After the first half of play in Paul Brown Stadium on Sunday Night Football, the Cincinnati Bengals are tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers at 14. Through the first two quarters, both teams have had a few misques, but the Steelers are by far and away the team that has made the more costly mistakes. Not only did Mike Wallace drop two wide open first-down passes, but running back Baron Batch dropped a wide open pass thrown from a wide receiver on a trick play that, if he had caught it, would have resulted in a guaranteed touchdown. Ben Roethlisberger also through an interception to Chris Crocker in the end zone and he also fumbled, losing the ball to Bengals defensive end Wallace Gilberry.
The Bengals aren't without their fare share of mistakes. After taking a 14-6 lead, the Bengals got the ball back and were threatening to take a commanding 21-6 lead heading into halftime. However, Andy Dalton had a pass tipped and intercepted by Steelers outside linebacker LaMarr Woodley. This led to a touchdown pass thrown by Roethlisberger to tight end Heath Miller, bringing the score to 14-12. The Steelers then went for the two-point conversion, where Rothlisberger found Miller in the end zone again, tying the game.
While the Bengals outplayed the Steelers through the majority of the first half, the Steelers are obviously not the kind of team that they can let hang around. The Bengals decided to let Dalton run out the clock to end the first half, content with a tie ballgame. Dalton and company will get the ball back to start the second half and the best possible thing that they could do would be to come out fast and put some points on the board, preferably in the form of a touchdown, to set the tone for the second half.
The Bengals were led by Dalton, who was 10 of 14 for 65 yards, a touchdown and an interception in the first half, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, who has 46 yards on 10 carries and Jermaine Gresham, who has three catches for 19 yards. A.J. Green also has a touchdown catch, which is his sixth game in a row with a score.
The Steelers were led by Roethlisberger, who was 15 for 21 for 138 yards, a touchdown and an interception, Jonathan Dwyer, who has 52 yards on eight carries and Antonio Brown, who has 60 yards on five catches.