Steelers Veteran Accuses Bengals Of Foul Play: "I Was Getting Violated"

The Pittsburgh Steelers got a big win in Week 3 against the Cincinnati Bengals after a very tough showing the week before. After only scoring three points in Week 2, the offense broke the 69-game streak of scoring fewer than eight points in the first quarter. Even then, it was still a fight to the very end as both teams kept exchanging blows. As many of these AFC North showdowns do, the game came down to who makes the final mistake, and Pittsburgh took full advantage on that front. 

Even as the Steelers struggled on defense throughout the contest, that unit came in clutch at the very end of the game. Derrick Harmon plowed through the offensive line and got a strip-sack on Joe Burrow. Veteran defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day was able to jump on the loose ball and hold on for dear life to secure the win, and take first place in the division — for now. 

It truly took a lot for Joseph-Day to hold onto the ball. During a postgame edition of Not Just Football with Cam Heyward, he made a surprise appearance and explained what happened in the pile-up after the fumble.

"What weren't they doing in the pile. I was getting violated," Joseph-Day mentioned. "I was hoping my teammates were going to rip some of these guys off me, but I'm just down there for 20 minutes."

Desperate times call for desperate measures. The Bengals were doing everything they could to rip the ball away from Joseph-Day to try and stay alive in the contest, even after the officials signaled that he recovered the fumble. Obviously, it didn't work, and while the defensive lineman can celebrate his game-winning recovery, he was clearly frustrated by how he got "violated" at the bottom of the pile.

When big pileups happen like that, it is a true free-for-all. It's hard for the officials to see exactly what is going on as they try to pull everyone off, so these plays will typically take advantage of that and grab, hit, kick do whatever they want without fear of getting flagged. That is especially the case when someone is holding onto the ball, and especially in a do-or-die situation. 

As the commentators said, it's not an AFC North game without it getting chippy on the field. There were a couple minor scrums that broke out prior to that fumble, but that was just some basic trash-talking with a little bit of pushing. There was nothing that warranted a flag in those situations, but that may have been just an appetizer for what is to come when these teams meet again later on in the year.

Steelers Need To Feed Off Of The Week 3 Successes

The Steelers don't get a reprieve after this hard-fought game, as they have to travel to Ohio to play the 2-1 Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football, with the winner gaining control of the AFC North through the first quarter of the year. Historically, Pittsburgh has struggled in road divisional games on a short week. A new coaching staff should help change the team's fortunes here — hopefully.

The Browns have proven that they can play with anyone that does not take them seriously. Despite all the negativity coming from their offseason, the defense has balled out for the most part with the offense coming through when it needs to. Like the Steelers, Cleveland has not played pretty football, but it has done enough to be put in a great spot.

With the short week, the Steelers will get a mini-bye week to regroup and recover from this early slate of divisional games. They need to put everything they have into this game to help make the middle part of the schedule much easier to deal with. Clearly, the Browns aren't just the Browns anymore. They look like a truly tough opponent. 

What do you think about Joseph-Day accusing the Bengals of dirty play during the fumble recovery? Let us know on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

#SteelerNation