Why Pittsburgh Steelers should defeat the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 12

The Steelers are entering an all-important divisional game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Here’s why Pittsburgh should prevail in Week 12. 

The last time these two teams faced, things didn’t quite go according to plan for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Coming off a loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 2, fans were expecting to take care of business against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field.

That obviously didn’t happen, as Mike Tomlin’s team was embarrassed in a 24-10 loss. Fast forward 10 weeks, and we get another chance to face a division rival we may have underestimated the first time around. That won’t happen again.

The Bengals are a much more talented football team than anyone has given them credit for, and to the dismay of Steelers fans, it certainly looks like quarterback Joe Burrow is the real deal. However, that doesn’t mean that this team should hold the upper hand against Pittsburgh this week — even on their own turf.

Why Steelers will defeat Bengals

In most years, it would be far from bold to predict Pittsburgh trouncing this bottom-dwelling divisional opponent. However, the Steelers are actually underdogs in this contest, courtesy of WynnBET. Still, there is good reason to believe Pittsburgh will emerge victorious on the road in Week 12.

For starters, Ben Roethlisberger is coming off the best game he has played in arguably two years. Prior to his showing against the Chargers, the Steelers were able to score just over 19 points per game in 14 straight regular-season contests dating back to last year. However, Big Ben finally put an end to this mediocrity with a 37-point showing on Sunday Night Football last week.

Even with questionable offensive line play, Roethlisberger — after dealing with COVID all week — was able to take his game to another level. This was certainly enough for his teammates to rally behind him.

In addition to having an improved offense, the Steelers are expected to get back T.J. Watt, Minkah Fitzpatrick, and Joe Haden for this contest against the Bengals. Though there are others that we would like to have back as well, the return of these veterans should make a massive difference in Pittsburgh’s overall performance this week.

Most importantly, the Steelers have been in these situations before, and they are well aware of what’s at stake here. I have a hard time believing that this team is going to get swept by a second-year quarterback. I predict Pittsburgh will do enough on both sides of the ball to steal a 24-21 win on the road.

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There is a lot riding on this game for both the Bengals and Steelers, but if Ben Roethlisberger continues to play at a high level when Watt and Fitzpatrick are helping out on the other side of the ball, Tomlin’s team should return home with another win under their belt and advance to 6-4-1 on the season.