I have seen that particular game against Pittsburgh play out in that manner so often in my life I’ve lost count. It’s always the same: Early futility on offense, followed by a play or two that gives Cincinnati a brief lead and misplaced hope, followed by a killer turnover, the Steelers running game exerting their will, and then the Bengals’ offense imploding in a miasma of failed runs, penalties, and third down sacks.
There were two critical differences, however, in Sunday’s 16-10 loss to Pittsburgh that dropped the Bengals to 5-6 (0-4 in the AFC North) and all but extinguished lingering hopes of a miracle playoff run. One, unlike the majority of previous soul-killing defeats at the ends of those black-and-gold demons, we all know it wouldn’t have happened if Joe Burrow had played. And two, it was a good thing in the end.
The loss was certainly ugly, especially given the fact that the Steelers found some offense after not having one for years—literally. As I feared in last week’s column, the firing of Matt Canada as offensive coordinator provided a jolt. The Steelers gashed Cincinnati’s defense for 421 yards, breaking an unfathomable streak of 58 games without reaching the 400-yard mark, the fourth-longest of all time. (It says something about the defense and Mike Tomlin’s coaching that Pittsburgh managed to go 34-23-1 in that stretch.)
Kenny Pickett threw for the second-most yards (278) of his career. Tight end Pat Friermuth had his biggest day by a country mile. The Steelers converted on third down eight times, had eight explosive plays, and rushed for 153 yards. It was a performance unseen since their halcyon days of Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, and Le’Veon Bell.
Yet Pittsburgh scored just 16 points, making the game eminently winnable despite the yards allowed; Cincinnati, for the record, had won its last dozen games when allowing 16 or fewer. An early fumble that D.J. Turner scooped up was a turning point, albeit against the Bengals—this was the fastest guy at the NFL combine, and given the circumstances he simply has to score on that play. If DJT takes it to the house, the Bengals might actually have pulled out a win. It certainly would have changed the game script.
Despite that miss, along with the grim numbers, I thought the Bengals D certainly had its moments. Surprisingly enough, the flashes mostly came from the young’uns, not the vets, who continue to underperform. Turner played very well as the No. 1 corner in the absence of Cam Taylor-Britt, who was injured. Safety Jordan Battle continues his development, showing off his high football IQ and powerful run support in particular. End Myles Murphy had his best game of the season affecting the QB, which isn’t saying much, but it was a good sign. On a poor day otherwise, the flashes these rookies showed was a positive for the future.
But with Cincinnati’s offensive futility, the red zone heroics meant little. The running game was abysmal, and that’s putting it kindly. That’s why they ran the ball just eight times with Joe Mixon and managed only 25 yards on the ground, fewest in the Zac Taylor era. Yeah, yeah, everyone is piling on the coaching staff for not “establishing the run.” These same fans would certainly be grumbling with (unsuccessful) runs on second-and-9 or third-and-7. “But the cumulative effect!” Child, please. Look at the game tape. It was a quagmire of missed blocks, linemen going the wrong way, Mixon running into his own guys, heavy jumbo sets getting pushed backwards, and the Steelers selling out to stop the run.
Given the ineptitude, you can’t blame Taylor and his staff for figuring that their best shot at moving the ball was backup QB Jake Browning using the same short passing game he practiced all week and all summer when Burrow was injured with the bad calf. That proved to be a fool’s errand, since of course Browning ain’t Burrow—and it didn’t help that Tee Higgins missed the game, allowing Pittsburgh to surround Ja’Marr Chase at every opportunity. In effect, they gave Browning a shot at running the Burrow offense. It didn’t work, and I expect the team to try something else Monday night in Jacksonville.
If you want to really be mad at someone, blame the highly-paid linemen who can’t block and offensive line coach/run game coordinator Frank Pollack, who has been a disappointment in his second go-round in Cincinnati. He needs to (glass) eat a lot of the blame here. This was a particularly bad game, yes, but the team has struggled mightily to run all season thanks to the same issues: big but not athletic linemen who are good in pass protection but struggle to reach defenders moving forward; stale design concepts that allow the defense to set the agenda; and a lack of burst, wiggle, and depth among the running backs. Chase Brown, drafted to provide that speed, didn’t get a sniff Sunday, though he was apparently healthy after missing a month with a hamstring injury.
For the “just throw it to Ja’Marr every play” crowd, the Bengals tried to force several balls to him. Browning was lucky not throw interceptions on two deflected balls that became good gainers when Chase caught the ricochets (the first set up Cincinnati’s lone TD). Then, leading 7-3 on the first drive of the third quarter with a chance to really swing the game script with a touchdown, Browning drove the team to the Pitt 18. On third-and-7, he stared down Chase and committed way too soon to throwing the out pattern to Uno. Safety Trenton Thompson jumped the route, easily intercepted, and the game turned from there.
A lot of what went on Sunday comes back to the offseason failure to find anything beyond replacement level or third-day-draftee tight ends and running backs, not to mention sticking with the untested Browning as backup QB. There’s a difference between positional value and valuing positions. The Bengals strategic viewpoint is correct: Give big money to the critical positions (QB, WR, OT, Edge) and work from there. Tactically, though, they aren’t getting much from other positions, and it’s a universal issue. The front office, the coaches, and the veteran players all share in the blame. The roster talent isn’t high enough, the development of the players isn’t good enough, and the actual play is wanting.
And yet, for all that, if Burrow was playing the Bengals would still have a strong chance at another run to the Super Bowl. That’s how much difference an All-Pro level quarterback makes. With Browning in there, Cincinnati could be stacked at every position and have no hope in the big picture.
So what’s left for this season? Pulling hard for the Browns and Steelers to collapse so we aren’t the lone AFC North team to miss the playoffs—that’s a given. Looking for continued development of the young players on defense and plenty of opportunities for the likes of Brown, Adrei Iosivas, and Charlie Jones. This is a chance to really see what they can provide with the assumed pressure of a postseason run now off.
And … losing games. It’s a tricky tightrope to walk, wanting the team to play well (especially in the moment against hated division rivals) while at the same time not really wanting to win meaningless games with one eye on the draft. Cincinnati needs another talent infusion, especially in the trenches, and getting a blue-chipper in April would help immensely. Picking 13th-17th isn’t going to get the job done, but picking 6th-8th might, especially with so many QBs presumably going early.
No matter how much we wish it wasn’t so, the season ended once Burrow’s wrist ligament said No mas. Much as it hurts in the moment, we need to look at the bigger picture and hope the team plays well … in losses.
Robert Weintraub heads up Bengals coverage for Cincinnati Magazine and has written for The New York Times, Grantland, Slate, and Deadspin. Follow him on Twitter at @robwein. Listen to him on Mo Egger’s show on 1530AM every Thursday at 5:20 p.m.
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