The Pittsburgh Steelers came out on the losing end of Thursday night's divisional clash with the Cincinnati Bengals. Losing 33-31 was not what Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin had in mind after his team rattled off four wins over it's first five games. The most glaring issue on Thursday night in Cincinnati was the performance of the Pittsburgh defense. It could not stop Bengals veteran quarterback Joe Flacco and superstar wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase from wreaking havoc all night long. The 40-year-old Flacco, who was traded within the division from the Cleveland Browns less than two weeks ago, threw for 342 yards and three touchdowns, while Chase had a record-setting night catching 16 passes on 23 targets (both Bengals single-game records) for 161 yards and a score.
Steelers YouTube Channel
Steelers' Mike Tomlin speaks to the Pittsburgh media.
Chase spoke to the Cincinnati media after the big win and chatted about how the Bengals' offense was one step ahead of the Steelers' defense for much of the game.
"They did exactly what we were expecting and hoping they'd do," Chase explained. "Today showed what we're really capable of and how prolific this offense really can be."
Losses in a results-based business are hard to swallow, but they are especially hard when a team knows what it needs to do to win and doesn't follow through. Chase is arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL and Cincinnati's top focal point on offense. For the Steelers to know that and not be able to limit the damage that he made is a tough pill to swallow. Chase was coming off of a 10-catch outing against the Green Bay Packers, so a whole lot of people knew that he was going to be getting some targets on Thursday night.
Bengals.com
Bengals' Ja'Marr Chase during an interview.
What is also frustrating for the Steelers and their fans is that Flacco has been with the Bengals for just two games. He has not had a lot of time to prepare seeing as he has had back-to-back short weeks. However, once again, the Steelers had a major issue trying to stop the former Super Bowl champion. Steelers Defensive Coordinator Teryl Austin witnessed his defense surrender 470 total yards of offense and 27 first downs to Flacco and co.
Steelers Must Attempt To Pick Up The Pieces After Deflating Divisional Loss
This loss for Tomlin and his team was more than deflating for a number of reasons. Pittsburgh could have moved to an overall record of 5-1 (2-0 in the AFC North) had it been able to play even a little bit of sound defense on Thursday night. Had that happened, the Bengals, the Baltimore Ravens, and the Cleveland Browns would each all have five losses. Instead, the Steelers are now 4-2 (1-1 in the AFC North) with the Bengals in second at 3-4 overall (2-0 in the AFC North). As of right now, it is very much a division race.
Getty Images
Steelers' Mike Tomlin shakes hands with Bengals Head Coach Zac Taylor.
The good news for the Steelers is that if the defense can just take a step forward, the whole team will benefit. This is the case because star quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh offense have exceeded all expectations through six games. With the help of Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith, the Steelers have put up 30+ points in three games and 24+ points in four games. Rodgers looks like his old Green Bay self and key contributions are coming from all over the field. In the loss to the Bengals, Rodgers threw four touchdown passes while running back Jaylen Warren rushed for 127 yards.
If the Steelers can improve the defense, this team can still accomplish special things this season with the way the offense is performing. Remember, Tomlin and co. are still in first place in the AFC North and it isn't as if they got blown out on Thursday night. However, with games coming up against the first-place Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts, things have all of a sudden gotten very interesting for the Steelers and the rest of the AFC North.
