Four Thoughts on the Bengals' Loss to the Steelers

Four Thoughts on the Bengals' Loss to the Steelers

CINCINNATI — The Bengals lost to the Steelers 36-10 on Sunday. The game got away from Cincinnati early on and they never recovered. 

Here are some thoughts from the loss. 

Same Old Bengals

The Bengals have been outscored 63-13 in their two games against the Steelers and Ravens this season. 

That can't happen. 

The Bengals were expected to lose on Sunday. Unfortunately for head coach Zac Taylor, the how matters. 

Losing 30-20 in a competitive game would've been respectable, especially considering the circumstances. Instead, they were crushed by Mike Tomlin and the Steelers. 

Taylor is 0-12-1 on the road as head coach of the Bengals. He's in danger of being swept by the AFC North this season. 

Some are questioning Taylor's future today because of how Cincinnati lost on Sunday. They looked unprepared. They didn't look ready. That's on Taylor. 

He has seven games to prove he deserves a third season. The Bengals can't sit on their hands. They need to make sure he's the guy that can get the most out of Joe Burrow. 

Their playoff window needs to open in the near future. The Steelers might've added another lock to it on Sunday. 

Get Him Out

Speaking of Burrow, there's NO WAY he should've been in the game late in the fourth quarter. 

The Bengals were trailing 36-7 and going up against one of the NFL's best defenses. Burrow rolled his ankle at the end of the first half and was walking with a noticeable limp. 

Instead of taking his franchise passer out and protecting him from injury, Taylor was worried about scoring. 

"We tried to manage it some with the runs. We wanted to get some points, get some momentum going, to be honest with you, and we left him in there," Taylor said. "It's just we want to move the ball and put some points on the board, and we felt like we shot ourselves in the foot a lot. Obviously they did some great things, but we just felt like we kept shooting ourselves in the foot. We could get some drives together put some points on the board, get some momentum going, it just didn't turn out that way."

That sounds like Taylor was trying to save face. He was hoping to make the game look closer than it was. Even if the Bengals had scored touchdowns on their final two drives, they would've lost by 15 points. 

This was a blowout. 

There was no reason for Burrow to be in the game. He wanted to stay in, but he's the quarterback. He isn't the head coach. Taylor should've pulled him. 

Instead, Burrow re-tweaked his ankle on the Bengals' second to last drive while taking a sack. 

Just an unnecessary move by the second-year head coach. He's lucky Burrow avoided serious injury. 

Can Someone Defend QB1

Burrow rolled out to his left and threw a short pass to tight end Drew Sample at the end of the first half. He was near the sidelines and Steelers linebacker Bud Dupree pushed him when he was out of bounds.

Burrow's momentum, combined with the push, took him into the Bengals' bench. He grabbed his ankle afterwards and had a slight limp.

"I just rolled my ankle," Burrow said afterwards. "It wasn't a hit or anything. He (Dupree) might have pushed me a little, but it wasn't a hit. He gave me a little extra boost and I ended up rolling my ankle on the sideline."

Bud Dupree has had problems with cheap shots before, and here he gives Burrow a second shove out of bounds on a bad weather day. Burrow takes a tumble as a result, limps on the field. pic.twitter.com/rdu9Bwwm67

— 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗖𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 (@BengalsCaptain) November 15, 2020

Why didn't any of Burrow's teammates say something to Dupree? Why didn't they get in his face, push him and let him know that was unacceptable? 

Burrow has taken late hit after late hit this season. The Bengals' coaching staff has complained to officials about it. Clearly the rookie isn't getting the benefit of the doubt. 

It's about time this Bengals' roster does something the next time it happens. And this wasn't just a normal push. It was on Cincinnati's sideline. 

Would Tom Brady's Buccaneers' teammates allow that? Would that be accepted by the Steelers if the same thing happened to Ben Roethlisberger?

The answer is no. 

The Bengals can't control the officials, but they can stick up for their quarterback. The late hits, pushes and shoves Burrow has taken this season are beginning to add up. 

It's time for his teammates to do something about it—even if the coaching staff doesn't want them to risk being penalized. 

Brute Honesty

One of Burrow's best qualities is his honesty. The 23-year-old didn't sugarcoat things in his postgame press conference. 

"I just played terrible in the second half. I missed a lot of throws that I usually make. That was the game," Burrow said. "You're not going to be able to win football games against a team like the Steelers as good as they are when your quarterback plays like I did in the second half."

Burrow completed 21-of-40 passes for 213 yards and one touchdown. He went 5-for-15 for 24 yards in the second half.

Despite his struggles, the rookie signal-caller is confident that brighter days are on the horizon. 

"I think we're in that game if I don't suck in the second half and I'm not going to suck a lot," Burrow said. "I'm not too down in the dumps because I know I'm not going to play like that very often. I might play like that hopefully never again but maybe once a year."

The Bengals get a chance to right the ship this week in Washington. They play on Sunday, Nov. 22 at 1 p.m. ET. 

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