Manning to make 1st start in 20 months

Steelers hope to reverse their fortune from last trip to Denver

Associated Press

Denver

When the four-time MVP with the four-time surgically repaired neck takes the field tonight for the Denver Broncos’ opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, it will have been 1 year, 8 months and 2 days since Peyton Manning’s last meaningful snap.

What a long, strange journey it’s been.

Manning’s march began with an irritated nerve in his neck that got worse and eventually weakened his throwing arm, leading to a series of operations that forced him to miss all of the 2011 season.

Without him, the Indianapolis Colts nosedived and then decided to rebuild from top to bottom, including selecting Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck with the top pick in the draft.

So, they cut Manning loose on March 7, marking the end of an era, a 14-year alliance between the team that drafted him No. 1 overall and the QB who brought Indianapolis from football irrelevance to the 2007 Super Bowl title and a second appearance in the NFL championship game three years later.

A thousand miles away, Denver was Tim Tebow’s turf. But management wasn’t completely sold on the exalted but erratic passer for whom coach John Fox had dusted off the old read-option offense last season.

Two weeks after he stood alongside Colts owner Jim Irsay at an emotional farewell news conference, Manning was standing next to John Elway, the powerful pair of Super Bowl winners talking about hoisting another Lombardi Trophy, this time together. And soon.

While it may still be a strange sight to see Manning in orange and navy blue, the Steelers see the same Manning they always have, decoding defenses as well as ever.

“I see no difference,” said Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison.

Neither does Steelers long-time defensive guru Dick LeBeau, who said, “I don’t see any throw that he can’t make. I’ve seen him get sacked and jump right back up. He just looks like Peyton Manning to me and that’s a challenge.”

On defense, Denver added cornerback Tracy Porter, safety Mike Adams and top draft pick Derek Wolfe (Beaver Local), an end who should make Pro Bowl pass-rushers Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil even more effective.

The Steelers have been among the NFL’s most stable franchises for decades. But after losing to the Broncos on Demaryius Thomas’ 80-yard TD catch and run from Tebow on the first play of overtime in the AFC wild-card playoff game at Denver, they endured a tumultuous offseason.

Veterans Hines Ward, James Farrior, Aaron Smith and Chris Hoke either retired or were released. Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians’ contract wasn’t renewed; Pittsburgh brought in former Kansas City coach Todd Haley to add a little bite to an offense that finished tied for 21st in points scored.

Yet the standard, as the Steelers like to say, is the standard. Tomlin insists the Steelers must be “a team on the rise,” even if that rise has been hampered by knee injuries to Harrison, running back Rashard Mendenhall and rookie guard David DeCastro.

Safety Ryan Clark will sit out due to a sickle cell trait that makes playing at high altitudes dangerous. He also missed the playoff game, where Thomas outraced his replacement, Ryan Mundy, to the end zone.