STEELERS BLACK -N- GOLD POST A Pittsburgh Steelers Blog from the heart of Steelers Nation.

by Ramona Dye

Two of the AFC's top defenses will battle it out on Monday night at Mile High in Denver.

Our Steelers are coming off the bye week and a four-game winning streak with a solid win over the Minnesota Vikings.

Our Steelers are tied with the Bengals for the lead in the AFC North division and with a win over the Broncos and a possible loss for Cincy, it could put our team in a good position for our division title.

Let's not forget though that the Denver Broncos are coming off their first loss against Baltimore. How well can they bounce back after a sound beating?

This will be a Monday night game that several teams and fans will be paying close attention to.

Match-ups to watch for:

Our Steelers offense vs the Broncos defense.

Big Ben is third in the NFL in passing yards, second in completion percentage, first in yards per attempt, and second in yards per game. He is a good passer and is the best in the league at creating plays.

Things to watch for will be Bens success at avoiding the number one sack team in the NFL and costly turnovers.

Kyle Orton vs Steelers defense.

Orton has done well with his transition to the Broncos offense and leads the league in fewest interceptions, one, unusual for Broncos quarterbacks. He may not be the best quarterback on the field but he has proved that he can win big games.

Broncos running game has been a solid force in their offense so let's see what they can do against the number one defense against the run.

Broncos defense vs Steelers defense.

The Broncos lead the league in total defense giving up only 266.7 yds a game and have held their opponents to 13.7 points per game. Their defense runs the same style 3/4 defense as our Steelers let's see which defense shows up in this game to make a game winning decision.

Recap on Ryan Clark.

Clark is considering playing in the game, despite still carrying a sickle-cell trait and another undisclosed medical condition that caused the initial crisis.

Clark’s previous illness came after playing in a 31-28 loss to Denver on Oct. 21, 2007. He became ill following the game and after complications with the sickle-cell trait in his blood prevented parts of his spleen from receiving oxygen.

Clark was forced to have emergency surgery to remove his spleen. A few weeks later, his gallbladder had to be removed. Throughout the illness, he lost 35 pounds causing him to miss the remainder of the season.

Doctors told Clark that about 1 percent of those who suffer with the sickle-cell trait in his blood react adversely to high stress and exertion in extreme altitude.

Although Clark has gotten medical clearance to play in the game, the question remains. Should Pittsburgh be entertaining the thoughts of letting him play?

Guess we will wait and see.

As always, Here WE Go!!!