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Steeler Nation is a world-wide army that follows the legendary Pittsburgh Steelers. The Six-Time Super Bowl Champions have a tradition that dictates a standard of excellence, and their fans expect nothing less year in and year out. Those very same ideals translate to the ultimate Pittsburgh Steelers GameDay Preview, an all-inclusive guide that all Steelers fans read weekly to learn everything they need to know about their team and Pittsburgh’s opponent!
Mike Drakulich, the man behind Pittsburgh SportsNation (@PghSportsNation), who covers both Pitt football and the Steelers for NGSC Sports, brings you inside the huddle with a weekly game story, score prediction, game day information, broadcast information, and complete breakdown of each team, complete with stats. Heck, you’ll even know the weather at kickoff!
STEELERS TRAVEL TO FACE THE BENGALS FOR 1ST PLACE IN AFC NORTH ON SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
The Pittsburgh Steelers have historically owned the Cincinnati Bengals, leading the series 73-41, including 2-0 in the playoffs. The two AFC rivals share no love for one another. This Sunday night in Cincinnati will have major implications on who will have the inside track on winning the AFC North division crown.
If the Bengals (6-2) win, they’ll take a one game lead over the Steelers (6-2), and even the season series… but, if the Steelers win, they will own the tie-breaker over Cincinnati, essentially taking a two game lead in the division, and possibly lead Cleveland by two and a half games, if they lose to favored Houston. Baltimore should beat the winless Chargers, but that team is in disarray without Lamar Jackson at quarterback.
Suffice to say, it’s a big one for both teams, but for a Pittsburgh franchise that has gone a decade without a playoff win, it’s a prime opportunity to take a stranglehold of the division and keep pace with Buffalo, Denver, and Jacksonville for the #1 seed in the AFC.
After Sunday night’s game, Pittsburgh will have eight games remaining, and only two of those teams (Denver and Jacksonville) currently have records above .500.
For the Pittsburgh offense, Aaron Rodgers is at quarterback. Through eight games, he’s passed for 1,871 yards, 13 touchdowns and six interceptions. He’s been sacked 23 times.
Rodgers’ top target is DK Metcalf, who has 33 catches for 378 yards and a touchdown. He truly needs to step up his game play. Rookie Germie Bernard has elevated his play with Michael Pittman and Roman Wilson out, catching 32 passes for 284 yards and a touchdown. This offense truly needs both Pittman and Wilson to make their presence felt when they return from injury.
Brandon Smith and Brandon Johnson have contributed little the past few games.
Tight end Pat Freiermuth has 25 catches for 235 yards and a team leading four touchdowns. Darnell Washington has 19 receptions for 254 yards and three touchdowns. Rarely used Robert Tonyan has one catch for two yards.
Jaylen Warren has been exceptional as the starting running back, rushing for 704 yards and two touchdowns, and catching 25 passes for 294 yards and another TD. Rico Dowdle has 174 yards rushing and one touchdown, and has caught 13 passes for 82 yards.
The Pittsburgh offense is 17th in the NFL averaging 22.5 points a game, and giving up 18… good for 4th.
The Bengals have Joe Burrow at quarterback, and he’s having another MVP season. He’s thrown for 2,386 yards, with 23 touchdowns and six interceptions, while being sacked 15 times. Burrow also has 77 yards rushing and three touchdowns.
Burrow has two of the best receivers in the NFL. Ja’Marr Chase has 53 receptions for 647 yards and seven touchdowns. Tee Higgins leads the team with 758 yards receiving off of 48 catches. He’s found the end zone six times. Dohnte Meyers has 18 catches for 222 yards. Colbie Young and Mitchell Tinsley see a pass now and then.
Tight end Mike Gesecki has 19 catches for 252 yards and six touchdowns, while Erick All, Jr. has eight receptions for 56 yards. Drew Sample has seven receptions for 48 yards and a touchdown.
Chase Brown is the lead back, rushing for 397 yards and one touchdown, and has 39 catches for 207 yards. Samaje Perine has 179 yards on the ground and a touchdown and has eight catches for 70 yards and a score.
The Bengals are coming off a 34-17 thumping of Atlanta. Their offense is 2nd, averaging 30 points a game, while giving up 21.9 a contest.
Earlier this season, the Steelers won a shootout over the Bengals 30-27.
That game was also the last time the Steelers defense allowed a 2nd half touchdown.
After a rough start, the defense has become one of the league’s best, and every player on that unit is becoming more confident in what they could accomplish if this continues.
“We just have so much talent,” said T.J. Watt. “We have everything we need. We just need to continue to play for each other and play together.”
After a disappointing 2025, Watt has collected 7.5 sacks this season, which is only two sacks behind NFL leader Will Anderson, Jr. of the Texans.
The team has hunted down the quarterback 26 times, good for 4th overall in the league.
Now they’ll be focused on getting to Burrow, and keeping the high powered Bengals offense under their thumbs.
“As a defense, we just try to be as stingy as possible,” said Cam Heyward. “When we want to win games, it’s about keeping them out of the end zone. We take a lot of pride in that. We understand that it’s not going to be as easy. It could be tougher in the future.”
As good as the defense has played, the offense has to find more consistency, especially in the passing game.
Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle have been outstanding in the rushing attack, piling up 117.9 yards a game, good for 12th in the NFL. Warren has become one of the league’s biggest dual threats, totaling 998 all-purpose yards.
The last piece of the puzzle is the passing game coming alive.
Rodgers has played great for a 42 year old guy, but he’s missed plenty of open receivers, too. Metcalf officially has five dropped passes, but it seems like that number should be higher. Overall, the team has 13 dropped passes.
“It’s just execution,” said Rodgers. “There are fixable things. We’ll fix them and hope to be better this week.”
Mike McCarthy should incinerate the part of the playbook containing that sideline wide receiver screen.
It’s far past time to start attacking deep, across the middle of the field, utilizing slants and crossing routes, and using motion to create mismatches for Metcalf, Bernard, as well as Pittman and Wilson if they ever return to the line-up.
This would be a good game to unleash all of these suggestions.
As good as the Steelers defense has been, it would be a lot to expect them to pitch another shutout in the 2nd half of this one. So, like last time, you can expect some fireworks on the field, and the scoreboard operator to be busy.
The Bengals aren’t going to run. First, they aren’t very good at it, and secondly, the Steelers 3rd in the league in rushing defense. That means you’ll be hearing the names of Burrow, Chase, Higgins, and Gesecki over and over on the Sunday night broadcast.
It’s an unstoppable force against an immovable object. Or is it?
Yes, the Bengals are going to score, but they’ll have a tougher time doing it against a stout Steelers defense, a much tougher time that, say, the Pittsburgh offense besting Cincinnati’s beatable defense.
“I feel like being 6-2 is really good,” said Rodgers. “When you win, sometimes you can gloss over some areas that need improvement if you want to get to where you want to get to, so I think that’s the important thing that experience gives you. Even though we are 6-2, we’re playing for the division lead again this week. We need to hold ourselves to a standard of winning in the playoffs and winning in January and February, and we need to climb to that standard.”
So buckle up, this is probably going to be a battle to the last possession of the game.
Game Prediction: Steelers 27 Bengals 24
GameDay Information
Week 10: Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2) at Cincinnati Bengals (6-2)
Game-time: Sunday, November 15th, at 8:20 PM.
Venue: Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati, OH
- Field: FieldTurf CORE
Vegas line: Bengals -3.5
Weather at kickoff: 42 and cloudy. Winds out of the NNW at 5-10 MPH.
Broadcast Information
TV: NBC | Local: WPXI-TV (Xfinity: 811 | Dish: 11 | DirecTV: 11 )
- Announcers: Mike Tirico (play-by-play) Chris Collinsworth (analysts) | Melissa Stark (field reporter)
Local Radio: Pittsburgh- 102.5 WDVE-FM & 970 WBGG-AM
- Announcers: Rob King (play-by-play) Max Starks (analyst) | Missi Matthews (field reporter)
National Radio: Westwood One Sports
- Announcers: Ryan Radtke (play-by-play) Mike Golic (analyst)
Internet Broadcast: Steelers Nation Radio (SNR) on Steelers.com
Scouting the Pittsburgh Steelers
Overall record: 6-2 (1st in AFC North)
Last game: Steelers 27 Browns 6
Head Coach: Mike McCarthy
- 1st Season with Steelers
Overall regular-season record: 180-114-2 | 6-2 with Steelers
Playoff record: 11-11
Team Links
Steelers Offense
Offensive Coordinator: Brian Angelichio
Offensive Stats
- Points per game: 22.5 (17th)
- Total yards per game: 351.8 (14th)
- Passing yards per game: 233.9 (18th)
- Rushing yards per game: 117.9 (12th)
- Time of Possession: 31:24 (6th)
QUARTERBACK
Starter: Aaron Rodgers | #8
Passing Yards: 1,871 | TD Passes: 13 | INT’s: 6 | Sacked: 23
Rushing Yards: 23 | Rushing TD’s: 0
Back-up: Mason Rudolph | #2
Passing Yards: 0 | TD Passes: 0 | INT’s: 0 | Sacked: 0
Rushing Yards: 1 | Rushing TD’s: 0
RUNNING BACKS
RB#1: Jaylen Warren | #30
Rushing Yards: 704 | Rushing TD’s: 2
Receptions: 25 | Receiving Yards: 294 | Receiving TD’s: 1
RB#2: Rico Dowdle | #13
Rushing Yards: 174 | Rushing TD’s: 1
Receptions: 13 | Receiving Yards: 82 | Receiving TD’s: 0
FB#1: Riley Nowakowski | #37
Rushing Yards: 0 | Rushing TD’s: 0
Receptions: 0 | Receiving Yards: 0 | Receiving TD’s: 0
RB#3: Lew Nichols | #31
Rushing Yards: 6 | Rushing TD’s: 0
Receptions: 0 | Receiving Yards: 0 | Receiving TD’s: 0
RB#4: Travis Homer | #21
Rushing Yards: 15 | Rushing TD’s: 0
Receptions: 0 | Receiving Yards: 0 | Receiving TD’s: 0
RB#5: Eli Heidenreich | #29
Rushing Yards: 0 | Rushing TD’s: 0
Receptions: 0 | Receiving Yards: 0 | Receiving TD’s: 0
WIDE RECEIVERS
WR#1: D.K. Metcalf | #4
Receptions: 33 | Receiving Yards: 378 | Receiving TD’s: 1
Rushing Yards: 11 | Rushing TD’s: 0
WR#2: Germie Bernard | #17
Receptions: 32 | Receiving Yards: 284 | Receiving TD’s: 1
Rushing Yards: 4 | Rushing TD’s: 0
WR#3: Brian Skowronek | #15
Receptions: 3 | Receiving Yards: 32 | Receiving TD’s: 1
WR#4: Brandon Smith | #87
Receptions: 2 | Receiving Yards: 24 | Receiving TD’s: 0
WR#5: Brandon Johnson | #89
Receptions: 1 | Receiving Yards: 9 | Receiving TD’s: 0
WR#6: Marquez Valdes-Scantling | #83
Receptions: 0 | Receiving Yards: 0 | Receiving TD’s: 0
WR/KR: Kaden Wetjen | #10
Receptions: 0 | Receiving Yards: 0 | Receiving TD’s: 0
Injured
WR: Michael Pittman, Jr.* | #11
Receptions: 7 | Receiving Yards: 89 | Receiving TD’s: 0
WR: Roman Wilson* | #14
Receptions: 14 | Receiving Yards: 188 | Receiving TD’s: 2
TIGHT ENDS
TE#1: Pat Freiermuth | #88
Receptions: 25 | Receiving Yards: 235 | Receiving TD’s: 4
Rushing Yards: 5 | Rushing TD’s: 1
TE#2: Darnell Washington | #80
Receptions: 19 | Receiving Yards: 254 | Receiving TD’s: 3
TE#3: Robert Tonyan | #85
Receptions: 1 | Receiving Yards: 2 | Receiving TD’s: 0
KICKER
Chris Boswell | #9
Extra Points: 16-16
Field Goals: 18-23
- 1-19 yards: 0-0
- 20-29 yards: 4-4
- 30-39 yards: 6-6
- 40-49 yards: 4-6
- 50+ yards: 4-7
OFFENSIVE LINE
LT: Troy Fautanu | #76
LG: Mason McCormick | #66
C: Zach Frazier | #54
RG: Brock Hoffman | #67
RT: Max Iheanachor | #71
Steelers Defense
Defensive Coordinator: Patrick Graham
Defensive System: 3-4
Defensive Stats
- Points per game allowed: 18 (4th)
- Total offensive yards per game allowed: 305.6 (67th)
- Passing yards allowed: 221.8 (16th)
- Rushing yards allowed: 83.9 (3rd)
- Sacks: 26 (4th)
- Interceptions: 7 (8th)
DEFENSIVE LINE
DT: Cam Heyward | #97
Tackles: 28 | Sacks: 2.5
NT: Keeanu Benton | #95
Tackles: 22 | Sacks: 0.5
DE: Derrick Harmon | #99
Tackles: 12 | Sacks: 1.5
OR
Yahya Black | #94
Tackles: 17 | Sacks: 1
LINEBACKERS
LOLB: T.J. Watt | #90
Tackles: 19 | Sacks: 7.5 | INT: 1 | TD: 1
LILB: Patrick Queen | #6
Tackles: 60 | Sacks: 2.5 | INT: 1
RILB: Payton Wilson | #41
Tackles: 65 | Sacks: 1 | INT: 1
ROLB: Alex Highsmith | #56
Tackles: 18 | Sacks: 3.5 | INT: 0
OR Nick Herbig | #51
Tackles: 21 | Sacks: 3 | INT: 0
SECONDARY
LCB: Asante Samuel, Jr. | #22
Tackles: 28 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 0
FS: Jaquan Brisker | #3
Tackles: 51 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 1
SS: DeShon Elliot | #25
Tackles: 2 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 0
OR
Robert Spears-Jennings | #28
Tackles: 30 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 1
RCB: Jamel Dean | #35
Tackles: 30 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 1
OR Daylen Everette | #23
Tackles: 17 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 1
NB: Jalen Ramsey | #5
Tackles: 48 | Sacks: 2 | INT: 0
*Injured/Out
Scouting the Cincinnati Bengals
Overall record: 6-2 (2nd in AFC North)
Last game: Bengals 34 Falcons 17
Head Coach: Zac Taylor
- 8th Season with Cincinnati
- Overall regular-season record: 58-65-1 | 58-65-1 with Bengals
- Playoff Record: 5-2
Team Links
Bengals Offense
Offensive Stats
- Points per game: 30 (2nd)
- Total Offense per game: 383.9 (6th)
- Passing yards per game: 298.3 (1st)
- Rushing yards per game: 85.6 (30th)
- Time of Possession: 30:15 (13th)
QUARTERBACK
Joe Burrow | #9
Passing Yards: 2,386 | TD Passes: 23 | INT’s: 6 | Sacked: 15
Rushing Yards: 77 | Rushing TD’s: 3
Back-up: Joe Flacco | #16
Passing Yards: 0 | TD Passes: 0 | INT’s: 0 | Sacked: 0
Rushing Yards: 0 | Rushing TD’s: 0
RUNNING BACKS
Chase Brown | #30
Rushing Yards: 397 | Rushing TD’s: 1
Receptions: 39 | Receiving Yards: 207 | Receiving TD’s: 0
Samaje Perine | #34
Rushing Yards: 179 | Rushing TD’s: 1
Receptions: 8 | Receiving Yards: 70 | Receiving TD’s: 1
Tajh Brooks | #25
Rushing Yards: 6 | Rushing TD’s: 0
Receptions: 0 | Receiving Yards: 0 | Receiving TD’s: 0
WIDE RECEIVERS
Ja’Marr Chase | #1
Receptions: 53 | Receiving Yards: 647 | Receiving TD’s: 7
Tee Higgins | #5
Receptions: 48 | Receiving Yards: 758 | Receiving TD’s: 6
Dohnte Meyers | #81
Receptions: 18 | Receiving Yards: 222 | Receiving TD’s: 0
Colbie Young | #86
Receptions: 2 | Receiving Yards: 9 | Receiving TD’s: 0
Mitchell Tinsley | #82
Receptions: 5 | Receiving Yards: 60 | Receiving TD’s: 0
Andrei Iosivas* | #80
Receptions: 3 | Receiving Yards: 19 | Receiving TD’s: 0
TIGHT ENDS
Mike Gesecki | #88
Receptions: 19 | Receiving Yards: 252 | Receiving TD’s: 6
Drew Sample | #89
Receptions: 7 | Receiving Yards: 48 | Receiving TD’s: 1
Erick All, Jr. | #83
Receptions: 8 | Receiving Yards: 56 | Receiving TD’s: 0
Tanner Hudson | #87
Receptions: 7 | Receiving Yards: 33 | Receiving TD’s: 1
Jack Endries | #84
Receptions: 2 | Receiving Yards: 5 | Receiving TD’s: 1
KICKER
Evan McPherson | #2
Extra Points: 28-28
Field Goals: 12-12
- 1-19 yards: 0-0
- 20-29 yards: 3-3
- 30-39 yards: 2-2
- 40-49 yards: 1-1
- 50+ yards: 6-6
Bengals Defense
Defensive System: 4-3
Defensive Stats
- Points per game allowed: 21.9 (14th)
- Total offensive yards per game allowed: 354.9 (25th)
- Passing yards allowed: 228.3 (21st)
- Rushing yards allowed: 126.6 (25th)
- Sacks: 23 (10th)
- Interceptions: 5 (19th)
DEFENSIVE LINE
LDE: Boye Mafe | #53
Tackles: 22 | Sacks: 5.5
DT: Dexter Lawrence II | #97
Tackles: 27 | Sacks: 5
DT: Jonathan Allen | #93
Tackles: 21 | Sacks: 3
RDE: Myles Murphy | #99
Tackles: 16 | Sacks: 1.5
LINEBACKERS
WLB: Demetrius Knight, Jr. | #44
Tackles: 63 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 1
MLB: Barrett Carter | #49
Tackles: 68 | Sacks: 1.5 | INT: 1
SLB: Oren Burks | #42
Tackles: 6 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 0
SECONDARY
LCB: Tacario Davis | #20
Tackles: 9 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 0
SS: Jordan Battle | #27
Tackles: 48 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 3
FS: Bryan Cook | #6
Tackles: 41 | Sacks: 0.5 | INT: 0
RCB: DJ Turner II | #0
Tackles: 22 | Sacks: 0 | INT: 0
*Injured/Out
Steelers vs Bengals History
Series History: Began in 1970
Overall Record: 73-41
- Home: 38-19
- Away: 33-22
- Postseason: 2-0
Streak: (2) Steelers won the last two games.
Last regular-season meeting: Steelers Win, 30-27 (Sept. 27th, 2026)
Last postseason meeting: Steelers Win, 18-16 (Jan. 9th, 2016)
Injury Report (11/13/2026)
Pittsburgh Steelers
IR: WR Michael Pittman (foot), WR Roman Wilson (finger)
Out: None
Doubtful: None
Questionable: DL Derrick Harmon (foot)*
Cincinnati Bengals
IR: WR Andrei Iosivas (thumb)
Out: None
Doubtful: None
Questionable: DB Kyle Dugger (quad)
* In designated to return from IR window
Pittsburgh Steelers Schedule (6-2)
Sunday, Sept. 13 Atlanta | W, 20-13
Sunday, Sept. 20 at New England | L, 3-20
Sunday, Sept. 27 Cincinnati | W, 30-27
Thursday, Oct. 1 at Cleveland | L, 24-27
Sunday, Oct. 11 Indianapolis | W, 34-22
Sunday, Oct. 18 at Tampa Bay | W, 26-19 (ot)
Sunday, Oct. 25 vs New Orleans | W, 16-10
Sunday, Nov. 1 vs Cleveland | W, 27-6
BYE WEEK
Sunday, Nov. 15 at Cincinnati at 8:20 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 22 at Philadelphia at 1:00 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 27 vs Denver* at 3:00 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 6 vs Houston* at 8:20 p.m.
Monday, Dec. 14 at Jacksonville* at 8:15 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 20 vs Baltimore* at 1:00 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 27 vs Carolina* at 1:00 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 3 at Tennessee* at 1:00 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 10 at Baltimore* at 1:00 p.m.
*Time, Date, and TV network may change due to flexible scheduling
NOTE: All times are Eastern Home games in BOLD
Author Profile
- Your source for Pittsburgh sports!
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From Midland, "The Basketball Capital of Pennsylvania", located 35 miles NW of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. This former steel town was home to storied athletes such as Dave Alston, Norm Van Lier, Simmie Hill, and the legendary 1965 Midland High School Basketball Team.
There's nowhere on earth that is more dedicated to its sports teams like Western Pennsylvania and the city of Pittsburgh. The passion and pride of Pittsburgh's fan base is second to no one. From the NFL, NHL, MLB, NCAA football and basketball, to W.P.I.A.L. high school sports, "The City of Champions" has it all!
As Editor of Pittsburgh SportsNation, Mike Drakulich provides top notch opinions and coverage of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates, Pitt Panthers football & basketball, Robert Morris Colonials basketball, and Duquesne Dukes basketball, as well as all sports teams that represent Western Pennsylvania, including WPIAL High School Football.
For a refreshing view of sports, mixed with humor and uncensored opinions, check out Pittsburgh SportsNation today on Facebook, Twitter @PghSportsNation and videos with over 1,000,000 views on YouTube!
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