The Steelers took care of their business against the Kansas City Chiefs, 20-12, but the Cincinnati Bengals put the pressure back on by taking care of their business in upsetting the Denver Broncos, 37-28 Monday Night. Now the two meet each other Sunday night for the AFC North title.
The Bs and Heath Miller propelled the offense and the defense played one of its better games to move the Steelers, 10-5, to a playoff spot with their victory over the Chiefs.
Ben Roethlisberger had a modest game by his standards throwing for only 220 yards on 18 of 25 passing for one touchdown and no interceptions. Fourteen of those passes went to Miller and Antonio Brown who had 7 catches each for 68 and 72 yards.
Le’Veon Bell only had 60 yards on 20 carries on the ground but the defense held a potent Chiefs’ ground game in check while forcing Alex Smith to beat them in the air. And even though he had nice stats the game really wasn’t as close as the score indicated.
Meanwhile the Baltimore Ravens all but eliminated themselves with a 25-13 loss at the hands of the Houston Texans who kept their slim playoff hopes alive.
The Cleveland Browns had to go back to Brian Hoyer when rookie quarterback Johnnie Manziel was injured. They lost to the Carolina Panthers 17-13 dropping their records to 7-8.
They will be trying hard to pull their record up to 8-8 this weekend when they attempt to eliminate the Ravens from the playoffs. The Ravens can still make the playoffs if they win and the San Diego Chargers lose.
The Bengals kept the ball on the ground limiting the possibility of Andy Dalton throwing the game away with interceptions. Instead they intercepted Peyton Manning 4 times to pull off the upset. Jeremy Hill had 147 yards on 22 carries on the ground. Dalton was only 17 of 26 for 146 yards and 2 touchdowns.
They will try to do the same thing to the Steelers with a solid ground game behind Hill who has 1024yards on 199 carries and 9 touchdowns, and Giovanni Bernard who has 672 on 165 carries and 5 touchdowns.
Through the air the Bengals are loaded with weapons, but Dalton has been sporadic. A. J. Green, who torched the Steelers in their first meeting, is their top gun with 61 catches for 959 yards, he’s assisted by Jermaine Gresham, 59 catches for 440 yards and Mohammed Sanu, 54 catches for 758 yards.
Dalton is having an up and down season with 3137 yards on 282 of 444 attempts for 17 touchdowns.
Roethlisberger is having one of his greatest years’ ever and should be considered for NFL Most Valuable Player. He has 4635 yards on 384 of 570 passing and 30 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions. Brown continues to lead the league in receptions with 122, and yards with 1570. Bell is second in the league in rushing yards with 1341 on 282 caries and is battling for the lead in total yards. He has 77 catches for 774 yards.
The Steelers will select their MVP this week. My vote goes to Antonio Brown. Not only for his receiving yards, but his return yards which constantly puts the offense in good field position which has a lot to do with the Steelers having a winning season this year.
The final week will have the Steelers, 10-5 vs. the Bengals, 10-4-1. The winner takes the division, the loser becomes a wild card.
The Browns vs. the Ravens. The Ravens still have a slim chance of making the playoffs, while the Browns will be trying to not have a losing season.
The other big game will be the Chargers vs. the Chiefs. If the Chargers win they go, if they lose and the Ravens win, they stay home.
Predictions: Steelers will beat the Bengals, Ravens over the Browns, and the Chargers over the Chiefs.
