Despite a late push, the Pittsburgh Steelers fell just short to the Cincinnati Bengals 37-30 despite their best scoring performance of the season. The loss drops the Steelers to 3-7 on the season and tied for the third-worst record in the NFL. After a rewatch and pouring over the numbers here are four stats that really stood out.
2 carries, -2 yards
After having great success with wide receivers rushing the ball last week, offensive coordinator Matt Canada completely abandoned it against the Bengals. This was in spite of Jaylen Warren’s injury. Logic would dictate when an explosive option is hurt, you find another but Canada never really tried.
62 rushing yards
That is all the Bengals could muster on Sunday. But it definitely felt like that ran for more than that. Cincinnati carved Pittsburgh up through the air but it was the well-timed runs that kept the chains moving and gave them manageable passing situations that set those big pass plays up.
66 snaps
That’s how many defensive snaps safety Minkah Fitzpatrick played just one week after having an appendectomy. Fitzpatrick never left the field but had a quiet three tackles and one pass defended. Nevertheless, that’s a superhuman effort by Fitzpatrick to even be on the field.
2
Two is the number of times the Steelers sacked Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. The defense did pick Burrow off twice but the lack of consistent pressure was a huge factor in why Burrow was able to throw for 355 yards and four passing touchdowns.
