The Pittsburgh Steelers were able to secure a win against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday as the group finally put forth a good showing in 2026. It definitely was not a complete game from the Steelers as the defense struggled to slow down Joe Burrow and the offense of Cincinnati, but that is something that a lot of teams in the NFL struggle with as that offense is so high-powered when it is fully healthy. Despite what can be characterized as defensive struggles for the Steelers, the fan base can walk away from this game smiling since the offense finally looked competent for Pittsburgh.
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Pittsburgh Steelers’ Mike McCarthy watches the action at Acrisure Stadium during a 2026 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Through Pittsburgh's first two games against the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots, the offense looked atrocious. Only one touchdown was scored and the unit could only put 16 total points on the scoreboard. The Week 2 loss to New England was embarrassing as the Steelers scored just three points in the matchup, but the complete opposite occurred against Cincinnati. The offense was on fire and started the game with three straight scoring drives, and even broke the 69-game streak of the Steelers' offense not scoring more than seven points in the first quarter.
A big reason for the offensive explosion on Sunday was the running game, and more specifically the play of running back Jaylen Warren. He was questionable coming into the game as he was dealing with a shoulder injury, but he played through it. He didn't score in the game, but in the fourth quarter, he did rip off a decent run where it looked like he would walk into the end zone. However, he tripped and went down. He was asked about this by the media after the game.
"Yeah, I just need more IVs," Warren said. "I wasn't tired, just my body was tired."
Warren was definitely running out of juice on this play where he went down on his own. He was tired as that drive started with him ripping off an 87-yard run, but it was called back due to a holding penalty. When he touched the ball again he ripped off a 26-yard run, but this is when he tripped around the five and went down on his own.
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Steelers' Jaylen Warren runs out of the tunnel before a home game against the Cincinnati Bengals in 2026.
Warren saying that he wasn't tired but his body was is kind of a perfect encapsulation of what he has proven his mindset to be on the football field. He isn't going to go down easy, and his toughness is always going to shine through. That was evident on Sunday as he played through a shoulder injury that kept him limited throughout the week of practice, but the minor injury didn't seem to bother him much at all.
It was a career day for the veteran running back as he recorded the most scrimmage yards in a game for his career. It would have been nice to see him find the end zone as well, but his body just wouldn't allow him to run the extra five yards to score a touchdown.
Steelers Could Have Faced Legitimate Consequences For Jaylen Warren's Stumble
Warren going down in the way that he did is funny to look back on, but it was during a very pivotal point in the game. The score was tied at 27, and time was ticking down in the fourth quarter. Ideally, Pittsburgh would have been able to score a touchdown and go up seven points. This would have forced the Bengals to move the ball down the field and try to go for a touchdown, but since Warren fell and the Steelers had to kick a field goal, Cincinnati could have easily driven the ball into field goal range and forced overtime.
Thankfully Derrick Harmon decided to have the best play of his career as he sacked Burrow and forced a fumble to seal the game, and fans can laugh at Warren's fall rather than be upset about it.
What do you think about Warren's comment? Let me know on X, @brogannoey!
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