Cincinnati (Week 16)

It’s game day! We certainly need the perfect storm of detail oriented football, mistake free football, no injuries, and an “in to it” crowd at Acrisure today. As mentioned earlier in the week, Kenny Pickett is out again for 3rd straight game; however, Mason Rudolph is tasked with saving Christmas for the Steelers and Steelers Nation. I will reiterate my belief in the Steelers winning this game if they can run the ball effectively, either play with a lead of keep it within 1 score before the 4th quarter. In this three game losing streak, I cannot remember a single “splash play” on defense. (Walker interception but didn’t result in points). This is the Steelers calling card and recipe for success. They need a splash play or two from the D to give the offense a spark. I think a strip sack, pick six, or fumble recovery will go a long way in this game.

On an injury front, it appears Cam and Isaac are going to play, which are good things. My biggest concern at this point is how the Steelers secondary and ILB core holds up in coverage. It appears Patrick Peterson is moving to safety and Eric Rowe will be his running mate. Joey Porter and Levi Wallace will take corner responsibilities and Elijah Riley will play some nickel snaps.

I have to believe that the Steelers players, coaches, and fanbase attending the game all sense the urgency and “do or die” mentality. This is it. I do not see many reasonable pathways to the playoffs if the Steelers lose this game; however, a win tonight opens several doors depending on how the games go the rest of the weekend.

Steeler fans should be rooting for the following: Steelers win. Cleveland Win. Atlanta Win. And as much as it pains me to say this, Baltimore win. The closer Baltimore gets to locking up the 1 seed, the less likelihood they play all of their impact players in the final week.

Final prediction: Steelers 19 Bengals 14