Opening Line: Broncos by 3½.

Record vs. Spread: Steelers 11-7; Broncos 12-4-1.

Series Record: Broncos lead 14-8-1.

Last Meeting: Broncos 17, Steelers 14, Oct. 12, 2003 at Denver.

Last Week: Steelers beat Colts 21-18. Broncos beat Patriots 27-13.

Steelers Offense: Overall (15T), Rush (5), Pass (24)

Steelers Defense: Overall (4), Rush (3), Pass (16)

Broncos Offense: Overall (5), Rush (2), Pass (18)

Broncos Defense: Overall (15), Rush (2), Pass (29)

Key Matchup:Pittsburgh's defensive line vs. Denver QB Jake Plummer. The Steelers have beaten the NFL's top two rated quarterbacks: Carson Palmer 101.1 and Peyton Manning 104.1: in the playoffs. Palmer tore up his left knee on his first throw and backup Jon Kitna eventually succumbed to the Steelers' pressure after building a 17-7 lead. Last week, the Steelers applied constant pass rush pressure on Manning, sacking him five times and upsetting his rhythm. Pittsburgh has held the AFC's top scoring teams, Cincinnati and Indianapolis, to 17 and 18 points. Plummer has the second-highest postseason completion percentage (62.3) among active players with at least 100 attempts. Throwing interceptions at inopportune moments was practically a Plummer trademark until Denver coach Mike Shanahan convinced his quarterback he was trying to do too much. He gets his biggest test against the best defense in the AFC (284.0 yards per game).

Streaks, Stats and Notes: Last playoff meeting between these teams was the 1997 AFC championship game. Denver won 24-21 in Pittsburgh and went on to win the Super Bowl. ... Pittsburgh is the first sixth seed to make a conference championship game. ... Steelers are 5-7 in AFC title games. ... Steelers are averaging 28 points in their last seven games. ... Pittsburgh is 8-2 on the road this year and attempts to become the first team to win the Super Bowl after winning three road playoff games. Until this season, the Steelers had won only two road playoff games in 30 years, none under coach Bill Cowher. ... In eight road starts this season (including postseason), QB Ben Roethlisberger has 12 TDs vs. 4 INTs, completing 108 of 165 passes (65.5 percent) for 108.3 passer rating. ... Steelers allowed only eight TDs on road during regular season, fewest in NFL. ... Steelers have a six-game winning streak. ... Joey Porter led NFL LBs with 10½ sacks, tying career high. ... LB James Farrior posted game-high 10 tackles and career-high 2½ sacks vs. Colts. ... WR Hines Ward had 11 TD catches, tied for second in AFC. ... Pittsburgh is 26-18 in the postseason. ... Denver's defense has allowed only 50 points during the team's current five-game winning streak. ... Denver is 12-2 at home in the playoffs and is 6-1 in AFC title games. ... Broncos are 3-2 vs. Steelers in the playoffs. ... Denver and Seattle are tied for the longest current home winning streak, 11 straight. ... Broncos, who forced the Patriots into five turnovers, forced 36 turnovers in the regular season. ... Broncos had a plus-20 turnover margin, second-best in the league. ... Denver has the third-best offense in the AFC (360.4 yards per game). ... Plummer passed for 3,366 yards, completing 60.7 percent (277 of 456) with 18 TDs and seven INTs. ... Denver is 17-14 in the postseason. ... CB Champ Bailey, with eight INTs in the regular season, recorded second-longest postseason interception return against New England (100 yards). ... K Jason Elam is Broncos' all-time leader in postseason points (79).