Only a little over half way through the 2009 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers face their first truly pivotal contest of the year against the Cincinnati Bengals. When the NFL crafted the schedule, it certainly appears they didn’t expect this to be the year the Orange Empire Strikes Back. Otherwise, I doubt they would’ve blown through both Baltimore games and the season series against the Steelers by such an early date. Nevertheless, that’s where we find ourselves this week, facing the Bengals in a game which may very well decide the AFC’s North Division champion.

In their first meeting, the Steelers held a 20-9 lead in the fourth quarter.  Then came a stunning collapse, mistakes on both sides of the ball contributing to an eventual 23-20 loss. Of course, the Steelers were without the services of Troy Polamalu in that game. Then again, they had the presence of Aaron Smith to help contain the scorching hot Cedric Benson. Not only is Smith not playing this Sunday, but his capable replacement Travis Kirschke is also out.  Let’s hope Nick Eason and Ziggy Hood can keep the resurgent ground game of the Bengals under control or it’s going to be a long afternoon.

For more answers as to what we might expect this week, let’s talk with our old friend Mickey, lead blogger over at WhoDeyFans.

1. Last week, the Bengals whupped up on the Ravens 17-7 to sweep their season series. Where did this Cincy defense come from?

I think you are seeing a great Cincinnati defense for a few reasons. One, the Bengals have had pretty high draft picks for a while now and you are seeing that talent pay off with guys like Rivers, Maualuga, Joseph and Hall. Two, there have been some great free agent pickups that allow depth in the defense like Dhani Jones, Roy Williams and Tank Johnson. Lastly, I think Mike Zimmer is the best coordinator we have had here in a long time.

2. Can we expect to see anything different from your team this time around?

I think you will see more running. Especially to the right. With Smith being out and his backup questionable I think the Bengals overload that side of the line and run behind it. This can accomplish two things. One it brings Troy in and cheating to that side and that allows the receivers the opportunity for single coverage and two it allows Benson to hit the crease or roll outside with blockers in front. I fully expect Benson to break 100yds this weekend.

3. If the season were to end today, give me the team’s MVP.

Has to be Cedric Benson, he has acclimated well to the AFC North style of play and is the second leading rusher in the NFL.

4. Last year, two AFC North teams met in the AFC Championship game.  Do you think history could repeat itself in 2009?

I assume you mean the Bengals and Steelers. That would be awesome. This would mean not only do the Bengals make the playoffs they manage to win a game or two. If this happens, no matter where the game is, I will be in attendance.

5. Give me a prediction.

I am going to go bold here. I predict that Benson has around 140 yds rushing. I also think the Bengals win by more than a touchdown. 28-20

Last week, Mike over at Bear Goggles On answered some of our questions about his team.  Since his words seemed tragically prophetic (I’m looking at you, Johnny Knox), I thought we’d go behind enemy lines once again to take a look at this week’s opponent, the Cincinnati Bengals.

Mickey over at WhoDeyFans agreed to answer some questions about this year’s squad.  Let’s take a look at his answers…

Has Carson Palmer rebounded from his injury plagued 2008?

As far as the injury, I think he is physically 100%. However, after having a whole season off, and then an ankle injury in the preseason, he needs to get back into game playing mode with his receivers. Palmer has made some great throws this season and some bad ones. I think as the season progresses he will get tighter and in better timing with the wide outs. He is not a major concern going into this game.

How are the thugs criminals reclamation projects (Cedric Benson, Chris Henry, Tank Johnson) on your team working out?

Cedric Benson seems to be the workhorse running back the Bengals need. His punishing running style also seems to fit in well in the AFC North. He looks to hit whoever is in his way, he had a great hit last weekend on a safety that got him an extra yard. Last season he blasted some guy with long hair in the Pitt secondary and knocked him silly. We at WhoDeyFans are big supporters of Chris Henry. While we don’t condone illegal activity, when the guy plays he is awesome. In 2006 when he faced the Steelers as the number 3 wideout he had something like 196yds and 3 td’s in two games. He has scored in every game but one this season (including preseason). Tank adds something else the Bengals have needed for a long time, defensive line depth. Just the ability to rotate guys in and out makes the defensive line stronger.

The Bengals lost in week 1 on a miracle last second play by, um, I forget what receiver ended up catching the ball…

Oh, that’s right, Stokley.   Anyway, was your reaction to the crazy turn of events anywhere near as vociferous as Gus Johnson’s?

Well, I was at the game and it sucked. My initial reaction is the same as my thoughts now. You are not going to win many NFL games when you don’t score until less than a minute remains. The Bengals defense kept the game winnable and the offense laid an egg. Last week against Green Bay the offense showed up and gave the Bengals fans some hope.

Carson Palmer’s unfortunate problems with injuries, that fluky last second loss, even your 2009 first round draft pick broke his foot after only one day of practice.  Why do these things always seem to happen to the Bengals?

Palmer never really had a problem with injuries until the one last season. Granted, he was injured in the playoff loss to Pitt in 2005 but I think that was a fluke play that would have had anyone out. He recovered and missed no time the next season. That being said, I don’t think the Bengals have any worse luck than any other NFL team. The Patriots last year lost Brady right off the bat and still managed to go 11 and 5. The major difference between the Bengals and these other teams starts at the top. The Bengals are terrible at scouting and finding players to fit the system. If ownership doesn’t realize this and make a change, any small misfortune will lead to major disappointment for Bengal fans.

Prediction (and no, you’re not eligible to win the $100 gift certificate from Dick’s Sporting Goods):

Ben has never lost in Ohio. The Steelers own the Bengals especially in Paul Brown, however, I think that all changes this week. In the past the Bengals have beat the Steelers with an explosive offense only. This year the Bengals boast a defense that is better than the offense. The Bengals should be able to handle the Steelers offense a little better than the past and the offense can put up around 21 – 24 points on anyone. Bengals win 27 – 24.

What would we do without Philly?   Between their dumbass wide receiver spiking the ball a yard before he reached the end zone, their drug hoarding deadbeat dad of a coach, and their tubby quarterback who can’t run a hurry up offense without puking his guts all over the sideline, that team continues to be the NFL equivalent of an older brother who is fun to invite to parties but sadly still lives in our mother’s basement.

Anyway, in news related to the one team Pennsylvanians can be proud of, it’s the first double-dip of the season for the beloved Pittsburgh Steelers as the hated Cincinnati Bengals come to town for the second half of our annual two game set. Let’s hope it doesn’t end in a tie.

Since I already previewed the two teams, there’s no sense in repeating my brilliant and usually spot-on analysis. Instead, I’ll simply touch on issues relevant to the upcoming game.

Of course, the picture above is in reference to the Bengal’s tie against the Philadelphia Eagles, the first since the Steelers drew with the Dirty Birds back in ’02. I caught a bit of the game and it was less a hard fought battle and more a cripple fight. Philly didn’t seem too eager to win (although in Donavan McNabb’s case, he probably thought he had two or three more OTs to get the job done) while Cincy snatched defeat from the jaws of victory by shanking a 47 yard FG to win the game. Still, the fact the same fearsome Iggles team which handed us our worst loss of the season was battled to a standstill by Cincy should fill us with both fear and shame.

In fact, since we last saw the Bengals, they’ve actually started to play like a professional football team. They got crushed by Houston after losing to us but then went down to Jacksonville and beat the sissies in teal for their first win. Earlier in the year, they took the Giants team with only 1 loss and who beat us up into OT.  Despite the fact they’re a punchline to many jokes and this season will probably cost Marvin Lewis his job, they’re nowhere near as pathetic as say Oakland or Detroit.

To be fair, the 38-10 final score in our first game looks like a blowout but the game was a much closer battle than that. The Steelers were nursing a slim 3 point margin at halftime despite the fact Cincy QB Ryan Fitzpatrick was sacked every other play and they didn’t get into positive total yardage until the final drive of the half. Our offense didn’t perform much better until they figured out CB Jonathan Joseph couldn’t cover his mouth on a sneeze and beat him deep with Tiffin Thunder Nate Washington.

It’s a little perplexing how the Bengals have managed to stay in games. Harvard alum Fitzpatrick, frankly, stinks. He’s got the lowest QB Rating in the league (71.3!) and considering the talent this team has at WR, it’s amazing he only has 5 measly TD passes. They’ve all but given up on RB Chris Perry and handed main backfield duties to Bears castoff Cedric Benson. Chad Ocho Cinco has only quatro scoreos and is on pace for only about 500 total receiving yards. T.J. Houshalottaletters is one of the elite WRs in the league but that shouldn’t be enough to keep them competitive. But they have been.

The game will present an interesting match-up for the Steelers as 2/3 of the Three Amigos (Bryant McFadden and Deshea Townshend) will once again be inactive. Manly William Gay and Anthony Madison did a good job against San Diego last week although the weather helped a bit in that the Chargers speed in the vertical passing game was limited on the slippy chewed up field. Fernando Bryant looked shaky but he only had about 3 days of practice so if he does play on Thursday, let’s hope he’s a bit more up to speed. It looks the rest of the Blitzburgh D will be ready to go which is good news for those of us who enjoy seeing James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley chase QBs like a dog chasing a bone.

Offensively, it appears RG Darnell Stapleton will be good to go which means it’ll be the usual gang of idiots manning the OL. Well, LT Marvel Smith is listed as out, too, but at this point I think it’s safe to just give up on him permanently. Fast Willie Parker managed to play an entire game without incurring another injury so we might just have him in the starting line up for two consecutive games. Hooray for modern medical science and/or Oxycontin! FWP will be a big addition because Cincy has a horrible run defense which should allow him to pile up a good amount of yardage.

Despite the Bengals playing gamely in the face of certain doom and the historical fact of them tending to rise to the occasion when they play us, there really is no excuse for us to lose this game. A great offensive performance won’t mean much but it would be a baby step in the right direction. As the Steelers gear up for the final month of the season and, hopefully, a playoff run, bringing that offense along one baby step at a time should be one of the main goals each and every week.

Winning cures all ills and the Cincinnati Bengals have typified that over the Marvin Lewis era. After the 2005 season, Lewis was praised as a savior for the Bengals organization despite his players’ constant run-ins with the law.  And if winning cures all the ills, losing amplifies all of the ills and after an 8-8 season in which the Bengals blew chance after chance to make the playoffs, gripes about Lewis’ coaching style started to surface. After a tumultuous 7-9 season in 2007, the honeymoon was clearly over and Lewis is probably in his last season with Cincinnati. Unless of course, he wins.

Unfortunately, this has all of the makings of a disaster season as the defense made the grave mistake of hiring Mike Zimmer to be the defensive coordinator. They also have the Chad Johnson fiasco, which likely will not end well. But for all of the talk of getting rid of Lewis, one has to wonder whom they will get to replace him and do a better job. Who will be good enough to work with a cheap owner in Mike Brown and take over a roster filled with criminals, troublemakers, and malcontents?

STEELER DEFENSE vs. BENGALS OFFENSE

QB Carson Palmer has been ruled out of the game.  So the duties will fall to 4th year back-up Ryan Fitzpatrick.  Fitz played his college ball at that football powerhouse, Harvard.   I might not know much about him but I’m guessing he can kick your ass on the S.A.T.s.  Speaking of which, he’s probably most famous for the urban rumor that he scored a perfect 50 on the Wonderlic test in only nine minutes thus beating Vince Young by 44 points.  I was recently given a chance to share my wealth of Steeler knowledge on a Bengal website so I’ll return the favor and give him a chance to tell us about this Ryan fellow.

Anyway, in two games he’s accumulated a stunning QB rating of 57.7 which is hard to believe because, like the S.A.T.s, you get 75 points just for showing up.  He’s thrown one TD pass this year despite having some decent receivers and no semblance of a running game so I wouldn’t be too optimistic about how he’ll fare against our PH.D of D Dick Lebeau and his exotic schemes.

The running game has been so bad that they went out and signed Party Animal Cedric Benson.  The Bears had enough of him after his 2nd DUI in as many months but evidently no crime is too horrible and no rap sheet is too long for the Bungles.  Benson hasn’t done much this year as he’s working himself back into game shape.  The nominal starter is Chris Perry, who the astute Cincinnati management liked so much they got rid of Rudi Johnson during the preseason.  Perry’s responded to being handed the job by stinking out the joint, fumbling 5 times this season while averaging a miserable 2.6 YPC and cracking the 50 yard barrier only once this season.

The Bengals use a 3 WR, 1 TE scheme and usually leave the tight end in for pass blocking help. They did this with Reggie Kelly over the years, but now have Ben Utecht to take over Kelly’s old duties.  Of course this didn’t save Carson Palmer from getting creamed earlier this year.  The Steelers will definitely be able to get pressure on the QB and with a young inexperienced guy back there, responding to that pressure will require a Herculean effort.

The Steelers have been coy about the returns of NT Fats Hampton and DE Bret Keisel.  Not to downgrade these excellent players but the defense was more than fine without them as Chris Hoke, Travis Kirschke, and Nick Eason formed a solid line in their absence.  They held the hard-running Jaguars to only 50 yards on the ground and now they’re going against a team that can’t run the ball at all.  You do the math.

Cincinnati will have to throw the ball, early and often.  Luckily for them, good WRs they do have.  Chad Uno (TD catches this year) is the speed guy and it’s tough to argue with a guy who has finished 2nd, 5th and 6th in WR DPAR in the last three seasons.  He wanted out of Cincy last year and Mike Brown refused to trade him and take an $8 million cap hit.  He’s clearly moved on to plan B, the Randy Moss Scenario, where he has decided to play like crap so the team will give up on him after this year.  The Bengals are fortunate to have another superstar receiver in TJ Houshmandzadeh on the other side of the field from Uno.  While Housh is the “hands” of the team, he’s nowhere near as fast as Johnson, but he’s much bigger and has really good speed for his size.

Our secondary Triple Threat of Ike Taylor, Bryant McFadden, and Deshea Townshend has played very well all year long.  As long as they show up to play this Sunday things should be under control although mental lapses of any kind and the Bengals do have the players to hurt you.  They also have the players to steal, rape, punch, and drunkenly crash into you but that’s another story.

STEELER OFFENSE vs. BENGALS DEFENSE

Defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer is a 3-4 coach but due to personnel has been forced to stick with Marvin Lewis’ favored 4-3 scheme.  The Bengals are one of those teams who love to use a lot of Cover 2 zone.  Over the years, they have struggled heavily against the run. Here’s how their average yards allowed per carry have looked under Marvin Lewis:

2003……..4.8
2004……..4.4
2005……..4.3
2006……..4.2
2007……..4.2

Fast Willie Parker was set to make his return this Sunday and licking his lips over the chance to run against that defense.  He already has four 100 yard games against them and would very likely add a fifth this weekend.  Then he stepped in a hole.   Yes, you read that right.  A first class, professionally run organization which spares no expense in strength, conditioning, and rehabilitation equipment for their players has evidently lost a key player to injury because of a POTHOLE.

I have no idea who the Steelers employ to take care of both Heinz and their practice fields but they should be fired immediately.   Meanwhile, Mewelde Moore, who offense coordinator Bruce Arians didn’t seem to realize was on this team until two weeks ago, has performed tremendously in FWP’s absence.  It looks like he’ll be given the featured back role once again this Sunday.   Hopefully he’ll have the same success he had against the much stouter-against-the-run Jaguars.

With Zimmer running the defense, Ben Roethlisberger can almost breathe a sigh of relief this week.  The Cowboys went from 34 sacks under Zimmer in 2006 to 46 sacks under Wade Phillips in 2007 because of different philosophies as the players stayed the same.  Expect a very conservative defense that will likely blitz only in very obvious or very safe situations.  The linebacker position for the Bengals is in disarray as the only player solid at a position is rookie Keith Rivers, an explosive weakside backer. Odell Thurman was a trouble-maker who’s not playing for them anymore. He won my defensive rookie of the year award in 2005, even over Lofa Tatupa, so it’s sad when you think how good he once was.

I’ve come to the conclusion that Big Ben is going to take some sacks no matter how good of a line we put in front of him because of his tendency to hold the ball and his belief that he can escape any situation to make a big play.  As such, I think the baseline for sacks/game is about 3.  Even with minimal pressure and good blocking, Ben is going to go down several times a game simply because of his playing style.

WRs Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes should still be able to find room out there and make a few plays.  I’d also look for TE Heath Miller to have his first big game of the year.  With their lack of pass rush and weak LB corp, he’ll be able release off the line and roam around in open space a lot more often this week than in previous ones.

One the surface, the winless Bengals don’t seem to have much going for them.  But as we saw last week when two 0-fer teams got their first victories, a hungry and desperate NFL team is a dangerous NFL team.   Also, for as bleak as the future looks, other than a terrible effort against the Titans, Cincinnati has played competitively almost every week.  Three of their losses have been by a TD or less and they took the World Champion Giants to OT.  Even if Ocho Bozo has given up, it doesn’t appear the team as a whole has.  No matter what the year, what the record, or who the QB, be it Neil O’Donnell, Jon Kitna, or Jeff Blake, the Bengals usually play the Steelers tough.  With some of the hardest games of the year on the horizon, let’s hope this week isn’t one where the Black and Gold look past their opponent and fall into a trap.

He’s baaaaack.   And no closet in Western Pennsylvania is safe from his dookie dropping Anus of Doom.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen of Steeler Nation, Najeh Davenport has returned.

In the wake of last Monday’s game with the Ravens, where the Steelers helmet logo should’ve been replaced by a Red Cross, Pittsburgh has resigned every coed’s nightmare.   Joining him in the backfield will be Gary Russell, who had been banished to the practice squad when head coach Mike Tomlin decided an extra special teams player was more important than a 3rd string running back.

I can’t really blame Tomlin, though.   One back getting injured?   Okay.  Two guys going down?  Alright.  Three RBs out of commission?  No way, no how.

Except that’s exactly the situation our favorite team currently find themselves in.  Fast Willie Parker hurt his knee and is out until after the bye.  Rashard Mendenhall broke his collarbone and is finished for the year.  FB Carey Davis sprained his ankle, which is being kept hush-hush but sounds a lot like the high ankle sprain which kept WR Santonio Holmes out for significant time last year.  Mewelde Moore, ostensibly our third-down back, is the last man standing.

Thankfully, the cavalry is on the way in the form of the Dumptruck.  Being familiar with the offense allows him to be put into a featured role right away.   Also, Davenport’s big enough to play either RB or FB, thus allowing him to fill in for Davis.   Don’t be shocked to see him and Moore share the backfield.  Sure, he didn’t show much last season when thrust into the featured back role but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Besides, what else is there?  The Cincinnati Bungles just signed Bears castoff Cedric Benson.   You know, the guy who was cut after getting busted for two DUIs.  Way to address that character issue, Cincy.   There’s the World’s Most Fertile Running Back, Travis Henry.  He could use the work, what with having to support 8 different kids from 8 different women.  But there’s the whole stealing stuff out of teammate’s lockers issue.  Finally, I guess we could sign former Super Bowl nemesis and league MVP, Shaun Alexander. You’d think someone would’ve taken a shot on him. I mean, not the Steelers, because they like players who run towards contact, but other, less interesting teams.

Other than the running back sitch-U, there are a few other injuries to report.  RG Kendall Simmons tore his ACL and is out for the season.   Darnell Stapleton looked halfway decent when pressed into emergency service against Baltimore.  It’s between him and veteran Trai Essex.   I think Stapleton has the inside track.   Tomlin seems to have a man crush on him as he’s been carrying him on the roster since last year when he made the team as an undrafted free agent out of Rutgers.  He was projected to be a center and his supposed potential was one of the big reasons Chukky Okobi was cut.  So far Tomlin has shown extraordinarily bad taste in personnel decisions so we’ll have to see how this one plays out.

If Darnell fails, Essex played capably in limited action last year.  He’s in the final year of his contract so he’d be extra motivated to prove his worth.   If he failed, and let’s face it, our O-line is one big bucket of FAIL, they could move RT Willie Colon inside to guard.  That would allow the $7 Million Dollar Man Max Starks to finally earn some of that grossly over-inflated salary.  However, this is only a disaster case scenario as Tomlin seems to really have a hate on for Bionic Max and pretty much refuses to play him unless the other linemen are crippled.

Anyway, for those keeping score at home, these are the fresh faces to keep a lookout for on your 2008 Pittsburgh Steelers starting line-up (and the player they’re replacing):  DE Travis Kirschke (Bret Keisel), NT Chris Hoke (Fatass Hampton), RB/FB Najeh Davenport (FWP, Mendenhall, Davis), RG Darnell Stapleton (Kendall Simmons).