Cincinnati Bengals vs Pittsburgh Steelers Match Player Stats On Oct 22, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Oct 22, 2017

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers are learning that in spite of the explosive potential of their passing game, Le'Veon Bell sets the tone.

Bell carried 35 times for 134 yards against the NFL's second-ranked defense to lead the Steelers to a 29-14 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday at Heinz Field.

Knocked out of two prior seasons by Bengals' hits to his right knee, Bell acknowledged before the game he feels the Bengals "target" him, but said "I'm going to protect myself, play hard and try to get the W."

Bell's idea of protecting himself involved juking, stiff-arming and carrying Bengals on his way to his third 100-yard game of the season. Bell went over the century mark late in the third quarter.

In games in which Bell has carried 27 times or more, the Steelers are 4-0.

Bell sparked a Steelers touchdown drive on their first possession. He carried five times for 27 yards and gained 23 on a pass reception, before Antonio Brown caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Ben Roethlisberger.

The Bengals tied the game late in the first quarter on a 6-yard Andy Dalton touchdown pass to Brandon LaFell. Joe Mixon's 25-yard run and A.J. Green's 16-yard catch on third-and-5 were the key plays.

The Steelers answered with a 74-yard touchdown drive that took only 2:18. Roethlisberger threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster, who was wide open at the 10 and trotted into the end zone to give the Steelers a 14-7 lead. The NFL's youngest player celebrated with a game of hide-and-go-seek with Bell. The key play of the drive was a 28-yard Roethlisberger pass to tight end Vance McDonald.

The high-scoring first half continued when the Bengals tied the game on their ensuing drive. They went for it on fourth-and-goal at the 1 and Dalton delivered a play-action pass to wide-open tight end Tyler Kroft that knotted the score at 14-14. The drive's key plays were a 22-yard pass to Alex Erickson on third-and-8 and a defensive hold by Steelers lineman L.T. Walton during a run play.

The Steelers ended the half with a pair of short field goals for a 20-14 lead, but it could have been worse had the Steelers capitalized on first downs at the 6- and 5-yard lines on the respective possessions.

Chris Boswell greeted the second half with a field goal for the Steelers. Defensive end Michael Johnson's stop of Bell on third-and-1 resulted in the 41-yard kick and a 23-14 Steelers lead.

Boswell's fourth field goal was his longest of the game, 49 yards, to give the Steelers a 26-14 lead with 5:28 left in the third quarter. It followed Joe Haden's interception of the only pass thrown to Green with Haden in coverage. The two adversaries enjoy a rivalry that began in college and has continued through Haden's years in Cleveland and now with the Steelers.

The Steelers' defense stifled the Bengals the rest of the way, and a successful Steelers fake punt ended the drama. Punt-team fullback/reserve safety Rob Golden took a snap with 6:53 left and lofted a 44-yard bomb to gunner/wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey. It led to Boswell's fifth field goal, a 25-yarder, to give him 11 field goals in the Steelers' last two games against the Bengals.

Roethlisberger completed 14 of 24 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns for the Steelers. His passer rating of 117.4 is a season high.

NOTES: Pittsburgh RB Le'Veon Bell added three catches for 58 yards to give him a season-high 192 yards of total offense, topping the 191 he compiled last Sunday in Kansas City. ... The Steelers had four sacks by four different players and didn't allow any. ... The Bengals entered the game last in offensive red-zone touchdown percentage, but scored touchdowns on their only two attempts Sunday. ... Bengals MLB Kevin Minter injured his right elbow with 6:14 left in the second quarter and didn't return. Minter was replaced by Vincent Rey, and on his first play Rey missed a tackle on Bell that turned into a 42-yard reception. Rey then left with an injury in the fourth quarter. ... Bengals captain LB Vontaze Burfict refused to shake hands with three Steelers captains at the pre-game coin toss. ... The Steelers played without starting DL Stephon Tuitt and RT Marcus Gilbert. Tyson Alualu replaced Tuitt and Chris Hubbard replaced Gilbert. ... The Bengals were without starters CB Adam Jones and TE Ryan Hewitt. They were replaced by Darqueze Dennard and Cethan Carter.