CINCINNATI — Thursday night proved anything can happen in the AFC North.
and it means cincinnati bengals Could still be in the mix for a potential playoff berth. Cincinnati takes over division lead pittsburgh steelers one in 33-31 Thursday night’s win at Paycor Stadium.
Coming into the prime-time showdown, Cincinnati had lost four consecutive games, and the Steelers, who had lost only once this season, were threatening to take a strong lead in the division.
Instead, the Bengalis closed the gap. Behind a monstrous effort from the wide receiver jammer chaseCincinnati’s offense had a season-best performance, finishing with 16 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown. The win also showed why the Bengals traded for a quarterback Joe FlaccoWho threw for 342 yards and three touchdowns in the win over the starters. joe burro On injured reserve due to turf toe.
The trade – and Thursday night’s win – did enough to give something that Cincinnati had not felt for several weeks – hope.
cincinnati bengals
Most Amazing Performance: Aside from Flacco’s big night, Cincinnati’s running game had been woefully ineffective for most of the first six weeks. chase brown Failing to live up to preseason expectations. Against Pittsburgh, Brown had a game that could have started his year off strong and really helped the offense. He had 11 carries for 108 yards. But most importantly, he had some big runs that helped open up Cincinnati’s passing attack.
Statistics to know: bengals wide receiver jammer chase He crossed the 6,000 receiving yards mark in the 69th game of his career. Along with a Vikings wide receiver, he is the fifth-fastest player to reach that milestone Justin JeffersonHis former LSU teammates are also in that group.
Disturbing Tendency: For the second week in a row, the Bengals struggled in tackles. after the team’s defeat detroit lionsThe coaching staff said that the defensive aspect was not good enough. Cincinnati had some problems against the Steelers. rookie linebacker demetrius knight jrWas ejected after a missed tackle in the fourth quarter and was replaced by veteran oren burks,
Next game: versus New York Jets (1 p.m. ET, Oct. 26)
pittsburgh steelers
The Steelers spent their offseason assembling a secondary specifically for matchups against teams like the Cincinnati Bengals. with a trio of Jalen Ramsey, darius slay And Joey Porter Jr.., the Steelers’ secondary had to match up with anyone – including the Bengals receiving tandem chase t higgins,
But on Thursday night, taking dimes from quarterback Flacco, Chase and Higgins beat the Steelers man-to-man and in the zone, allowing the Steelers and their revamped defense to lead the Bengals to an unexpected upset. The Steelers’ defense, which had looked on the rise in the win against the Browns four days earlier, not only couldn’t shut down a pair of receivers, but it allowed Chase Brown’s highest rushing yards of the season – all in the first half.
Poor defensive performance almost overshadows the quarterback’s stellar performance aaron rodgersWho threw four touchdown passes, all to his tight ends, including a 68-yard catch-and-run score Pat Freiermuth 2:31 minutes left to take a one-point lead.
QB Analysis: Rodgers was defeated by Flacco in the 40-quarterback battle, in part due to Rodgers’ poor decision making to run the ball deep. DK MetcalfeWhich was double-covered in the first half. jordan battle Rodgers’ pass was picked off, the first of the Steelers’ third series, and the Bengals marched to the end zone in three plays for their second touchdown and first lead of the evening. Before that interception, Rodgers’ first of two in the first half, the quarterback was moving like an older version of himself. He held the ball for 8.6 seconds before finding the tight end jonu smith Scramble drill for a touchdown to cap the first drive of the game. According to Next Gen Stats, this is the longest time for Rodgers to throw a touchdown pass since at least 2016. Rodgers finished with three TDs on passes outside the pocket, the most in his career (he had done so twice, most recently in this season’s opener at the Jets).
Amazing Performance: The Steelers’ pass rush. The Steelers had six sacks in each of the last two games and 17 sacks in the last three, yet they struggled to get much pressure on Flacco, who was playing behind the much-maligned Bengals offensive line. The Steelers recorded two sacks, but had three fourth downs. tj wattThe man who had three quarterback hits and a half sack last week did not record a sack or tackle through three quarters. Watt did not appear on the stat sheet until he fouled out at the end of the fourth with Pittsburgh trailing by six points. Flacco, meanwhile, looked calm and composed all night and often got his receivers into a rhythm, largely because he wasn’t under pressure.
Statistics to know: According to ESPN Research, the Steelers have allowed more than 30 points in a game for the third time this season, marking the first time since 2003 that the Steelers have allowed at least 30 points three times in their first six games of the season. Allowing 30 points against the Bengals is especially egregious because, unlike the first two times, the Steelers allowed at least 30 points in the first two weeks of the season, all of the team’s defensive starters were healthy, and the defense had been trending in the right direction over the last three weeks.
Next game: versus green Bay Packers (8:20 p.m. ET, Oct. 26)
