Bengals Mid-Afternoon Special: Time For The Steelers Showdown

Good afternoon everyone! Hope you all are enjoying your weekend up to this point. Are you ready for tomorrow? I know I am.

The Bengals face-off against the Steelers tomorrow in what will be the most important game for Cincinnati up to this point. Currently the Bengals are tied for first with the Baltimore Ravens. The Steelers are a half-game back. Sunday will also be the first time Andy Dalton and A.J. Green will taste this rivalry. 

Alright so here are some keys for the Bengals on Sunday.

1. Stay healthy. With question marks surrounding Jermaine Gresham, Carlos Dunlap, Adam Jones, and Brian Leonard the Bengals cannot afford to suffer anymore blows to the team's health. With Donald Lee already out it's going to be vital that Gresham stays healthy, if he plays. And personally I think the Bengals cannot afford to be without Dunlap. He's a key for the Bengals defensive line. And obviously no one wants to see our beloved Bengals suffering significant injuries that will impact the team in the long-run.
2. Move the ball. The Bengals cannot afford to have a the same performance in the first half that they had against the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans. If that's the case then t could be a long afternoon for Cincinnati. Going up against a top-ranked defense in Pittsburgh is going to be a huge test for Cincinnati.
3. Convert on third down. The Bengals have been better at this over the past few weeks, but it's still going to be key. They cannot go three-and-out on a majority of their drives. If that happens then Cincinnati will have a difficult time staying in the game.
4. Create some turnovers. The Bengals haven't been much of that this season. But the defense has been doing a fantastic job regardless. Tomorrow might be a good time for the Bengals defense to breakout and create some turnovers.
5. Sack the crap out of Ben Roethlisberger. I cannot stand him and it would make my day to see him get sacked 275,982 times. Okay I know that's not possible in a single game, but you get my point. I want to see Domata Peko and company take him down to the ground on a regular basis.
6. Limit the amount of damage by Pittsburgh in the passing game. The Bengals cannot have a repeat performance from their game against the Seattle Seahawks where they allowed 350 passing yards by Charlie Whitehurst and Tavaris Jackson. With Big Ben and company it's going to be key for the Bengals pass defense to zero in and focus tomorrow. The slightest hiccup could be the costliest mistake. Basically, don't give up the big plays.