Well, that's not the start we all were hoping to see. The Steelers entered their Week 13 contest against the Bengals in need of a statement game, but it was Cincinnati who made the early statement against their 8-3 divisional opponent.
Pittsburgh's defense did their job early. Forcing the Bengals to a third-and-long situation early. After a quick three-and-out for Cincinnati, Russell Wilson and the offense had a chance to strike first.
Unfortunately, the opposite happened.
Needing to pick up a key third-and-three, Wilson threw to George Pickens and the play resulted in a pick-six for cornerback Cameron Taylor-Britt and the Bengals. However, Taylor-Britt blatantly grabbed Pickens by the helmet and took him down. This flagrant missed call paved the way for the play of the game.
Startin' it off with some JUICE 🧃@CamTaylorBritt_ | #RuleTheJungle pic.twitter.com/Rj9JSdUKgv
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) December 1, 2024
Gene Steratore chimed in and admitted the referees botched the situation. Steratore claimed there should have been illegal hands to the face on this play. It was Britt's hands to the helmet that pulled Pickens to the ground and created the opportunity for the interception.
Missed call forced Steelers to play from behind early
This was not how the Steelers wanted to start their Week 13 game after blowing an opportunity against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football last week.
Fortunately, Pittsburgh's offense answered back on their next series with Wilson capping off a touchdown pass to none other than George Pickens. This game is more important than most fans realize, so we hope this game-altering pick-six for the Bengals (that never should have happened) doesn't come back to bite them in the end.