Winners and Losers From the Bengals' Loss to the Steelers
The Bengals suffered a 36-10 loss to the Steelers on Sunday. It's their 11th consecutive loss in the series.
Here are two winners and four losers from Sunday’s game.
Winners
Tee Higgins
The rookie wide receiver had another good game Sunday. Higgins had seven receptions for 115 yards and a touchdown. The second-round pick has proved himself to be a reliable target and has quite a promising future ahead of him. This game was an impressive addition to what has been a stellar rookie campaign.
Sam Hubbard
After missing time due to injury, Hubbard was a factor in his first game back. He only had three tackles, but spent a lot of time in the backfield and disrupted the Steelers' offense on multiple occasions. Defensive end is a big need for the Bengals and Hubbard's return certainly helped.
Losers
A.J. Green
The Bengals veteran receiver was held without a catch on five targets. Green was completely ineffective in a game where he was expected to be a reliable option for rookie quarterback Joe Burrow. Green has struggled in back-to-back games.
Alex Erickson
The Bengals forced the Steelers to punt on their first possession. The hot start was negated when Alex Erickson fumbled on the ensuing punt return. Pittsburgh kicked a field goal following the fumble to take an early lead. Later in the game, Erickson let a punt hit the ground that bounced for 10 more yards. His job as punt returner could be in jeopardy if Darius Phillips can get healthy.
Third-Down Offense
The Bengals' offense was 0-13 on third-down. The Bengals aren’t as good as the 9-0 Steelers, but playing that bad on third down is a recipe for disaster. The Cincinnati coaching staff will need to make adjustments to fix this issue moving forward.
Special Teams
Aside from a successful fake punt late in the game, the Bengals' special teams had a rough outing on Sunday. A fumbled punt return at the start of the game that gave Pittsburgh the ball back was followed by a muffed kick return by Brandon Wilson. The Bengals recovered it, but it seemed like they couldn’t get passed their shaky start.
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