You can never take a divisional opponent lightly, and it doesn’t sound like the Cincinnati Bengals will. Despite Tyler Boyd giving the Pittsburgh Steelers some extra bulletin board material by calling out their locker room, it’s a game both teams need to win and a game both teams are going to show up for. The Steelers need to win to stay alive in the AFC playoff race, while the Bengals are currently the AFC’s No. 6 seed and want to stay in the playoffs with a win.
“We’re playing one of the storied franchises in the NFL. It’s a playoff game. They need it, we need it. I don’t think there’s a person in this building that would ever take the Pittsburgh Steelers lightly,” Bengals DC Lou Anarumo said via James Rapien of Locked On Bengals.
Pittsburgh already has a win over Cincinnati this season, winning at Paycor Stadium in Week 12 in Jake Browning’s first career start, so the Bengals will look to avenge that loss. Both teams have been on completely different trajectories since that game as the Steelers have lost three straight games while the Bengals have won three straight. Despite that, Cincinnati knows that it’s coming in facing a Steelers team that’s going to want to quiet the critics, including Boyd, about its locker room and recent play, and the best way to do that is with a win.
Both teams are down key pieces as the Bengals won’t have WR Ja’Marr Chase, while S Minkah Fitzpatrick along with S Damontae Kazee are out for the Steelers. It’s also the Steelers’ last home game of the season, so they’re going to want to send their fans home happy after one of the worst stretches in Mike Tomlin’s tenure over the last three weeks.
Nothing has seemingly gone right for the Steelers the last few weeks, but a win over the Bengals would bring a lot of goodwill to a team that needs it. It’s a long shot that the Steelers win out, but this would be a season-saving win for them by keeping their hopes alive and giving them some momentum for their final two games. They’re going to need to show up more than they have over the last few weeks, and the Bengals are anticipating a hard-fought battle.
Hopefully, Mason Rudolph can recapture some of the magic he had against Cincinnati in 2019 and lead Pittsburgh to a victory in his first start of the 2023 season.
