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Safety Ryan Clark Could Miss Playoff Matchup With Denver Broncos

With the Pittsburgh Steelers knocking off the Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Ravens winning, they punched their ticket for Denver to take on Tim Tebow and the Broncos. Pittsburgh starting safety Ryan Clark may not play, however, because of a medical condition that kept him out of the game two years ago.

More after the jump.

Back in 2007, Clark found himself extremely ill and in the hospital after playing a game in Denver, reportedly because of a medical condition and the altitude. In a 2009 matchup with the Broncos, head coach Mike Tomlin held Clark out of the game despite the fact that Clark said he would play in the altitude. Clark suffers from a sickle-cell trait that can limit the flow of oxygen to his spleen and gall bladder. The last time Clark played in Denver, he lost nearly 30 pounds and it took nearly two full months for him to recover.

From the sounds of it, Clark likely will not play in Denver once again.

For more on Ryan Clark and the Pittsburgh Steelers, visit SB Nation's Steelers blog, Behind The Steel Curtain.

Photographs by dizfunk used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.