STEELERS BENGALS GAMEDAY INFO
Week 15, Pittsburgh Steelers (7-7) vs Cincinnati Bengals (8-6)
Saturday, Dec. 23, 2023, 4:30 p.m.
Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh (68,400, Grass)
Broadcast
TV: NBC, WPXI-TV Channel 11 locally (Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge, Kathryn Tappen)
Radio: Steelers Radio Network, 102.5 WDVE-FM (Bill Hillgrove, Craig Wolfley, Max Starks); SiriusXM 85 or 225; Westwood One Sports (Mike Watts, Mike Mayock)
SN Coverage: Alan Saunders, Nick Farabaugh, Ed Thompson
Weather: Cloudy, 48 degrees. Winds S 7 mph.
Lines: Steelers +3, Steelers +130, over/under 38.5
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AT STAKE
The Cincinnati Bengals come into this game in playoff position, with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the hunt and attempting to knock them off. If the Steelers win this game and their next two, the Bengals will not be able to pass them in the standings. While if the Steelers lose this game, they will fall two games behind Cincinnati with two games to go.
In a tight AFC playoff race, being able to put a team behind you is about all a team can for, and so while the Steelers cannot be eliminated if they lose this week, they will be down to the narrowest of paths.
AFC NORTH STANDINGS
| Overall | AFC North | AFC | Head-to-head | |
| Ravens | 11-3 | 3-2 | 7-3 | CIN 2-0, CLE 1-1, PIT 0-1 |
| Browns | 9-5 | 3-2 | 6-3 | BAL 1-1, CIN 1-0, PIT 1-1 |
| Bengals | 8-6 | 0-4 | 3-6 | CLE 0-1, BAL 0-2, PIT 0-1 |
| Steelers | 7-7 | 3-1 | 5-5 | BAL 1-0, CLE 1-1, CIN 1-0 |
AFC PLAYOFF PICTURE
1 Baltimore Ravens 11-3
2 Miami Dolphins 10-4
3 Kansas City Chiefs 9-5
4 Jacksonville Jaguars 8-6
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5 Cleveland Browns 9-5
6 Cincinnati Bengals 8-6
7 Indianapolis Colts 8-6
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8 Houston Texans 8-6
9 Buffalo Bills 8-6
10 Pittsburgh Steelers 7-7
11 Denver Broncos 7-7
12 Las Vegas Raiders 6-8
13 Los Angeles Chargers 5-9
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14 Tennessee Titans 5-9
15 New York Jets 5-9
16 New England Patriots 3-11
STEELERS INJURY REPORT
Three Steelers have been ruled out for this contest: quarterback Kenny Pickett (right ankle surgery), free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (left knee) and strong safety Trenton Thompson (neck stinger).
Free safety Elijah Riley (high ankle sprain) is officially questionable, but the team reinstated him from the injured reserve list on Friday, so he should be expected to play.
| Player | Injury | Date | Prognosis | Roster Status |
| TE Pat Freiermuth | Knee | Dec. 19 | Minor | Active, FP on Thu |
| LG Isaac Seumalo | Shoulder | Dec. 19 | Day to day | Active, DNP on Thu |
| OT Broderick Jones | Ankle | Dec. 19 | Minor | Active, FP on Thu |
| RB Najee Harris | Knee | Dec. 19 | Day to day | Active, FP on Thu |
| DT Cam Heyward | Concussion | Dec. 16 | Day to day | Active, FP on Thu |
| SS Trenton Thompson | Neck stinger | Dec. 16 | Day to day | Active, OUT vs CIN |
| FS Minkah Fitzpatrick | Left knee | Dec. 16 | Week to week | Active, OUT vs CIN |
| QB Kenny Pickett | Right ankle surgery | Dec. 3 | Week to week | Active, OUT vs CIN |
| DB Elijah Riley | High ankle sprain | Nov. 19 | Day to day | IR (Wk. 16), Q vs CIN |
| SS Keanu Neal | Rib | Nov. 12 | Week to week | IR (Wk. 15), OUT vs CIN |
| ILB Kwon Alexander | Achilles | Nov. 12 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| ILB Cole Holcomb | Left knee surgery | Nov. 2 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| LB Chapelle Russell II | Knee | Aug. 11 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| CB Cory Trice | Right ACL tear | Aug. 1 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| RB Alfonzo Graham | Torn right labrum | July 29 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
| DT Renell Wren | Torn right Achilles tendon | May 17 | Out for season | Injured reserve |
TRANSACTIONS
The Steelers released running back Anthony McFarland Jr., placed safety Damontae Kazee on the suspended list, reinstated Riley from the injured reserve, promoted outside linebacker Kyron Johnson from the practice squad to the 53-man roster, released inside linebacker Tariq Carpenter from the practice squad and signed safety Jalen Elliott to the practice squad.
Inside linebacker Myles Jack and defensive back Eric Rowe were elevated from the practice squad for this week’s game.
THE OTHER SIDE
The Bengals will be without star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, and of course quarterback Joe Burrow remains on the injured reserve list.
THE LAST TIME
Kenny Pickett had his best passing game of the season, throwing for 278 yards as the Steelers won their first game after firing offensive coordinator Matt Canada, 16-10 four weeks ago.
Last year in Pittsburgh, Burrow led the Bengals offense to a powerhouse performance, beating the Steelers, 37-30.
STEELERS-BENGALS SERIES
The Steelers lead the all-time series, 69-39-0, though recently, the Bengals have taken the lead in this rivalry. The Steelers have lost three of the last five meetings in this series since Joe Burrow took a leap after his rookie season.
Most of this series has intermittent periods of domination, usually by Pittsburgh. Before this stretch, the Steelers had won 11 in a row in the series, for example. So, this reflects a likely close game. Backups have done it in this game; ask Ryan Finley and Duck Hodges.
PITTSBURGH CONNECTIONS
The ties between the Steelers and Bengals start with a few former Pittsburgh Panthers and Pittsburgh natives. Wide receiver Tyler Body is from Clairton and played at Heinz Field as a high schooler, and continued that in college, becoming a prolific wide receiver at Pitt. Long-snapper Cal Adomitis played at Pitt, too, coming out of Central Catholic to man that spot.
Safety Nick Scott will represent the Penn State Nittany Lions in this matchup. He has started for most of the season at safety and Jessie Bates and Vonn Bell both left the Bengals in the offseason.