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Nugent, D, Bail Out Bengal Offense
The Bengals tried giving this one away in the fourth quarter, but Nugent wouldn't have it. He went 3-4 on Monday Night Football, driving home the game winner in overtime.
It was a sometimes sloppy, defensive struggle for most of the game. Both teams came out of the gate sluggish. The Bengals turned the ball over on their first three possessions and 5 times on the night. While the Steelers managed a better ratio (+2), they still manged to turn it over 3 times on 3 Roethlisberger INT's.
Their were moments where Dalton and the Bengals looked like a well oiled machine, even in the glaring absence of their star wideout AJ Green. But more often than not, a once promising drive would fall flat because of dropped balls or poor decisions on the part of Dalton.
The Bengals ballyhooed defense was there to prop up the sluggish offense tonight in Cincinnati though. They managed to reach Big Ben 9 times for sacks and held the Steelers offense to a total of 187 yards. The pass rush was aggressive from the start and they came from almost anywhere on the field. At times Roethlisberger looked hesitant to throw into the jaws of Cincinnati's lockdown defense. They managed to convert only 4 of their 15 3rd down attempts.
That is to say, except the last 8 minutes of regulation....
In the final Roethlisberger and the Steelers scored twice and rallied from a 20-6 deficit by scoring their first Touchdown with 7:12 to go, as Larod Stephens-Howling bowled over the goal line to make it a game. With just over 3 minutes to play Ben Roethlisberger began to look like the Premium version of Ben Roethlisberger. He led a scoring drive that lasted just about 2 minutes and yielded the game tying Touchdown.
The Steelers were unable to effectively move the ball in overtime after winning the toss and receiving the kickoff. This was one of the 'well oiled machine' moments for Dalton and the Bengals offense. On one pivotal 3rd down play, Dalton took a shotgun snap off the ground and rolled to his right away from a pursuing Lamarr Woodley. On the run, Dalton floated something like a Beer Pong shot over the heads of 2 Steeler defenders and into the arms of the Law Firm, Ben Jarvus Green-Ellis. He then rumbled down the field and into Steeler territory, turning the tide of the game.
Green-Ellis, who this week was replaced as the starter by rookie Giovani Bernard, had carried the ball just 6 times for 1 yard before hauling in the pass that would set up Mike Nugent's 31 yard game winner. It should be noted that Bernard ran hard and performed well after recovering from a slow start and fumbling the ball twice.
"The play broke down and we just started kind of running around looking to give Andy someone to throw to. I think. I know that's what I did", said Green-Ellis laughing with the media after the game.
The win against Pittsburgh the Cincy out in front of their division early in the campaign. Next week the Bengals welcome Aaron Rodgers and the dynamic Packers offense to the Jungle. Until then Bengals fans.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals | ||||||
Sep 3, 2013 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | OT | SCORE |
Pittsburgh Steelers (1-1) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 20 |
Cincinnati Bengals (2-0) | 0 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 23 |
Team Stats Comparison | ||
PIT | CIN | |
Total Offense | 187 | 327 |
Rushing Yards | 45 | 94 |
Passing Yards | 142 | 233 |
First Downs | 11 | 16 |
Punt Return Yards | 21 | 64 |
Kick Return Yards | 70 | 109 |
Total Yards | 278 | 500 |
Turnovers | 3 | 5 |
3rd Down Converstion | 4-15 | 9-13 |
4th Down Conversion | 2-2 | |
2-Point Conversion | ||
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals | 3-3 | 4-4 |
Penalties | 3-30 | 0-0 |
Posession Time | 28:37 | 24:33 |
Scoring Summary | |||
FIRST QUARTER SCORING | PIT | CIN | |
6:27 | (PIT) L. Tynes 29 Yd FG | 3 | 0 |
SECOND QUARTER SCORING | PIT | CIN | |
7:10 | (CIN) G. Bernard 1 Yd Run (M. Nugent kick) | 3 | 7 |
1:55 | (PIT) L. Tynes 50 Yd FG | 6 | 7 |
0:00 | (CIN) M. Nugent 32 Yd FG | 6 | 10 |
THIRD QUARTER SCORING | PIT | CIN | |
7:12 | (CIN) M. Nugent 38 Yd FG | 6 | 13 |
1:39 | (CIN) A. Dalton 2 Yd Run (M. Nugent kick) | 6 | 20 |
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING | PIT | CIN | |
7:12 | (PIT) L. Stephens-Howling 1 Yd Run (L. Tynes kick) | 13 | 20 |
0:48 | (PIT) M. Spaeth 3 Yd Pass from B. Roethlisberger (L. Tynes kick) | 20 | 20 |
OVERTIME SCORING | PIT | CIN | |
7:52 | (CIN) M. Nugent 31 Yd FG | 20 | 23 |
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GEICO Game MVP
DE - C. Dunlap
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