PITTSBURGH — The Bengals had every opportunity to leave Pittsburgh at 3-0 Sunday, but too many mistakes turned a winnable game into a 30-27 loss.
Joe Burrow looked much more like himself, the offense moved the ball and Cincinnati held two second-half leads. But penalties remained an issue, special teams directly contributed to 10 Pittsburgh points, and the defense gave up far too many explosive plays.
For the first time ever in this segment, we need overtime just to unpack it all.
The Good: Joe Burrow
Aside from the final offensive snap, this looked much more like the Joe Burrow Bengals fans have come to expect.
Burrow completed 28 of 37 passes for 282 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions, completing 75.7 percent of his attempts with a 123.9 passer rating. He connected with Ja’Marr Chase for a 3-yard touchdown, hit Tee Higgins for a 28-yard score before halftime and found Mike Gesicki for a 25-yard touchdown that gave Cincinnati a 27-24 lead early in the fourth quarter.
More importantly, Burrow looked comfortable. The ball came out on time, Cincinnati attacked downfield and the offense finally resembled what was expected entering the season.
The final play was obviously costly. Derrick Harmon sacked Burrow and forced a fumble with Cincinnati driving in the final minute, ending any chance at a tying field goal or winning touchdown. Still, Burrow’s overall performance was easily his best of the season.
The Bad: Penalties
Yes, penalties again.
Last week they were ugly. This week they only drop to bad because special teams somehow found a way to be, well, uglier.
Cincinnati finished with six penalties for 40 yards, a major improvement from the 12 flags against Houston, but the timing continued to be a problem. False starts and formation penalties repeatedly put the offense behind schedule, while Cedric Johnson’s roughing-the-punter penalty extended a Pittsburgh possession that should have ended.
That mistake was particularly damaging because the Steelers turned the extra opportunity into a touchdown.
Six penalties are not normally enough to define a game, but Cincinnati keeps committing them in moments where the team has already done enough to win the down. Until that changes, penalties are going to remain a weekly concern.
The Ugly: Special Teams
The Bengals defense forced Pittsburgh to punt twice in critical situations.
Cincinnati turned those punts into 10 Steelers points.
(sits for ten minutes with head in hands before continuing)
With Cincinnati leading 20-17 in the third quarter, Johnson was called for roughing punter Cameron Johnston, giving Pittsburgh a first down instead of giving the ball back to Burrow. The Steelers eventually scored on Aaron Rodgers’ 6-yard touchdown pass to DK Metcalf.
Then, after Cincinnati regained the lead at 27-24, the defense forced another punt early in the fourth quarter. Ke’Shawn Williams muffed the return at the Cincinnati 16, and Pittsburgh recovered at the 14. The defense held the Steelers to a field goal, but the mistake still handed Pittsburgh three points and tied the game.
Those two plays directly preceded 10 Pittsburgh points in a game Cincinnati lost by three.
There really is not much more that needs to be said.
Overtime: The Defense
The defense deserves a mention because, after playing so well through the first two weeks, Sunday was a step backward.
Pittsburgh finished with 411 total yards and averaged 7.0 yards per play. Aaron Rodgers threw for 292 yards and three touchdowns, while Jaylen Warren rushed for 127 yards on 17 carries.
The bigger problem was the explosive plays. Roman Wilson scored on a 38-yard reception, Ben Skowronek added a 23-yard touchdown and Darnell Washington broke free for 47 yards on Pittsburgh’s final scoring drive. Warren followed that with a 26-yard run to put the Steelers deep in Cincinnati territory.
The Bengals still made some big plays. Jordan Battle intercepted Rodgers late in the first half, and Dexter Lawrence II recorded two sacks. But Pittsburgh created far too many chunk plays through both the air and on the ground.
For two weeks, the defense helped cover for an offense that had not fully found itself. On Sunday, Burrow finally looked like Burrow again.
Unfortunately, two other phases of the team chose to regress.
