Tim Benz: How the Steelers can expect the Bengals to get around Ja’Marr Chase’s absence
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During the recent bye week, Steelers defensive coordinator Teryl Austin went to the other side of the ball to best illustrate what the return of T.J. Watt could mean to his unit.
“I put it similar to a great receiver. If you don’t take care of him and let him wreck the game, he will. (Watt) is kind of that guy for us. If they don’t take care of him on offense, he’ll wreck the game,” Austin said of Watt.
This week’s opponent, the Cincinnati Bengals, has that kind of receiver.
Well, at least they normally do. They don’t right now because reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year Ja’Marr Chase is likely to miss his third consecutive game with a hip injury.
To underscore Austin’s point, take a look at what those players did to the other team when the Steelers beat the Bengals (23-20 in overtime) in Game 1 of the season.
Watt had six solo tackles (three for loss), a sack, an interception and another pass deflection. Chase had 10 catches for 129 yards and a touchdown. Plus, he had another dazzling TD reception that got wiped out by replay.
The good news for Austin and his players is that Watt is back for the Steelers after looking really good in his return game versus the New Orleans Saints last week.
Equally good news for Austin and his players may be that the “game-wrecking” Chase is out.
But that doesn’t mean Sunday is going to be easy for the Steelers defense.
“They have Tyler (Boyd) and Tee (Higgins), both very good receivers. They’ll go down the field. They both have their share of big plays and things. So, we still have to account for it,” Austin said. “When you have Chase in there, it’s just an added dimension. So, we’ll just try to make sure that we take care of those guys, not allowing them to beat us over the top. And make sure that when they do catch it that we keep those to a minimum and the run-after-catch to a minimum.”
The Bengals have had a mixed bag so far when it comes to staying afloat without Chase. In their first game, they were throttled by the Cleveland Browns, 32-13. Joe Burrow was sacked four times, only one of his receivers had over 50 yards and the team netted just 229 yards of total offense.
In their second game, a 42-21 romp over the Carolina Panthers, the Bengals decided to lean into the running game with Joe Mixon. He had 153 yards rushing and four touchdowns. He also caught four passes for 58 yards and another score.
Meanwhile, Higgins was the top receiver, with just 60 yards on six catches.
“He’s gaining real traction, particularly in recent weeks, as they’ve been without Chase,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said of Mixon. “The tape has that feel. Joe’s always a challenge. He’s tough. He’s got good pick and vision. He finishes off runs. He plays with violence in the secondary. We’ve just got to be open to that challenge.”
In September against the Steelers, Mixon had 145 yards from scrimmage. The running back averages 93 yards from scrimmage per contest against Pittsburgh over nine games. He averaged 128.5 from scrimmage in two games versus Pittsburgh last year, and he scored twice.
A banged-up Higgins had just two catches for 27 yards against the Steelers in the opener. But he had a 115-yard day against them in 2020 and a 114-yard effort last year, totaling two touchdowns in four career games.
As for Pitt product Tyler Boyd, he has 41 catches — five touchdowns — in 11 career games against the Steelers. Only one of those contests resulted in a 100-yard effort (101 yards on Nov. 24, 2019).
So Mixon may be Cincinnati’s most sure bet for success. Three times he’s rushed for over 90 yards against the Steelers although defensive captain Cam Heyward and the Steelers have kept him under 65 yards four times. And that crew just restricted the Saints to a piddly 29 yards rushing last week.
“It was just assignment football,” Heyward said. “Guys in the right gaps. Guys getting off blocks. More than one guy getting to the tackle. We understand that we are not going to play perfect football. But when we do, it’s about guys getting off blocks and covering up those mistakes.”
The Steelers don’t need to be perfect against the Bengals. But they better be good. Especially on offense. Because even without Chase, as you can see, the Bengals have other difficult options to test the Steelers.
And they may not get five turnovers and an emergency long-snapper to help their cause as they did in the season opener.
Much like the first contest, I bet this one stays close. But I’ll take the Bengals this time, 25-19.