The Bengals walked on to Sunday night’s national stage at Heinz Field knowing a win would put them into the second seed in the AFC playoff picture. But what ensued in stunning fashion was the most bitter loss in the 46-game A.J. Green-Andy Dalton era, a 30-20 verdict in which the Steelers outplayed them in every category as the 9-5 Bengals exited stage right not only without the second seed but also trying to protect what has become a slim game-and-a half lead over idle Baltimore in the AFC North before the Ravens game in Detroit on Monday night.
Down 27-7 at halftime after losing punter Kevin Huber to a fractured jaw and SAM linebacker James Harrison to a concussion, the Bengals never exerted their physical nature that lifted them into control of the division. The Bengals cut the lead to 30-14, but the drive took seven minutes. It ended on tight end Tyler Eifert’s one-yard touchdown catch late in the third quarter.
The Bengals made it 30-20 when quarterback Andy Dalton hit wide-open wide receiver Marvin Jones for a 13-yard touchdown pass with 5:46 left in the game. But when Dalton tried quickly to hit Eifert split wide to the left for the two-point conversion, rookie linebacker Jarvis Jones jumped up and blocked it at the line of scrimmage. The Bengals then chose to kick it deep.
Too much damage had come early at the hands of the 6-8 Steelers in an oddly laid-back environment with a crowd of just 45,873. The final nail came fittingly on two missed tackles with less than five minutes left in the game. The Bengals missed tackles all night and on this third-and-seven cornerbacks Adam Jones and Chris Crocker had wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders set up before the sticks, but they missed him and he made it by a yard to keep the chains moving.
As good as the special teams have been for the Bengals this season, they were as horrific as they’ve ever been in the 11 seasons of head coach Marvin Lewis in Sunday’s first quarter as three major gaffes allowed the Steelers to jump to a 21-0 lead in the game’s first 13:48 that later grew to 24-0. It was the first time the Bengals have allowed 21 points in a first quarter since the 1986 season.
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