It's Pittsburgh!

In one of the biggest upsets in NFL history. Which was almost one of the biggest chokes in NFL history and one of the biggest screwjobs in NFL history. The Pittsburgh Steelers advanced to play the Broncos with a 21-18 win over Indianapolis.

Pittsburgh through a game plan of throwing on Indy's secondary and blitzing the hell out of Peyton Manning had control of this game throughout carrying in a 21-3 lead into the Fourth Quarter. The Steelers appeared to have the game wrapped up after stopping Peyton and the Colts Offense on a 4th down play with a little over a minute to go at Indy's 2. But Jerome Bettis who was fatigued fumbled the insuing carry and Nick Harper returned the fumble into Pittsburgh territory. Mike Vanderjagt missed a 40 yard Field Goal and Pittsburgh escaped.

This could not be better for the Broncos for several reasons.

1) First and foremost instead of traveling to Indianapolis, the Broncos will HOST the AFC Championship Game Sunday at 3 o'clock.

2) Pittsburgh, offensively is a better matchup for the Denver defense. Manning, Harrison and Wayne were going to pick apart the Broncos rookie cornerbacks, in a manner similar to how he torched Roc Alexander in the Wild Card round a year ago. Denver's large defensive line and speedy linebackers should be able to get stops on Jerome Bettis and Willie Parker.

3) Pittsburgh is banged up. Roethlisberger took a helmet shot to his elbow in this game and afterwards Pittsburgh almost exclusively ran the ball. This played a role in allowing Indy back in the game. This will also be Big Ben's first trip to Mile High.

I am guessing Vegas will have Denver as a 5-6 point favorite over Pittsburgh, if not more. While I expect this matchup to still be a tough one. It will be nice to host an AFC Championship again!