The Bengals season of misery continued this week with a brutal 34-12 loss to the division rival Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
IT WAS A TALE OF TWO HALVES
Both the Steelers and Bengals scored on their opening possessions. Joe Flacco stood in the pocket and delivered a strike to Tee Higgins from 28 yards out. And after a penalty on the point after, Zac Taylor decided to opt for the two-point conversion, which ultimately failed, making the score 7-6.
To be completely fair, the Bengals defense held their own for some portions of this game. They forced several punts and even had a stop on fourth down that was nullified by a terrible spot by the referees. Myles Murphy had one of his better games as a Bengal. The defensive line was able to put at least a handful of pressure on Aaron Rodgers in the first half, as Myles Murphy picked up his second full sack of the season.
The Cincinnati defense, who could not stop a toddler all year, forced three punts and gave up a field goal in the first half after allowing the Steelers to score on their opening possession. It was 10-6 Pittsburgh at halftime, and the game was within reach even though the offense was sputtering.
The second half was a different story as Mason Rudolph entered the game and was basically unchallenged as he led the Steelers up and down the field on two drives that resulted in a Pittsburgh field goal and fourth quarter dagger touchdown.
THE BENGALS OFFENSE FAILS TO CAPITALIZE
In this game though, the blame also significantly falls on the Bengals offense, which failed to capitalize on the rare opportunities the defense gave them. That included a Noah Fant fumble that the Steelers ran back for a touchdown that put the game even farther out of reach. But that wasn’t the only points Cincinnati’s offense gave up on the day.
Joe Flacco had his worst game as a Bengal, going 23/40 for 199 yards. He threw a very poor interception to Pittsburgh safety Kyle Dugger, who returned it 74 yards for a game-turning pick-6 in the third quarter. But he was struggling through an injury to his throwing shoulder and seemed to be playing through a lot of pain.
THINGS GOT CHIPPY
The game took an odd twist in the fourth quarter with the Bengals facing fourth and a yard on the Steelers 44. Zac Taylor once again inexplicably tried to draw Steelers offsides instead of running a play. The “strategy” failed but after the timeout was taken, Jalen Ramsey (who has his own history with the Bengals) took a swing at Ja’Marr Chase and was ejected. The penalty gave Cincinnati a first down but the Taylor-led offense burned two timeouts and failed to gain any yards before settling for a field goal.
The sequence was one that reminded everyone of the extreme animosity that exists between these two teams. Unfortunately it didn’t motivate the offense or Chase to kick anything into high gear as they finished with 297 total years and two turnovers. And to make it worse there are allegations that Chase was the one to start the altercation by spitting on Ramsey, something the league will absolutely be looking into.
THE JOE BURROW SITUATION
And with this loss it’s impossible to avoid the questions around the return of Joe Burrow. The team is now 3-7 and realistically their chances of making the playoffs have all but vanished. There’s no doubt that Joe Burrow is the ultimate competitor and wants to be on the field the moment he is healthy. That is what Cincinnati fans love about their franchise quarterback, but at the same time the team and our fans cannot ignore the reality of the situation.
The 2025 season is all but over. The focus now must be on the moves the Bengals can make to lead to long term success in 2026 and beyond. That unfortunately includes having a very clear conversation with Burrow that getting healthy for the future is the most important priority. He has nothing left to prove to the league or the fanbase. No one will consider Joe Burrow a “quitter” if he uses the rest of this year to recover from the many beatings he’s taken since donning the striped helmet.
Put simply, Joe Burrow cannot save the 2025 season. But he can rescue this franchise from potential future ruin by staying on the field in 2026 and beyond. He’s already proven he is a warrior and part of that is being smart about the right time to come back and show out for the Cincinnati Bengals. There’s no shame in showing some direction and this front office should be taking the lead in making this case to their franchise player.
THE ELEPHANTS IN THE ROOM: TAYLOR AND TOBIN
And no discussion of a bad Bengals loss is complete without a discussion of the continued failures of Duke Tobin and Zac Taylor. Whether it was the failures to call plays in a timely manner, the penalties, or the lack of readiness after a bye, Taylor’s faults as a coach are yet again on clear display for all to see. Though Tobin’s problems have manifested in the terrible roster construction for this team, so much of the blame rests on his and his staff’s shoulders.
But I am beyond the failed hope that either one of them will face any accountability, whether it is this year or in the future. The front office doesn’t seem to care that the team is in free fall and they apparently have no interest in finding ways to stop it from happening or planning for the future. Becausee they’ve already sunk money in Taylor and Tobin, it appears they will simply ride it out and let it get as bad as it can be and wait to make decisions until their pocketbooks won’t be impacted.
When you realize that is the thing that motivates the Brown family these losses make a lot more sense although it doesn’t make them any easier to bear. So until these things change, what we saw on Sunday will continue to happen for the foreseeable future. It’s time to get used to it, it’s probably better for our collective mental health. We’ve got a long way to go.
