The 2012 season is officially underway, as several great pigskin matchups will be televised across the country. Top teams such as the Bears, Packers, 49ers, Jets and Raiders will all be in action on Sunday for week 1.

One of the notable games will feature the newly acquired Payton Manning and his Denver Broncos taking on Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Coming off a release after an injury, Manning was inked to a five-year $96 million dollar contract on March 20th.

According to ESPN, this will be the Quarterback's "first game that counts since Jan. 8, 2011," which is when his Indianapolis Colts had come up short in a 17-16 nail-biter to the New York Jets in the AFC wild-card game.

"I know how hard I've worked to get back to this position and how much time I've put in to rehabbing and how much time I continue to put in. I'm going to play as hard as I possibly can, so that's really all I know to do."

In order for the star passer to begin his tenure with Denver on a high note, he must be able to outsmart a tough Pittsburgh defense.

The Steelers will clearly not be taking the QB for granted, as they have seen first hand what he can do.

Having faced adversity for the first time in his career due to a neck injury, Manning will look to re-establish himself as one of the perennial players in the league.

Expectations for the Broncos newly upgraded offense will extremely high. The organization had made it to the middle of the playoffs in 2011 under the play of Tim Tebow. However, with the strong insistence of the legendary John Elway, Manning was brought in to take the team to another Super Bowl.

Tonight at 8:30 EST Manning will look to successfully begin a new chapter with the Broncos.

CLICK HERE to watch the Denver Broncos vs. Pittsburgh Steelers via live stream.

Tags
NFL., Football 2012, Television