Vegas must think a lot of the Bengal defense, and not much of Pittsburgh's, to have the Steelers only a 2-point favorite with Dalton not playing. Cincy's got to win this game with defense; it's not out of the question for them to force some turnovers and get the Steelers off their game. In fact, they'll have to do just that. It may even be easier depending on who Pittsburgh's got at RB. I doubt DeAngelo Williams will be close to 100% if he's playing. Pittsburgh may be forced to play their third-string RB like they had to when they lost to Baltimore in last year's wild card. The prediction here, though, calls for high scores and the Steelers moving on. I know, they just lost to Baltimore, but I've fallen for that before and bet against the team that had the really weird late-season hiccup. In fact, that was the Ravens last year, losing woefully to Houston and Case F. Keenum two weeks before going into Pittsburgh and taking away a playoff win. Those who don't learn from history, etc., etc. Steelers 34-21. Win, cover, over.
CBS has got the game, so Jim Nantz and Phil Simms have the TV call. John Parry, who called the last Steelers-Bengals game, also has the call tonight, with a really mixed crew that includes only two of his regular crew members.
FIRST QUARTER
Bengals win the toss and bravely defer. Touchback by Mike Nugent. Bubble screen to Martavis Bryant for 4. Pittsburgh tries a handoff to somebody called Fitzgerald Touissant, who loses 2 after David DeCasto gets knocked down in front of him. All these good receivers, and Ben Roethlisberger's throwing to Darius Heyward-Bey after a pump fake on 3rd down. Low throw off his hands, three and out.
I need a brief break to do some cursing at NFL lackey-in-chief Roger Goodell. Be right back.
Bengals at their 36; quick pass from A.J. McCarron to A.J. Green on the sideline for 5. Ryan Shazier jumps a handoff to Jeremy Hill for a yard loss. Nantz is apparently going to be off a yard on every spot tonight. The Bengals fall back to 3rd-11 after a false start. McCarron steps up out of pressure and dumps off to Tyler Eifert, but that is stopped short. Back-to-back 3-and-outs? Not the start I expected. Antonio Brown makes a very risky basket catch at the 13 and returns to the 18.
1-3 personnel for the Steelers; Touissant rumbles off left tackle for 9. Bubble screen to Brown gets 1, if that. Ben fires a quick screen over Bryant's head. More 1-yard passes as Brown takes a quick pick route for 5. ANOTHER 1-yard pass, to Heath Miller, is stopped quickly by Ray Maualuga and the Steelers are punting again. Simms suggests Pittsburgh is doing nothing but dinking out of respect for the Bengal pass rush. I can tell you they're not going to win throwing nothing but 1-yarders. It's also raining pretty hard in Cincinnati at the moment. Pittsburgh interefered with Brandon Tate on the punt return, so the Bengals will start out at their 29.
James Harrison stuffs Hill off Stephon Tuitt's great penetration for a loss, but Marvin Jones makes an excellent catch tightroping the sideline for 13. That's followed by another false start on Cincy. Pittsburgh jumped on the right side but did not cross the line. The RG jumped unrelated to that. Now we've got James Harrison deking at the Bengals before the snap, which is clearly illegal. Parry'd better get a handle on this garbage quickly. Parry makes a correct call on Harrison, so now it's 1st-10 at the 41 again. Penetration by Cameron Heyward forces McCarron to flee the pocket and throw away. Lawrence Timmons blitzes up the middle untouched; how does that happen? McCarron escapes that but Harrison and Arthur Moats get him for a sack and a small loss. On 3rd-12, now it's Cincinnati throwing 1-yard passes, but Eifert spins off a bad Mike Mitchell attempt and runs through several more Steelers for a 16-yard gain across midfield. Boy, you sure giving up first downs on dumpoffs on 3rd-and-long, amirite? Shazier and Will Allen blow up Hill on a sweep right for another loss. McCarron hangs Eifert out to dry for a big hit from Antwon Blake, but he holds on for a 7-yard catch. McCarron goes for Eifert again on 3rd down, but somebody called Robert Golden breaks that up to send the punt team back in. Kevin Huber gets an excellent bounce that Tate fields cleanly at the 6.
Another nice cutback run by Touissant behind Alejandro Villanueva's strong drive-blocking for 9. But George Iloka run-blitzes and stuffs him for a loss on 2nd down. But Touissant makes a catch out of the backfield and takes it for 23 out to the 41. Great job by Ben to hang in there and find him. Touissant drives up the middle for another 5, and I have to say Pittsburgh is winning both sides of the LOS right now. And now it's Jordan Todman making two nifty cuts to bounce outside and out to the Bengal 40. Reggie Nelson knocks him down way out of bounds (nowhere near any Concrete Rings of Death, though), and we now have a brouhaha on the Steeler sideline. Was the Steeler coaching staff going after Nelson there? A flag flew, and now our all-star officiating crew is taking its sweet time figuring things out. It's a 15-yard penalty on the Steeler sideline, coach Mike Munchak. 1st-10 Steelers, but back at their 46. Pitch right to Todman with a strong lead block by Marcus Gilbert. Touissant skips up the middle for a first down.
Much different first quarter than I expected, especially the Steelers' fear of the Bengal defense.
SECOND QUARTER
Steelers at the CIN40. Maualuga stops Todman for 1. Draw to Todman for 3 more. Cincy blitzes off RT and Nelson drops Ben back near midfield as Ben tries to wheel away much too late. A teammate had stepped on Nelson's ankle right before he made the sack. Nelson has to be helped off the field.
A penalty during the fair catch starts the Bengals back at their 7. Hill goes left for 2. Quick slant to Mohammed Sanu gets 5. Still raining hard as a flare to Eifert goes awry and incomplete. Huber's punt rolls to the 35. My chance of hitting the over looking about as good as my chance of hitting Powerball right now.
Maualuga stops a run for 2, and Ben tosses a blown screen at Miller's feet. Didn't the Steelers have a really good WR this season? Where's he tonight? Name was Black or Brown or something. I don't follow them all that close. Ben can't hit Markus Wheaton on an out route. Search me, but something is seriously wrong with the Steeler passing game tonight. Tate returns the punt 9 yards to the 29.
The offensive comedy of errors continues as McCarron and center Russell Bodine blow the exchange. McCarron recovers. Then Heyward beats Kevin Zeitler badly to sack/strip McCarron the next play; Clint Boling recovers for Cincinnati. 3rd-23, though. Giovani Bernard gets 14 back on a draw, but here comes tonight's star, the punter, again.
Steelers at their 34. It is raining cats, dogs, pigs and horses now. Always know the weather report when you bet on games, kids. #84, no clue who HE is, makes a 4-yard catch, and a defensive penalty gives Pittsburgh 5 more out to the 43. Michael Johnson stuffs a run for no gain. Geno Atkins beats DeCastro badly on 2nd-10. Ben steps up from that, but Pittsburgh apparently decides they don't still need to block Atkins, and he whales on Ben from behind for the sack anyway. We hear Domata Peko's name for the first time tonight, and it's for a 15-yard penalty after the play. I realize this game's tied, but there is a whole lot of Houston in Cincinnati's game so far here, with the exception of the QB turning the ball over every other play. Losing on the LOS, unable to run, failing to get the ball to their best player, committing stupid penalties. Eh, Pittsburgh's not showing a whole lot more. Touissant's open for a dumpoff but Carlos Dunlap knocks it down. Um, Ben, you're much too tall to be letting that happen. CBS shows us now that Peko actually got his penalty for coming off the bench and getting into it with a Steeler. Come on. Even the Rams didn't pull that kind of garbage this year. And this is in the middle of a playoff game! Screen to Wheaton is not only stopped by a great play by Vontaze Burfict, but Wheaton completely butchers his attempt to keep control of the ball while going to the ground and loses it to the Bengals. This game has been like watching the Rams offense playing against... the Rams offense.
No CBS commentary now as Bud Dupree buries Hill for a loss. 2nd-12 at the CIN44. We also appear to be down to one fixed camera in the stands and nowhere near midfield. Another great rush by Heyward pressures McCarron into a throwaway. On 3rd down, A.J. tries to go deep for Jones but it is underthrown by a good 10 feet, intercepted by Blake near the 20 and returned out around the CIN40. I have little doubt that ball slipped out of McCarron's hand.
Nifty cutback by Touissant down to the 37 off a pancake by Villanueva. 2nd-6. Timeout #1 for Cincinnati. After throwing that INT bare-handed, McCarron is now practicing throwing with a glove on. Todman bounces a run around left end for 8. Maualuga bottles him up for 1 as a late flag flies yet again. Personal foul on Ramon Foster, a critical one, pushing Pittsburgh back out of FG position. Come on, idiots. 2nd-25 at the 44. Hey, there's that #84 again, open behind PacMan Jones for 23. Clutch D there, Cincy. Cincy blitzes Pittsburgh's 1-3 personnel on 3rd-2; Ben goes down the sideline for #84, but he's tangled up with PacMan and the pass is incomplete. A stickler ref would have called contact on Pac, but I agree with Simms that the no-call was the best call. Chris Boswell hits to put the Steelers on the board and leave me a mere 43 points from hitting my over bet. Steelers 3, Bengals 0
Touchback for Boswell at 2:27. I remember when Greg Zuerlein could do that. Quick hitch to Bernard for 4. Shazier breaks up and nearly picks off the next pass, I think for Eifert. Harrison getting away with flinching at the o-line again. McCarron goes downfield for #18, whoever that is. The throw hangs him out to dry; he can't pull it down one-handed and I don't doubt he had an eye on the defense. We're punting yet again after the 2:00 warning.
Fair catch by that #84 guy at the 25 with 1:49 left. The pocket collapses on Ben, but Touissant takes off with a 6-inch pass for 16. Surprisingly loud HEATH call as Miller makes a 4-yard catch in the flat. Complain about St. Louis all you want; it's beyond pathetic to see a fanbase give up that kind of road presence for a home PLAYOFF game. An injury to Dre Kirkpatrick stops the clock at 1:18 and will cost Cincy a timeout. And expect Ben to go right after his replacement. Quick drag route to #84 gets 11 to the CIN44. As Simms notes, that's Pittsburgh starting to take advantage of the Bengals having to lay off the receivers. DROP by Touissant. Missed out on a big play there. Illegal formation penalty takes away a pass to #84 down to the 27. Bryant lined up wrong. 1st-15, great blitz pickup lets Ben hit Bryant over the middle at the 25. Safety Shawn Williams destroys him with a big hit but went to Bryant's head. More reckless penalties by the Bengals. PIT's now at the 12 with 0:52 left. Looks like #84 dropped the 1st down pass on a slot out. Atkins holds Touissant to 1 on a draw as Pittsburgh uses their first TO. Ben throws a numbnut pass right to LB Vincent Rey, who somehow muffs it into an incomplete. #84 was breaking into the endzone, so I guess Ben never saw the LB. Boswell doubles the scoring at 0:33. Steelers 6, Bengals 0 Only 40 points to the over now!
Nothing but touchbacks on kickoffs tonight even though they're kicking outside, in the rain. Greg Zuerlein must be agape. The Bengals kneel out the half.
I'll try to be quick with the "halftime show". That Goodell rant set me back a while, but it needed to be done. Kroenke moving the team is bullshit enough without Goodell helping him rig the evidence and the vote.
And, unbelievably, this game is just as dreadful, if not more dreadful, than the first game because so much offensive talent is laying fallow. For Cincinnati, A.J. Green (that #18 guy) has once again disappeared in a playoff game, and Pittsburgh imo doesn't really have the DB talent that should be pulling that off. Start running some plays for him. Also, pull your head out, A.J. But the news behind the headline is that the Cincinnati o-line has really been garbage tonight. None of them can stop Cameron Heyward. They haven't really shown up. They're making no headway in the run game and aren't giving McCarron enough comfort to look for Green and Eifert, who should be driving this show. Oh, yeah, I said I was going to be quick. The Bengal line has to decide to play in the 2nd half or we might be in for another goose egg. I think they'll have to power run, start slow, and build up. They're within a score still; they've got time. And c'mon, Hue Jackson; you're better than this. I was ready to lobby for you as the new Rams head coach and everything.
Antonio Brown's been almost as quiet for Pittsburgh as Green has for Cincy. At least Todd Haley has ran more plays for him toward the end of the 2nd half. Pittsburgh started off too tentative but was letting Ben go downfield more at the end of the half. Backed by a surprisingly successful running game, that's enough to carry them.
Both defenses should blitz even more in the 2nd half. This is the kind of weather made for forcing mistakes. Cincy in particular needs to take the ball away in the 2nd half if they're going to get going. Still anybody's game; getting the star WRs out of the blocks and winning the turnover battle are fairly obvious keys.
THIRD QUARTER
The kickoff is NOT a touchback but Vince Williams stuffs PacMan at the 18. (Insert dying PacMan sound here.) Hill, who still has negative rushing yards, off left tackle for 2. Trips right, but McCarron goes left to Jones, who got away with a flinch pre-snap. 3rd-3. Trips slot right, McCarron gets a lot of time, has to scramble right, hits Sanu along the sideline for a 1st. 13 yards. McCarron overthrows Green and Blake. Hill finally makes a big play, thanks to Dupree's overrun and a terrible miss in the hole by Will Allen. He flies down the near sideline for 37 to the PIT30. Let's give Hill credit for nice shake-and-bake to make Allen miss in the hole. McCarron has Hill wide open for a short pass, but oh, that Bengal line. Andrew Whitworth, regarded as unbeatable at LT as recently as the Rams' game in Cincinnati, has been bad the second half of the season. He gets beaten here by Jarvis Jones, who knocks the ball out of McCarron's hand just as he's ready to throw. It's a fumble. Hijinks ensue. Cam Thomas picks it up for Pittsburgh, gets to midfield with it and loses it while being tackled. But it's still only Steelers around the ball, and William Gay scoops and scores from there, unless Thomas is called down by contact. He is, and hilariously, the celebration penalty the Steelers got for the non-touchdown is still enforced. They'll get the ball at their 36.
Undaunted, Pittsburgh gains 44 on an end-around to Bryant. He comes left, gets fine blocks from Touissant and Miller, makes a tackle miss with a quick cut back crossfield and isn't touched again till Kirkpatrick runs him down around the 20. Looks like it just isn't meant to be for the Bengals in the playoffs yet again. Ha! Now McCarron is warming up WITHOUT a glove again. Todman stutter-steps for 4. Pat Sims and others stuff him for no gain on 2nd-6, though that could have been a 2-3 yard loss. With the pocket closing, Ben fires out the back of the end zone on 3rd down. That pass pressure saved Cincy; Ben probably would have seen Brown wide open coming across the middle with another second. Boswell's 3rd FG may still be enough to put this game out of reach. Boswell for POTG? Steelers 9-0
Third touchback for Boswell. Harrison beats the hapless Whitworth inside and stuffs Bernard for no gain. A.J. GREEN finally shows up, beating William Gay with a double-move on the sideline for 22. But Allen blitzes in for another stuff of Bernard on 1st down. 2nd-11 blitz forces McCarron to throw short and quick; Bernard drops a pass that would have gained 1 at most. Simms ain't the only guy wondering why Cincy's not going downfield more. Pressure forces McCarron outside again and he throws a wild ball out of bounds. Whitworth's getting beaten so regularly McCarron really doesn't trust him at this point.
Steelers at their 18 after the punt. Touissant bounces around a wide-open right edge for 6. After an injury timeout for Wallace Gilberry, Touissant cuts back for another 6. Steelers really controlling the LOS. Maualuga stuffs Touissant's third straight carry in the middle. Doing their best impression of a Gregg Williams D, Cincy blitzes big on 2nd-10 and gets burned. I love this offensive call. They went trips right and set up a screen to the RB out of the backfield on that side, but Antonio Brown tore out of the right slot on a slant, which Ben saw, lofting a pass to him behind the Cincy front drawn in by the blitz. And Brown's off to the races. After, Johnson whiffs on him at midfield, he cuts inside and races all the way down to the 10 for roughly a 60-yard gain. Run this play for Tavon Austin next year, whoever's OC'ing the Rams. Zone blitzes still suck, and it looks like Brown's the answer to my halftime question of which star WR would get going. Touissant stumbles for no gain as we have DeCastro and Burfict fighting in the end zone. No flag, though. That'll work for the Steelers, as Bryant beats Kirkpatrick and scores a 10-yard TD the next play. OK, I'll try to describe the catch. He snags the ball high, pulls it down and only has a hold of the back end, so he pins it to the back of his leg and does a forward flip while pinning the ball against his midsection with his arm now around his right leg. You know what? He completed the process. I think the main question is if he made the catch in bounds. It's a TD! Don't worry if my explanation isn't comprehensible, we'll be seeing this catch many times. Steelers 15-0
OK, with 5:00 left in the 3rd, you can stick a fork in the Bengals, but I guess Tomlin wants to put them down 3 scores instead of 2 and goes for 2. Ben's fastball is dropped in the back of the end zone. Thrown too far behind Wheaton.
Touchback #4 for Boswell despite the rain re-intensifying. There's what the Bengals need. Out route to Green for 11. Bernard's wide open on a circle route but McCarron's pass comes too late and is bad. Defensive holding on Gay anyway. Put 'em on the 36. Bernard cracks the Steelers for 12 on a delay run as Bodine really moves Tuitt at center. Bernard up the middle for maybe 1, but the Steelers advance Cincy again with a face mask penalty. Come on. I think this is now the best Bengal drive of the night, thanks to all the Pittsburgh penalty yardage. From the 35, they LOSE SEVEN throwing a doofy pass to Sanu, who wasn't concentrating. It looked backward live, but Marvin Lewis makes a good challenge that it was really forward. 2nd-10 now instead of 2nd-17. Inside screen to Eifert for 7. Heyward nearly gets McCarron on 3rd down, but his quick throw goes to Sanu for 4. Tuitt and Dupree stuff Bernard for 1 at the PIT23. A Shazier blitz forces a quick throwaway. McCarron gets lots of time on 3rd-9, but finds only a dumpoff to Bernard, who gets knocked out by Shazier, who also runs off with the ball. I guess Bernard was down by contact. He's also out by contact. The crowd goes nuts after the replay because they want a helmet-to-helmet call on Shazier. Hill tries to start a brawl with several Steelers near midfield. Simms says Bernard became a runner before he got hit, so no penalty, which Mike Carey confirms. The explanation I need is how that was different than the penalty the Bengals got at the end of the first half. I, and Mike Tomlin, would also like an explanation of why Bernard wasn't charged with a fumble. Tomlin throws the challenge flag. Looks like a fumble to all of us watching the replay. That ought to go over really big with the home crowd.
Yep, a fumble. Shazier's denied his TD return, but it's Steelers ball at their 25. Tracy Wolfson reports that Burfict has been going nuts on the Bengal sideline. Marvin Lewis has got to get a hold on his players tonight. Touissant bounces outside for a couple. There's trash getting thrown on the field now. John Parry tries to placate the crowd with a holding call on Pittsburgh. 1st-20. Maualuga holds Todman to 2 on a draw. Ben goes deep for Wheaton down the sideline, but somebody called Chris Lewis-Harris as him blanketed. 3rd-18. Ben gets a long time to throw but is sacked back inside by Burfict, who beat Gilbert late on a blitz. Clean play by Burfict, but Ben landed very hard on his throwing shoulder. He's assisted off. The quarter ends with the Steelers about to punt from the back of their end zone and possibly facing having to turn their postseason hopes over to Landry Jones.
FOURTH QUARTER
Man, it felt like that third quarter took forever. The punt manages to roll to the Steeler 46. McCarron misses the backup TE Tyler Kroft on an out route. They've got some momentum but still no points. Well, those may not be far away with Allen interfering with Green inside the 5. Hill follows G Clint Boling and Kroft down to the 1, then sidesteps his way in from there. Ha! Followed the same two guys. Also got a block in the backfield by Jake Fisher as the jumbo fullback. Steelers 15, Bengals 7
Landry Jones is indeed coming in for Pittsburgh. It'll be important for him not to spit the bit. The Steelers can help him out by running well. Touchback #2 by Nugent. Give the Bengals crowd credit - they haven't given up despite spending most of the past three hours in a downpour. Intended circle route pass to Touissant is blocked at the line by Sims. Todman makes another great cutback for 25, led out by Villanueva again, and Miller. On 2nd-6, Dunlap beats a double-team and he and Sims bury Jones for a sack. Quick screen to Bryant doesn't do much besides lead Burfict back over to the Steeler sideline to start up another conflagration. Bengals come close to blocking the punt, but Tate makes the fair catch at the 8.
Play-action screen to Hill goes for 14. Hill's all alone over the middle the next play for another 15 but comes off limping. That sends in Rex Burkhead to gain 4 up the middle to the 41. Cincy picks up the blitz on 2nd down, giving McCarron room to beat Shazier to the marker for 6 more. It took them all night, but the Bengals are starting to put together some drives. Just as I say that, Eifert's all alone downfield but lets a ball go through his hands. McCarron scrambles for just a yard. 3rd-9. The Bengals use their first timeout with 8:00 left. Pittsburgh's backed way off with their coverage and their pressure and should probably think about turning them both back on. The Bengals' flame is getting just a little too much oxygen. Pittsburgh does blitz now - don't turn it on on 3rd-and-9, dummies! but McCarron hangs in very well and hits Eifert for a diving catch and a big gain. He hits Green for another 9 down to the PIT24. The Bengals are in striking range on the scoreboard all of a sudden here. Bernard gets the first down but Arthur Moats stops him for 2 on a draw. Good blitz pickup on 2nd-8 but McCarron misses Marvin Jones on a short sideline route. Burkhead takes a swing pass for only a couple of yards. With 5:44 to go, Marvin Lewis sends out the FG team on 4th-3. I don't know about that when they're only down a TD. Steelers 15, Bengals 10
Touchback for Nugent. Ben is back from the locker room but stays on the sideline. Brown makes a diving catch on a comeback for 6. Todman tries to bounce a run outside right but can't get anything. 3rd and 4. The crowd gets louder as the rain falls harder. Jones tries to go up top for a double-teamed Brown but underthrows him. Get that throw downfield and he's still running. Ruh-roh, here's PacMan on the punt return, gobbling up 24 yards to the PIT45. Um, about the Steelers having stuck the fork in the Bengals...
Under double pressure, McCarron has to backhand a throw to Hill for 3. Quick pass to Marvin Jones, ludicrously covered by James Harrison, gets 5 on the sideline. Steeler blitz on 3rd-and-2 forces McCarron to throw it away and forces 4th down. Pittsburgh's blitzing again, and McCarron coolly hits Marvin Jones on a drag down to the PIT28. Pittsburgh's taking my advice, and much to my dismay, it's not working. Another blitz forces McCarron to scramble for about 3 at the 2:00 warning. Pittsburgh backing off after halftime really let McCarron gain confidence. McCarron misses Sanu open at the 20. 3rd-7 at the PIT25. And you are kidding me! McCarron hangs in against a 4-man rush, and what is A.J. Green doing wide open inside the 5? TD to Green after he runs through Mike Mitchell at the goal line. I'm going to accuse Mitchell of coming up way too late in coverage. No way Green ever should have been so open. Cincy goes for two with a pitchback to Hill that loses big yardage. What a rally by the Bengals, though, from given up for dead to the lead with 1:50 left. Bengals 16, Steelers 15
Nugent's first short kickoff of the night is only brought out to the 15 by Wheaton, and if you thought the crowd was loud before... lotsa luck, Landry Jones. Burfict picks him off! Really poor decision by Jones as Burfict had Wheaton's middle route cut off. Nantz is worried the play wasn't blown dead and Burfict just ran the wrong way for a safety. That would be NUTS. He's down by contact at the Steeler 26.
And now, are you really kidding me! JEREMY HILL FUMBLES THE BALL BACK TO THE STEELERS. Ryan Shazier stripped it out with Hill trying to dive the ground. Steelers ball with 1:23 left. I am dumbfounded.
And are you seriously double-secret probation kidding me! BEN ROETHLISBERGER BACK IN THE GAME FOR PITTSBURGH. Nantz makes a strong case that Cincy should have kneeled three times and kicked a FG. There's been a lot of questionable coaching decisions tonight. Ben hits Wheaton for 8 but throws the next pass behind Brown, who can't hang on. 3rd-2 at the 17. The Bengals call timeout at 0:54. Pittsburgh still has all theirs. Steelers need probably 50 yards to get into FG range, but they have to focus right now on their next 2. Ben rolls out of trouble and lobs to Touissant, who makes a deceptively tough catch and crucially gets out of bouds at the 24. 10 more to Touissant, but over the middle; Pittsburgh timeout at 0:44. Good pressure by Johnson and Gilberry forces an incomplete. Quick screen to Bryant gets maybe 3? Pittsburgh HAS to start thinking more downfield. Oh, Nantz is right. Maybe Ben, with the injured shoulder, can't really throw it very far. Might explain the lob a couple of plays ago. The Steelers are RUNNING? Johnson trips Touissant for 4, denied him a big gain, actually. But it's 4th-and-3. That run might have been a better call on 2nd down. Game on the line here, Cincy takes their last timeout. What? To give Pittsburgh more time to run a more composed play? It's like Lewis and Tomlin are trying to out-undermanage each other at times here. Now here we go. It's a pick route to Brown that gets Leon Hall tangled up and gets a first down at the CIN48. 22 seconds left; Pittsburgh needs 15 yards. Ben's shoulder looks fine as he overthrows Brown with a fastball. 2nd dow.... NO, HERE COMES A VERY LATE FLAG. But it's justified; Burfict jacked Brown in the head to give the Steelers a FIRST DOWN IN FIELD GOAL RANGE. YOU MINDLESS IDIOT. Brown's out cold; while they're tending to him, the Bengals are now getting into it with the referees. PACMAN BRILLIANTLY GETS A PENALTY FOR BUMPING THE REF. These hostilities started because I think Burfict wanted to apologize while Brown was getting walked off but tangled with a Steelers trainer. Burfict should have known that would never go over well after talking about hating Pittsburgh all week and being the guy who knocked Brown AND Roethlisberger out of the game. Good intentions but terrible discipline lead to a chip shot 35-yarder for Boswell. The Steelers' third or fourth FG kicker this season puts them ahead 18-16.
PacMan got his penalty going after assistant coach Joey Porter - somebody want to explain to me what the hell HE was doing in the middle of the field? PacMan brilliantly gobbles the clock down to 0:06 returning the kickoff to the 24. McCarron gets off a deep ball but Shazier knocks it down to end what has to be the most frustrating of Cincinnati's recent playoff losses.
It's the playoffs. The Bengals find a way to lose.
POSTGAME SHOW
With great respect to Boswell's four FGs and at least four touchbacks, in a slugfest like this one, I can't give POTG to a kicker with a clear conscience. It's gotta go to Ryan Shazier, who forced two crucial fumbles, had a couple of tackles for loss among his 13 total and a couple of near-picks.
CBS' postgame studio commentary was harshly and rightly directed at Marvin Lewis for his team's complete meltdown in discipline. And again, another playoff team reminding us why the Rams suck. You can have all the playmakers on defense you want; it doesn't matter if they don't play under control and don't stay away from stupid and undisciplined penalties. This absolutely falls on the head coach, and the Bengals have to ask themselves tomorrow morning if they think this brand of football is worth keeping, or if they should consider tearing the whole mess down. Something's gotta give. Then again, though McCarron wasn't terrible, this whole thing could have been a lot different with Andy Dalton healthy. They have a deep enough roster to be able to shed some of their troublemakers. If they're not looking for a replacement for Lewis in the offseason, find one for PacMan and one for Burfict instead. And maybe some safety depth.
The 2-point Steeler win leaves me 3-2 with a push for my gambling day. That'll work. It also sends them to Denver next week, possibly without Ben and Antonio Brown, and sends the Chiefs to New England. Denver and Peyton are known for some playoff chokes, but doing so against Pittsburgh's second-string offense would be accomplishing something. Belichick vs. Reid looms as a big mismatch in the other AFC game next weekend, and KC is probably going up there without Jeremy Maclin. Hard not to like the AFC home teams big next weekend, though we'll have to keep an eye on the Steeler injuries.
Stay warm, Minnesota! Seahawks vs. Vikings up next, at noon tomorrow.
-$-
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