The Cincinnati Bengals upset the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier this season. Now, the Steelers have a chance to avenge that loss to the Bengals. The two teams play Sunday in Pittsburgh. It’s an important matchup for both of them, too. The Steelers are in first place in the AFC North, but their lead is anything but safe. The Bengals aren’t out of the division race either, even though they’re 3-6. Mike Florio believes the Steelers’ season is over if they lose this week.
“If they lose this one, they are done,” Florio said Thursday on the Chris Simms Unbuttoned podcast. “If they lose this one, they are done, which tells me it’s going to be the game that we should have seen coming a couple of weeks ago against the Colts.
“There’s going to be a special teams play here. T.J. Watt is going to make a sack there. They’re going to harass Joe Flacco. I think the Steelers desperately need this one. Steelers 28-20 over the Cincinnati Bengals.”
If the Steelers lose this week, they aren’t eliminated from playoff contention. There’s not even a guarantee that they’ll fall from first place in the division. They’ll still have seven games left to play.
However, morale might hit rock bottom if the Steelers can’t beat the Bengals. They’re 5-4 after getting crushed by the Los Angeles Chargers. Their woes really started after they lost to the Bengals in Week 7. The Steelers could’ve taken a nice lead in the AFC North, but instead, they left the door open for Cincinnati and the Baltimore Ravens to battle back.
Also, the rest of the Steelers’ schedule doesn’t look too promising if they can’t beat the Bengals. They’ll face the Chicago Bears, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and the Baltimore Ravens twice. If the Steelers lose to the Bengals, their path to the playoffs could get murky. They might even have a tough time finishing with a winning record.
The Bengals have a lot riding on this week’s result as well. Joe Burrow is gearing up to return from injury soon. A win against the Steelers could reinforce his desire to return to action. Likewise, if the Bengals lose, they might be less inclined to rush Burrow back.
The Ravens are only one game back of the Steelers in the division, and they play the Cleveland Browns this week. Baltimore already blew Cleveland out earlier this year, too. That also puts a little more pressure on the Steelers to beat the Bengals.
Is the Steelers’ season over if they lose this week? No. Their margin of error down the stretch would be slim, though. Getting a nice bounce-back win over a division rival would be much better for them. We’ll see if they can prove Florio right and pull off a win.
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