4 bold predictions for the Steelers vs. the Bengals week 12

Steelers stuff Mixon

Joe Mixon is quietly having one of his best seasons as a pro. While his stats aren’t prolific, he has been running hard and picking up the tough yards necessary. The Steelers run defense, in the meantime, has been putrid over the past two weeks. The Lions ran for over 200 yards in their tie while Austin Ekeler and Justin Herbert were prolific on the ground last week in the loss.

While Mixon is easily the most talented back that the team will face over their past three games, I think the Steelers are well prepared for him. For starters, the defense is getting back a slew of talented players that they didn’t have last week. Even more important, there is a real chance that Carlos Davis plays this week. Isaiah Buggs hasn’t been a train wreck this season, but Davis has flashed the ability to be a complete nose tackle when he has been healthy.

Mixon still gets quite a few touches, but he is far less successful with them than he has been. This defense comes into the game focused on stopping the run given their deficiencies there in recent weeks. It pays off as Mixon is held to only an average day on the ground. The defense isn’t perfect by any means, but they do enough to hold this Bengals offense back.