Some people might argue that Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos don't belong in the 2012 NFL Playoffs and don't deserve to host the 12-4 Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday afternoon, but proving doubters wrong and bucking the trend has been the story of the Broncos' season so far. That being said, the NFL experts have proven unwilling to reach out and pick the Broncos to win in the opening round of the AFC playoffs. The ESPN panel unanimously picked the Steelers to win, the experts at CBS agreed on Big Ben pulling out a win on a bad ankle, and now Peter Schrager of Fox Sports can be added to the list of Denver doubters. Here is what Shrager had to say:
Pittsburgh at Denver: It was fun while it lasted, right? Seeing Romeo Crennel's Kansas City D completely dominate the Broncos offense in a must-win last week, it's hard to pick the Broncos with any real conviction. Denver comes into this one on a three-game losing streak, withTim Tebow committing seven turnovers in those three losses. It'd make for a heck of a story if Tebow (the saint) got past Ben Roethlisberger (something, well, less than a saint), but it's not happening. The Steelers come into this one limping and bruised, but that won't stop the defense from creating turnovers and the offense from turning those turnovers into scores.
The Pick: Steelers 20, Broncos 10
Shrager went 170-86 in his picks during the 2011-12 NFL regular season, and has also selected the Houston Texans, New Orleans Saints and New York Giants to advance to the Divisional Round.
For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Denver. For more in-depth coverage of this matchup, head to Broncos blog Mile High Report and Steelers blog Behind the Steel Curtain. For more news and notes from around the NFL, visit SB Nation's NFL news hub.