at the history between these two franchises.
Overall, the Broncos lead the series 20-11-1. Of those 32 games, 19 have been hosted at Mile High Stadium in Denver.
Their first-ever matchup was played on Sept. 27, 1970, at Mile High, when the Steelers lost by a field goal, 16-13.
The Broncos reigned victorious the next two contests. Their fourth time meeting ended in their first and only tie, at 35. Pittsburgh finally beat Denver in 1975 at Three Rivers Stadium thanks to two touchdowns by wide receiver Lynn Swann. The final score of 20-9 took the Steelers to 3-1 on the season.
The biggest blowout of the series came in primetime on Monday, Oct. 22, 1979, at Three Rivers. The Steelers crushed the Orange Crush, 42-7. It was a long game for the Broncos as their only points were scored in the first quarter.
There has never been a shutout in Steelers-Broncos history. The closest to it was in 1989 when the Denver beat Pittsburgh 34-7 at Mile High.
The biggest heartbreaker of the series was in 1990 when the Steelers faced the Broncos in Denver for the AFC Championship game. It started out as a defensive battle as Gary Anderson’s field goal were the only points in the first quarter. Running back, Merrill Hodge scored the first Steelers touchdown in the second, and the teams traded scores throughout the game. Anderson added an FG in the third and fourth quarters to give Pittsburgh a six-point lead. Broncos quarterback John Elway then lead his team 71 yards downfield for what would be the game-winning TD. The Steelers had a chance to pull off the win, but quarterback Bubby Brister fumbled the ball, crushing the Steelers hopes for a fifth trip to the Super Bowl.
In the Ben Roethlisberger era, the Steelers have only beaten the Broncos three out of nine times. All but two of those games have been at Mile High.
The last time Pittsburgh hosted Denver was in 2015. WR Antonio Brown was the star of that game hauling in two of Roethlisberger’s passes for TDs as the 8-5 Steelers beat the 10-3 Broncos, 34-27.
This year’s contest will be Roethlisberger’s first game at Heinz Field since his season-ending elbow injury on Sept. 15, 2019.
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