A third straight loss, this time to the lowly Cincinnati Bengals, has the Steelers reeling, with their grip on the AFC North title seriously in doubt.
Cincinnati third-string quarterback Ryan Finley threw for one touchdown and ran for another as the Bengals took advantage of a miserable first half by Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers’ offense, rushing past Pittsburgh, 27-17.
Big Ben threw for only 19 yards in the entire first half, and finished the night with only 170 yards through the air, a touchdown, an interception, and a fumble lost.
The Steelers’ defense was no help, getting ripped for 152 yards on the ground and surrendering an 80-yard drive, culminating on Finley’s 23-yard bootleg for a touchdown, untouched, after the Steelers had cut the Bengals’ margin to seven points.
Coach Mike Tomlin says the Steelers are playing bad football.
Big Ben finished 20-of-38 passing and spoke only in short answers after the game, saying he has not played well in quite a while.
Subbing for injured starter James Conner, Benny Snell ran for 84 yards for the Steelers. He said the Steelers were doomed by their horrible first half.
Fullback Derek Watt left the game with a concussion suffered when he took a knee to the helmet on a punt return in the first quarter. Tight end Erik Ebron also left and did not return after injuring his back, and linebacker/safety Marcus Allen left the game but returned after suffering a neck stinger.
The Steelers are 11-3 and face the 10-4 Indianapolis Colts on Sunday afternoon at one o’clock. They close the season at Cleveland on January 3rd, with the Browns now just one game back of Pittsburgh for the top spot in the AFC North. Cleveland plays the worst team in football, the Jets, this Sunday.
Other Steelers news yesterday included an ESPN report that Roethlisberger intends to return for an 18th NFL season next year. He has one year left on a contract calling for a $19 million salary, but a $41.25 million salary cap hit. If he were to retire, the Steelers would take a $22.25 million hit to their salary cap.
Five Steelers were named yesterday to the Pro Bowl. Led by linebacker TJ Watt, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, defensive end Cam Heyward, and center Maurkice Pouncey, who were all named as starters, and guard David DeCastro, who was selected as a backup. There will be no Pro Bowl game this year.
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