Pittsburgh Steelers vs Cincinnati Bengals Match Player Stats On Dec 04, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Dec 5, 2017

CINCINNATI -- Chris Boswell's 38-yard field goal as time expired lifted the Pittsburgh Steelers to a 23-20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, capping an injury- and penalty-ridden Monday night matchup at Paul Brown Stadium.

The Steelers lost linebacker and leading tackler Ryan Shazier to a back injury in the first quarter. He was taken to a local hospital, reportedly with no feeling below his waist.

Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said postgame, "We'll release an update at the appropriate time. Right now we're just happy he's getting the necessary medical attention that he deserves."

Antonio Brown had eight catches for 101 yards and a touchdown, and Ben Roethlisberger passed for 290 yards and two TDs in helping Pittsburgh (10-2) rally from a 17-0 second-quarter deficit for its seventh straight victory.

Cincinnati (5-7) had a franchise-record 173 penalty yards, including an offside penalty that gave Boswell 5 extra yards on his game-winner.

Andy Dalton passed for 234 yards and two touchdowns for the Bengals (5-7), who also sustained several key injuries.

Cincinnati lost cornerback Adam Jones to a groin injury and running back Joe Mixon to a concussion in the first half.

Late in the fourth quarter, Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict sustained a head injury on a block by receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, who was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct and taunting on the play.

The Steelers captured some momentum with a field goal just before halftime. Then on their first possession of the third quarter, Le'Veon Bell caught a short pass and tiptoed the sideline past Bengals corner William Jackson III for a 35-yard touchdown to make the score 17-10.

Bell rushed for 76 yards on 18 carries.

Dalton had a 61-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Green negated by a holding penalty, and Martavis Bryant had a 96-yard kickoff return touchdown called back, also due to a hold.

Cincinnati led 20-13 with eight minutes left, but Roethlisberger's 6-yard TD pass to Brown tied the score with 3:51 remaining.

The Bengals dominated the first quarter with 112 total yards on 16 plays.

Brown, who was questionable coming into Monday's game, caught a 20-yard pass on his first target. However, Jones made a diving interception of a Roethlisberger pass three plays later, helping set up a 35-yard field goal by Randy Bullock to put Cincinnati ahead 3-0. Jones injured his groin on the play and did not return.

The Bengals then drove 85 yards on 12 plays on their next possession, and a 9-yard TD pass from Dalton to Green increased their lead to 10-0. Coty Sensabaugh, who was starting at left cornerback in place of Joe Haden, was beaten on the play.

Green again beat Sensabaugh for a 15-yard TD pass to Green with 31 seconds remaining in the first half. Cincinnati led 17-3 at the end of an injury-riddled first half.

Dalton was 16 of 23 for 173 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. Both of his scoring passes came on third down.

A pass interference call on Darqueze Dennard gave the Steelers a first down at the 12-yard line with five seconds left in the half. Boswell hit a 30-yard field goal for Pittsburgh's first points.

NOTES: Steelers WR Antonio Brown tested his injured right toe prior to the game and was active after missing consecutive practices this week. ... Bengals WR John Ross, the ninth overall pick in this year's draft, was inactive for the ninth time this season. ... Bengals LB Nick Vigil, the team's leading tackler, was inactive, along with starting S Shawn Williams and LB Vincent Rey. ... Steelers CB Joe Haden missed his second consecutive game due to a fractured fibula.