The Pittsburgh Steelers went into Cincinnati on Thursday night with a chance to take a commanding lead in the AFC North with a win over the Bengals. Instead, QB Joe Flacco on his third AFC North team threw for three touchdowns in a wild 33-31 win over his eternal rivals, the Steelers.
Even though Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers threw two interceptions (one of which was definitely not his fault), the Steelers’ offense did its part for most of the game. Rodgers threw four touchdowns, and the run game had its best game of the year with 147 yards. But the defense couldn’t get pressure on Flacco, and no one could cover the Bengals’ wide receivers. As Zach Gelb put it on Friday’s episode of The Zach Gelb Show, the Bengals’ offense beat the Steelers’ defense about as badly as possible. It’s a symptom of where the Steelers are as an organization.
“Belt to ass!” Gelb shouted. “That’s what they did, they smacked that ass! And they dominated you. But that’s the Steelers’ way now. This great organization, it used to be about winning Super Bowls. It used to be about great defense. It used to be about an organization where you believed you could win it all each and every year… When are the Steelers going to be great again? When are the Steelers going to say, We’re the damn freaking Pittsburgh Steelers, here we go?”
BELT TO ASS!
Joe Flacco dominated that Steelers defense.
And #HereWeGo showed you they are the same Steelers of the last 8 years. @InfSportsNet pic.twitter.com/U6LFgA5Q42
— Zach Gelb (@ZachGelb) October 17, 2025
Gelb pointed out that, as of late, the Steelers cannot seem to get both sides of the ball playing at a high level at the same time. Either the offense plays well and the defense is “trash,” as it was on Thursday night. Or the offense is struggling and the defense is good, like the previous few years in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers aren’t trying to have a bad defense, of course. They invested a lot of resources on that side of the ball this offseason. The Steelers signed CB Darius Slay and traded for CB Jalen Ramsey. They drafted two defensive linemen in Derrick Harmon and Yahya Black, along with OLB Jack Sawyer. It’s just not coming together.
At this point, the Steelers don’t seem to have a talent issue. The defense is littered with Pro Bowlers, All-Pros, and even potential Hall of Famers. So, at the very least, talent isn’t the core issue. The issue seems to be a schematic one.
Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase, who had a monster night with 16 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown, said the Bengals knew what the Steelers were going to do defensively against them. Higgins had himself a night, too, with nine catches for 96 yards and a touchdown. Based on how easy the wide receiver duo made things look, you can’t argue with Chase.
Flacco finds a window and Higgins does the rest.
BENGALS LEAD!
PITvsCIN on Prime Video
Also streaming on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/AlMG7JOIjD
— NFL (@NFL) October 17, 2025
Check The Mic’s Sam Monson took it one step further. He used the word “insane” to describe how the Steelers tried to cover Chase and Higgins. Yes, the Steelers wanted to be able to match up man-to-man against the Bengals. But they couldn’t. So, at some point, you adjust. But they failed to do so in any effective way.
And that’s symptomatic of the Steelers’ overall ability to adjust in a meaningful way over the last near-decade.
“Your standard, for almost a decade now, has fallen,” Gelb said. “You keep on dressing yourself up each and every year, nine, 10, 11, 12 wins, ooh, they’re a great team. And then when push comes to shove, you aren’t a great team. And you don’t win when it matters.”
The Steelers had a chance to take control of the AFC North on Thursday night. It was a meaningful game. And the Steelers’ defense, either through bad play or bad design, failed to help the team capitalize. Again.
As Gelb wondered, when will the Pittsburgh Steelers be great again?
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