Peyton, Brady squaring off for 17th time

Manning and Brady have squared off 16 times before, a full season’s worth of matchups between the two quarterbacks whose careers are so intertwined that a conversation about one nearly has to include the other – like Bird vs. Magic or Ali vs. Frazier.

Brady has owned Manning in their high-profile head-to-head series, winning 11 of 16 games, but at least Manning can claim a 2-2 record against his rival in the playoffs, including a 2-1 mark in three previous AFC title games. “We never really got frustrated and that served us well tonight and it served me well this season”.

“To quote Bill Belichick, we’re on to New England”, Manning said on CBS after the game.

Manning wasn’t the only quarterback dealing with injuries.

Osweiler led the Broncos back from a two-touchdown, fourth-quarter deficit against New England on November 29 in a game Denver won 30-24 in overtime. Manning had just gotten out of his cast and watched that game from the locker room after shaking Brady’s hand in pregame warmups.

“We hung in there and got it done”, said coach Gary Kubiak, whose team will host the New England Patriots at 1 p.m. Sunday with a Super Bowl berth on the line.

The Broncos offense seldom overcomes mistakes any more, and some drives seem over as soon as one miscue surfaces, be it a sack, a drop or a penalty.

Brady’s Patriots opened as a 3 1/2-point favorite over Manning’s Broncos.

On Denver’s almost-seven-minute winning drive, which was set up when cornerback Bradley Roby forced Steelers running back Fitzgerald Toussaint to cough up a killer fumble with just less than 10 minutes to go, Manning threw just four times in 13 plays.

“I could have protected the ball a little bit more”, said Toussaint, who scored his first career TD in the first half. They made a great play, so you have to give them credit.

“I think everybody understands that when you’re in the fourth quarter, there’s certainly a sense of urgency”, Manning said. He was benched the day he broke the all-time record for passing yards and then he missed the next five games with plantar fasciitis.

The offense stalled for a large majority of the game, and the defense uncharacteristically gave up some big plays, but the team did what it needed to when they needed it most.

Manning moved the Broncos downfield with a steady diet of passes and runs, at one point converting a third-and-12 play with a 31-yard completion to Bennie Fowler.

Good on Heyward for not pointing the finger, but we disagree. Pittsburgh did a great job down there in the red zone, keeping us from touchdowns. “It was a field goal football game, turnover was the difference in the game”.

“The best thing we did, we stayed patient all game”.

They had to settle for that after getting a first down at Denver’s 10, thanks in large part to Martavis Bryant’s 52-yard pass reception from Roethlisberger, which he caught eight yards deep and ran 44 yards to the Denver 27.

Manning completed 21 of 37 passes for 222 yards, including five to Emmanuel Sanders for 85 yards.

Two months shy of 40, Manning has said this could very well be his final hurrah, and he’s 60 minutes from another chance to win his second Super Bowl ring.

As always, Brady refused to shine a publicity-seeking light on himself or his opposing quarterback, no matter who it is.

But Seattle, the two-time defending NFC champions who beat Carolina at this stage a year ago, got to within seven points with about a minute to play after Steven Hauschka followed three Russell Wilson touchdown passes with a field goal. Steelers linebacker Arthur Moats left before halftime with an injured chest muscle.