The imagery was everywhere as darkness descended on Sunday evening, from the half-empty seats and the catcalls that rained down from those who stayed to the bitter end, to Javon Walker being anointed to play backfield safety while Jake Plummer took a knee from “Victory Formation,” to that incredibly annoying “Bad Day” song blasting from the Heinz Field speakers. Each snippet of this 31-20 loss was vivid in its depiction of how far and how fast the Steelers have fallen. They were a Mile High and Super Bowl bound the last time they engaged the Denver Broncos. But the subsequent meeting between the teams, while technically an AFC Championship game rematch, was merely a point of reference as to how badly things have unraveled for the defending Super Bowl champions. It ended with the Steelers having recorded 27 first downs to the Broncos’ 13, with the Steelers having amassed 499 yards to the Broncos’ 336 — 72 coming on a reverse to Walker on which the Steelers had “about four missed tackles” in coach Bill Cowher’s estimation — and with the Steelers having possessed the ball for 34:33 to the Broncos’ 25:27. It also ended with the Steelers having turned the ball over six times to the Broncos’ zero, a critical factor in another critical loss. Cowher, as has become his habit this season, bemoaned the turnovers in the postmortem. But this time he added “we could not play the jump ball” to his list of Steelers’ shortcomings. It has indeed come to that for the defending Super Bowl champs. They can not defend pitch-and-catch. The Broncos exploited the most simple of pass plays three times while stunning the Steelers. Cornerback Deshea Townsend was victimized by 36-year-old receiver Rod Smith for the game’s first touchdown on second-and-10 from the Steelers’ 16 on the Broncos’ fifth offensive snap. Next, the Broncos assaulted cornerback Ike Taylor, beating him on fades on third-and-goal from the Steelers’ 10 on Denver’s next possession for a 14-0 Broncos lead, and on third-and-goal from the Steelers’ 10 early in the fourth quarter after the Steelers had crept to within 21-17. The first fade/jump-ball TD hemorrhaged by Taylor was especially telling. The Broncos had tried the very same play on second-and-goal without success. They showed no apprehension in attacking Taylor again. Taylor also was scorched on a 61-yard Plummer-to-Walker connection after the Steelers had made it 28-20 with half the fourth quarter remaining. Again, the imagery was unmistakable — Taylor hopelessly chasing Walker, who was adding another 61 yards to a 206-yard, two-TD afternoon. A year ago, the Steelers couldn’t be beaten when it really mattered, and Taylor’s postseason handling of Chad Johnson (Cincinnati), Marvin Harrison (Indianapolis), Smith (Denver) and Darrell Jackson (Seattle) was ultimately rewarded with a five-year, $22.5 million contract extension. On Sunday afternoon, when the Steelers were desperate enough to let Cedrick Wilson return punts, Taylor morphed from shutdown corner into meltdown corner. He’s not the only reason they’re 2-6. Yesterday, it merely was his turn to personify the defending Super Bowl champs’ sudden and shockingly thorough demise. “There’s not too much I can explain,” Taylor said. “Just one of them days.” Another in a long succession the Steelers have suffered since January.

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