The last time the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals played, we got a surprising barn-burner of a game. The Steelers went into Cincinnati and won 44-38. Those 44 points are still a season-high for the Steelers.
In fact, the Steelers have only managed 30+ points three total times this season. So can the Steelers rely on putting up those kind of points again? Or will they need to play a different brand of football to secure the win against QB Joe Burrow and company in the final game of the regular season?
“I think slow and steady wins the race for the Pittsburgh Steelers…” said former NFL DE Marcus Spears on Friday’s episode of NFL Live on ESPN. “I look back two weeks, I watch the Cincinnati defense, Ford from the Cleveland Browns average eight yards a carry. And Denver and McLaughlin average seven yards a carry. Let this two-headed monster between Najee and Jaylen Warren possess you the football… If they can finish in the red area and play physical at the line of scrimmage, they can make this a slobber-knocker and that’s their best path forward.”
The Bengals defense gives up an average of 4.5 yards per carry this season. That’s 21st in the league. They’ve also given up 19 touchdowns on the ground, 25th in the league. So what Spears says certainly holds some weight. The Steelers could have a chance to get the running game going at the level they want Saturday night. And no doubt head coach Mike Tomlin wants to see both Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren contributing at a high level.
But the Steelers’ running backs could also play a big role in the passing game. Harris had six catches for 54 yards while Warren had four catches for 44 yards in that game. It could certainly be a big game for the running backs in Pittsburgh.
And that’s all well and good on the offensive side of the ball. But what about the Steelers defense when the Bengals have the ball? Burrow is having an incredible 2024 despite the Bengals not meeting the expectations many had for them. He’s completing 69.8 percent of his passes for 4,641 yards and 42 touchdowns to only eight interceptions. He’s leading the league in attempts, completions, passing yards, and passing touchdowns.
“You have to find ways to get to the quarterback,” said former Steelers S Ryan Clark. “Go back to that first matchup. It was the T.J. Watt sack-forced fumble and Nick Herbig sack-forced fumble that ended up in a scoop-and-score that really turned and sealed this game. If you give Joe Burrow the time to operate in the pocket, he will pick you apart… I don’t know if it’s a mouthwash game for this defense. But I do believe if you don’t get to Joe Burrow, it will be chronic halitosis for the Pittsburgh Steelers from here on out.”
The Steelers’ passing defense has certainly been struggling the last few weeks. They’ve left targets wide-open for easy scores in each of the last three games. Communication has been a consistent issue, and it’s cost the Steelers dearly. S Minkah Fitzpatrick talked about what they need to do differently to fix the issues, and they’ll need to be at their best against the Bengals Saturday night.
And the pass rush did affect Burrow in the last matchup. The Steelers sacked him four times. Watt got him down twice, while Herbig and Cam Heyward each got one sack. But Burrow still threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns. They did force three turnovers, and that’ll be a huge part of how this game goes.
Tomlin has preached about complimentary football for years. And typically how it’s played out of late is the defense keeping the game close so the offense can get a crucial score to win the game late. But against the Bengals, the Steelers may want to flip the script. The Steelers will want to possess the ball, convert third downs, and keep running the ball with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren. That will help keep Burrow on the sidelines and limit his chances of victimizing the Steelers’ defense. And that may allow players like T.J. Watt to make the needed impact plays when it’s crunch time.
