Lolley's Kickoff: Bring on Bengals, AFC North football taken at Heinz Field (Steelers)

CAITLYN EPES / STEELERS

Cam Heyward at practice Friday on the South Side, wearing No. 75 to honor Mean Joe Greene's 75th birthday.

Could the Steelers being going out of the frying pan and into the fire?

Perhaps.

That could certainly be the case if they don't play well Sunday when they host the Bengals at Heinz Field. All of the good will and momentum they gained in a Week 1 victory against the Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y., skidded to a halt last Sunday with a loss to the Raiders at home.

A loss to the Bengals (1-1)? Well, there's a good chance that would leave the Steelers (1-1) in last place in the AFC North given that the Browns (1-1) and Ravens (1-1) are huge favorites this weekend over the Bears and Lions, respectively.

"We’ve got a hot kitchen this weekend in Pittsburgh, AFC North ball. We’ve got some challenges along the way," Mike Tomlin said. "Those challenges don't bring us down; those challenges inspire us. This is a coaches’ week. We’ve got to work, we’ve got to put these guys in position to perform, minimize our weaknesses, lean on our strengths, while at the same time combating the things that the Cincinnati Bengals do and do well. I'm excited about that."

It's just another game on the schedule, just like last week's game against the Raiders was just one game, just like the game against the Bills only counted as one win. But it seems so much more is at stake in this one because it's against an AFC North rival that beat the Steelers last season in Cincinnati and is trying to show that they're not the same old Bengals of recent years.

Oh, and they might want to end their current two-game home losing streak -- including last season's playoff loss to the Browns.

"I'm not here to act like the season's over with," said Cam Heyward. "We got a long season ahead of us. We got another opponent coming up. It's AFC North. Everybody's records are 1-1 in our division, so game up."

Game up would be a good message for the Steelers right now. They need the offense to up its game. And the defense, which was stifling at times against a very good Bills offense in Week 1, reached a tipping point in Week 2 because of injuries.

Already playing without stalwart Stephon Tuitt, Devin Bush and Joe Haden missed the game because of groin injuries. Then, Tyson Alualu went out in the first quarter with a fractured ankle and T.J. Watt suffered a groin injury in the second quarter.

Down five defensive starters, the Steelers had to go away from the original game plan, which called for them to play coverage behind perhaps the best four-man pass rush in the NFL. They had to start blitzing more in the second half, and that led to some breakdowns.

Haden and Bush are expected back for this game, while Watt could be a true game-time decision. But the Steelers know that Tuitt and Alualu, who was placed on injured reserve, won't be back -- at least for now.

Getting Watt, whom the Steelers made the highest-paid defensive player in the league just a few weeks ago, back on the field would have been the biggest boost, but that won't happen. He was downgraded to out Saturday morning.

None of that will matter if the Steelers don't find a way to kickstart an offense that has scored just three touchdowns in the first two games and seven overall first-half points.

The offense figured to be a work in progress, but with some of the defensive injuries, that needs to be expedited.

"We’ve just got to keep working. Development is that. It’s development," Tomlin said. "It doesn't happen in an instant, it doesn't happen overnight. We're sensitive to that. But at the same time, there's urgency because we’ve got ballgames to win in the midst of all of this."

The Bengals have made some big changes, particularly on defense, adding players such as edge rusher Trey Hendrickson from the Saints and nickel corner Mike Hilton from the Steelers.

As a result, they've been better defensively than in recent years. The Bengals enter this game sixth in yards and 10th in points allowed through two weeks.

That might not exactly be what a struggling offense needs.

Oh, and quarterback Joe Burrow, the top pick in last year's draft, is back in the lineup for an offense that added premium pass catcher Ja'Marr Chase in the draft.

In Cincinnati, they always talk about the week they play Pittsburgh as "Steelers Week." It's a big deal. It hasn't been recently for the Steelers, who had a 10-game winning streak against the Bengals broken last December in Cincinnati when the offense slogged its way 27-17 loss.

The Steelers welcomed Burrow to the rivalry last season with a 36-10 beatdown Nov. 15 at Heinz Field. They want to keep the young buck in the division from getting any confidence against them.

The Steelers have a lot of new faces, as well. And they have better figure out quickly that AFC North games are just a little different.

Linebacker Joe Schobert is one of those new Steelers. But he spent the first four seasons of his career with the Browns before joining the Jaguars last season.

"It’s going to be interesting because the histories of the franchises are completely different," said Schobert. "Coming into the game with the Bengals. The Bengals vs. the Steelers rivalry is a lot different than the Bengals vs. the Browns rivalry. These AFC North matchups, it’s going to be interesting to see things from the Steelers’ side of things. Obviously, I’ve been in Cleveland, but I’m looking forward to seeing it from this side. Obviously, it’s a very successful tradition here in the AFC North. We’ll work on keeping that as successful as it has been."

THE ESSENTIALS

• Who: Steelers (1-1) vs. Bengals (1-1)
When: 1:02 p.m.
Where: Heinz Field
Forecast: 66°, 0 percent chance of rain, 11 mph winds
TV: KDKA, CBS (national)
Radio: 102.5 WDVE, ESPN Pittsburgh
Streaming: Steelers Nation Radio
Satellite: Sirius XM 231, online 826
Boxscore: NFL Game Center
Media notes: Steelers | Bengals

THE INJURY REPORT

Steelers: DT Carlos Davis (knee, out), WR Diontae Johnson (knee, out), LB Alex Highsmith (groin, out), LB T.J .Watt (groin, out)

Bengals: G Xavier Su'a-Filo (knee, doubtful), WR Tee Higgins (shoulder, doubtful), CB Trae Waynes (hamstring, doubtful)

THE KEY VARIABLE

Injuries are critical. But when a team has all week to prepare to deal with an injury, they aren't nearly as crippling.

In the case of the Steelers, they've worked all week without wide receiver Diontae Johnson, who leads the team with 22 targets and has caught 14 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown.

Necessity is the mother of invention, so Johnson's absence might force the Steelers to look at some different offensive options than simply going with 11 personnel -- one running back, one tight end and three wide receivers -- and actually experiment a little more with putting two tight ends on the field at the same time, or, heaven help us, actually using fullback Derek Watt.

"We’ve got a limited number of snaps that we have available to us from a preparation standpoint, and we make decisions week in and week out based on matchups and our perceived strengths versus their potential perceived strengths," Tomlin said. "Derek is a valued member of our team. He's the captain of our special teams. He's a very credible fullback. Some weeks, he's going to be featured; some weeks, he's going to not be featured, and sometimes it might not have anything to do with his capabilities. It's just the nature of this thing. James Washington is a very capable receiver. Some weeks, he gets more opportunity than others."

Washington would seem to be the most obvious beneficiary of Johnson not playing, but not having his clear No. 1 receiver could force Roethlisberger to utilize more of his ancillary targets. Johnson's pass targets are seven more than the next closest Steelers player, JuJu Smith-Schuster. Only three Steelers have seen more than eight combined targets in the first two games, Johnson, Smith-Schuster and Chase Claypool (14).

"We’ve got a lot of what I think are really good weapons on the outside, from receivers to tight ends to running backs that I don’t think we’ve really gotten anybody loose yet that have had good games," Roethlisberger said. "There are a lot of reasons for that, and I’ll take the blame mostly because I’m the one that has to get them the ball."

He might not have a choice but to do so in this game. And getting Harris more involved in the offense than he has been the first two games is a must. Harris has 130 total yards on 32 touches -- 26 carries, 6 receptions -- but had 81 total yards in last week's 26-17 loss to the Raiders.

Steelers fans are impatient with seeing their rookie runner have a breakout game. But they're probably no more impatient than Harris.

"You want immediate results, especially being a rookie," Harris said. "Me, personally, you want to try to find a way to impact the game and the team. But you gotta realize it takes time. Because you're just new at something, you're just really learning the small stuff that you need to know to make those big plays or to be that person you want to be. People always want the end result but they never really look at the long process it is to get the end result, and that's where I am right now. The plays are gonna come eventually, I know I can make plays, it's just me learning it.

"People forget, I guess, it's my first year. It's cool, though. The expectations are the expectations, I'm not really trippin' on that. It's just learning, really, right now. You gotta go through certain stages before you get there. I'm gonna get there, though."

The Bengals, though, are tough to run against. They're tied with the Steelers for sixth in the league in fewest yards per carry allowed at 3.4 despite having already faced a pair of 1,000-yard runners in Minnesota's Dalvin Cook and David Montgomery of the Bears.

"The interior up front is much improved," Tomlin said. "When you really look at the collection of men and the depth of that talent that they have on the interior up front: 98 (D.J. Reader), 65 (Larry Ogunjobi), 92 (B.J. Hill), 68 (Josh Tupou). They run deep with those interior people. They're big men, they clog up the interior of the defense, they minimize the running game."

THE HISTORY LESSON

For this week's history lesson, we're going to go back to 2004, Roethlisberger's first-career start against the Bengals. It also happened to be the second career start for Carson Palmer -- the Bengals' top draft pick -- against the Steelers at Heinz Field, lining up with what Burrow will do this week.

The Steelers hosted the Bengals in Week 4 of the 2004 season, meaning it was just the second career start for Roethlisberger and his first at Heinz Field.

Like this year's Bengals, that 2004 team also was built around its young quarterback and a top-notch passing attack and solid running game. But this game proved they weren't quite ready for prime time.

Cincinnati grabbed a quick lead as Palmer threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Jeremi Johnson following a fumble by Duce Staley on the Steelers' first possession.

But Roethlisberger and the Steelers quickly answered to tie the score at 7-7 following a 35-yard kick return by Antwaan Randle El and a 30-yard pass completion to Plaxico Burress that set up a 2-yard Jerome Bettis touchdown run.

Roethlisberger then put the Steelers ahead, 14-7, on an 11-yard touchdown pass to Verron Hayes on the second play of the second quarter before the Bengals cut the lead to 14-10 on a 34-yard Shayne Graham field goal midway through the quarter.

On the opening possession of the second half, Palmer led the Bengals on a 71-yard touchdown drive that was capped off by a 2-yard run by Rudi Johnson that put Cincinnati ahead 17-14.

Staley again lost a fumble on the Steelers' next series, with the Bengals recovering at the Pittsburgh 49, but Larry Foote forced a Kenny Watson fumble at the 32 that was recovered by James Farrior to end the threat.

After the teams traded punts, the Steelers took over at their own 11 with 44 seconds remaining in the third quarter and the running game ground out 40 yards. Burress also drew a 29-yard pass interference penalty in a touchdown drive finished off by Bettis' second 2-yard scoring run of the game.

Leading 21-17, the offense couldn't put the Bengals away, punting the ball back to Cincinnati with 2:19 remaining. But on first-and-10 from the Cincinnati 20, Palmer was intercepted by his former college roommate, Troy Polamalu, who returned the ball 26 yards for a touchdown, zig-zagging through the Cincinnati offense and running Palmer over at the goal line to make it 28-17.

It was Polamalu's first career interception return for a touchdown.

Roethlisberger finished 17 of 25 for 174 yards and a touchdown, as Staley gained 123 yards on 25 rushing attempts. Bettis had 6 carries for 9 yards and two touchdowns.

Palmer threw for 164 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted twice. Rudi Johnson keyed the Bengals' attack, rushing for 123 yards on 24 carries.

Foote had 11 tackles and a sack, while safety Chris Hope added 10 tackles for the Steelers.

THE MAIN MATCHUP

Burrow is a talented young passer. And the Bengals have surrounded him with talented young pass catchers in Chase, the fifth pick in this year's draft, former Pitt star Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins, a second-round pick in 2020.

Thus far this season, Higgins has been his favorite target, with Burrow throwing his way 15 times for 10 receptions for 115 yards and two touchdowns. Boyd (13) targets and Chase (11) are the only other Bengals with more than six targets. Higgins, however, is doubtful to play in this game because of a shoulder injury.

But Cincinnati's offense really runs through running back Joe Mixon.

Mixon enters Week 3 with 49 carries for 196 yards, second-most in the NFL behind the Titans' Derrick Henry. He's also caught five passes for 25 yards, giving him 54 touches in two games and 221 total yards.

The Steelers can't allow Mixon to get rolling, especially since the Bengals are using the running game in an attempt to protect Burrow as he comes back from a serious knee injury.

"If they can run the ball early and create those type of things where they’re second-and-4, second-and-5, then you really don’t know what they’re going to do," said Steelers defensive coordinator Keith Butler. "If you get them in second-and-9 and stuff like that, you pretty much know what they’re going to do. They become unpredictable if they start running the football. They keep your offense off the field. Time of possession is big in this league. If you’ve got guys that you’re playing against and they’re holding the ball two-thirds more than you are, then it’s gonna be tough to win a football game. For us, we’ve got to make sure that we can stop the run and get them in passing situations and see if we can get some turnovers."

Burrow threw just five interceptions in 10 games in 2020 before his season-ending knee injury. But he did throw three last week in a 20-17 loss to the Bears -- on three consecutive passes.

The Steelers, who did not turn Burrow over in their only meeting with him last season, have been one of the best teams in the NFL creating turnovers the past two years. But they have yet to record an interception in 2021 and have just one fumble recovery in their first two games.

Burrow also has been sacked a league-high 10 times after being taken down 38 times in limited action last season. The Steelers need to stop Mixon, get Burrow into situations in which he's uncomfortable. Then they can blanket Boyd and Chase, forcing him to throw the ball to his ancillary receivers, who, quite frankly, aren't very good.

The Bengals receivers not named Higgins, Chase, Boyd and Mixon have seven combined catches for 65 yards in two games.

But stopping Mixon first is the key because the Bengals will feed it to him early and often.

"I think we are looking at Joe and Joe, Burrow and Mixon," said Schobert. "They are the lynchpins of the offense. Obviously, Joe Burrow's coming off his knee injury last year. He's not as mobile, I don't think, in the first two weeks as he was in college and coming in the NFL. Joe Mixon is running hard, running downhill. Joe Burrow doesn't have to move if Mixon is running for 100 plus yards a game. He can just play-action pass, set in the pocket, a lot of stuff with the weapons that they have."

THE TEN DATA POINTS

• Burrow has a sack percentage of 14.9 percent, meaning he's sacked that many times per 100 passes thrown. Last season, when he was sacked 38 times in 10 games, his sack percentage was 7.3. Roethlisberger's sack percentage this season is 5.3.

• While holding penalties are back up across the league this season to 2.53 per game (up from 1.77 per game last season, an historic low), the Steelers and Bengals have not been part of the increase. The Steelers have just one holding penalty this season. The Bengals are one of four teams that have yet to be penalized for holding. But the Bengals lead the league in holding penalties drawn with 6, while the Steelers are second with 5.

Clete Blakeman's crew will be working the game. They have called 26 penalties in their first two games. Holding has been the crew's most frequent call thus far with eight.

• Only the Jaguars (32) have run the ball fewer times than the Steelers' 35 rushing attempts this season.

• The Bengals have allowed 10 sacks, tied with the Jets for the most in the NFL.

• Don't expect a lot of plays in this game. The Steelers run 2.18 plays per minute, which is in the bottom half of the league. The Bengals are even slower at 1.95 plays per minute.

• In Burrow’s rookie year, he averaged 14.2 rushing yards per game. But in his first two games this year returning from a knee injury, he has only one rushing attempt for just two yards. By comparison, Roethlisberger has four carries for five yards, including end-of-half kneel downs.

• Bengals opponents have run 32 more plays from scrimmage than Cincinnati through two weeks. 

• Roethlisberger has completed just 66 percent of his throws (32nd) for 7.0 YPA (23rd) and a 94.3 passer rating (24th) in a clean pocket on first and second downs this season.

• Mixon has played 81 percent of the Bengals' snaps this season. Last week against the Bears, his 20 rushing attempts were the only ones in the game for the Bengals.

THE FANTASY CORNER

It was a decent day for my lineup last week, as it scored 135.72 points. Not great, but not bad. Mike Evans and Mike Williams were solid hits, while the Steelers defense (just 2 points) certainly disappointed. As I did last year, I'm going to build a fantasy lineup using Draft Kings and a $50,000 salary cap.

Quarterback: Daniel Jones, Giants ($5,800) -- Jones already has more than 100 yards rushing this season and a lot of it is coming on designed runs. He'll have time to throw against the Falcons in a juicy matchup. It's scary to pull the trigger on starting Jones, but he's cheap and he should be productive.

Running back: Saquon Barkley, Giants ($6,500), Austin Ekeler, Chargers ($7,200) -- Barkley is close to being back to his old self and should have success against the Falcons. Ekeler should catch at least six passes out of the backfield this week against the Chiefs and is getting goal-line carries, as well.

Wide receiver: D.K. Metcalf, Seahawks ($7,300), Cooper Kupp, Rams ($6,800), Odell Beckham, Browns ($5,300) -- Metcalf is off to a slow start, while teammate Tyler Lockett has soared. But nobody has been worse against opposing wideouts than the Vikings. Metcalf could go off this week. Kupp should have success working from the slot against the Bucs, who will blitz like crazy. And Beckham is returning this week to a Browns' WR core that really doesn't have anyone else.

Tight end: Pat Freiermuth, Steelers ($3,000) -- You're reading this right. I'm going cheap at tight end and I'm going with Freiermuth. With Johnson out, he could be a bigger part of the passing game this week -- and he caught four passes last week.

Flex: Trey Sermon, 49ers ($4.600) -- Sermon was in concussion protocol this week, but he made it out Friday. And with rest of the San Francisco backs nicked up, he'll get a heavy workload in a juicy matchup against the Packers.

Defense: Raiders ($3,400) -- Believe it or not, Miami's offensive line is worse than that of the Steelers. And the Dolphins are on the road.



Loading...
Loading...