Week 11 already… Where does the time go? This week the Pittsburgh Steelers host the Cincinnati Bengals in a crucial AFC North contests. Here’s everything you need to know about the game!
What: Cincinnati Bengals 3-6 at Pittsburgh Steelers 5-4
Where: Acrisure Stadium Pittsburgh, PA
When: Sunday November 16th, 2025 1pmET
Weather: Partly sunny and 46 degrees. Winds at 15mph.
Surface: Natural Grass
Wagering Information: Steelers -5.5 O/U 49.5 (CIN is 1-3 ATS on the road this year and is 1-4 ATS in their last five vs PIT)
Last Week: The Bengals enjoyed their BYE week while the Steelers lost in Los Angeles on Sunday Night Football to the Chargers 25-10.
TV: Kevin Harlan (play-by-play), Trent Green (analysis), Melanie Collins (field reporter)
TV Coverage in Your Area (courtesy 506sports.com): BLUE
Radio: Steelers Audio Network Rob King (play-by-play), Max Starks (analysis), Missi Matthews (field reporter)
Westwood One Radio: N/A
Head Official: Bill Vinovich. He’s a certified public accountant and graduate of San Diego. He called the Steelers’ opening day win over the Jets in which 11 penalties were called. His crew has called 130 penalties so far this year which is the fifth most. They call an average one more penalty on the road team each week than the home team.
Game Status (courtesy steelers.com) PIT:No. 23 CB Darius Slay (Concussion) – Out, * No. 27 CB Cory Trice Jr. (Hamstring/Knee) – Questionable, No. 55 LB Cole Holcomb (Illness) – Out, No. 56 LB Alex Highsmith (Pectoral) – Out, No. 73 G Isaac Seumalo (Pectoral) – Questionable CIN: * No. 9 QB Joe Burrow (Toe) – Out, No. 91 DE Trey Hendrickson (Hip/Pelvis) – Out, No. 62 G Lucas Patrick (Calf) – Questionable, No. 34 HB Samaje Perine (Ankle) – Out, No. 97 DE Shemar Stewart (Knee) – Out
* in the 21-day window designated to return from Injured Reserve
Injury Notes: Highsmith being out is troubling for a couple of reasons. First, he’s coming off two really solid performances and secondly, this is yet another “soft tissue” injury. He has already been hampered by groin and hamstring issues. This bears watching for his future… I don’t know what illness Cole Holcomb has but this is the second straight week he will miss the game due to one. I’m hoping that this isn’t something serious… The Bengals are without their two main pass rushers. This may have a bigger impact on the Steelers’ effort to run the ball and keep the Cincinnati offense off the field.
2025 NFL Ranks:
Total Offense: PIT 29th, CIN 22nd
Passing Offense: PIT 23rd, CIN 13th
Rushing Offense: PIT 30th, CIN 32nd
Total Defense: PIT 28th, CIN 32nd
Passing Defense: PIT 32nd, CIN 30th
Rushing Defense: PIT 15th, CIN 32nd
AFC North Standings:
Pittsburgh 5-4
Baltimore 4-5
Cincinnati 3-6
Cleveland 2-7
This Week in the AFC North: Baltimore at Cleveland 425pmET
What You Need to Know: The Steelers are now 0-3 in primetime game this season… They are 4-4 when they’re below 30 minutes in Time of Possession… Pittsburgh is 18-14-1 all-time in games against teams coming off their BYE. This will be the 11th time they’ve played the Bengals off their BYE and are 5-5 in those contests… The Steelers are 9-4-1 in home games against opponents coming off their BYE… The Steelers have won seven of their last nine games following a loss of 15 points or more…
Tomlin Time: Coach Tomlin is 10-7-1 all-time in games against teams coming off of their BYE… Coach Tomlin last won the AFC North in 2020… His .628 regular-season win percentage is seventh-best in since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger (min. 150 games)… Tomlin is 26-10 all-time against the Bengals.
Cincinnati Bengals Names to Know: QB Joe Flacco, WR Tee Higgins, WR Ja’Marr Chase, RB Chase Brown, TE Noah Fant, WR Andrei Iosivas, K Evan McPherson, CB D.J. Turner, S Geno Stone, CB Cam Taylor-Britt
What’s at Stake: A LOT! The Bengals, despite trading LB Logan Wilson, still think they get into the postseason especially with Joe Burrow set to return around Thanksgiving. The Steelers have lost three of four and are clinging to a game lead over the Ravens. With their schedule getting even more difficult this is a must-win game.
All-Time Series: Steelers lead 71-41 and lead all-time in Pittsburgh 36-19
Last Meeting: October 2025 in Cincinnati. Bengals 33 Steelers 31
Postseason History: Steelers lead 2-0
Steelers Regular Season Game Highs vs CIN:
PASSING: 414 yards Russell Wilson 12/01/2024
RUSHING:185 yards Le’Veon Bell 12/07/2014
RECEIVING:195 yards George Pickens 12/23/2023
SACKS: 4.5 Chad Brown 10/13/1996
INTERCEPTIONS:3 Mike Wagner 10/28/1973
Check out the latest Steel City Blitz Steelers Podcast for more on the Steelers.
Three Things We Need to See for a Steelers’ Victory:
–One or the Other. The formula for beating the Steelers this year has been to limit turnovers and get the ball out quickly. No one did this as well as Joe Flacco a few weeks ago. Teryl Austin has to decide how he will attack this time around. With his pass rush not getting him back in October, he should have changed up how his DBs handled the Bengals’ receivers. Instead of getting in their faces and ruining their timing, he kept his DBs off which was license for the Bengals to torch his defense at will.If Austin doesn’t make the proper adjustments then we are in for a repeat of the first matchup.
–Offense is Defense. The Steelers have struggled in recent weeks to possess the football and this week couldn’t be a better time to reverse that trend. Keeping Flacco and company off the field is the best way to keep them from a repeat of the first contest. Arthur Smith has to stay ahead of the sticks. The Cincinnati defense is dead last and Smith has to take advantage of this. If they are turning the Steelers over or getting three and outs then the defense will be cooked.
–Fundamentals. When this team struggles as it has in three of the past four weeks, you can typically point to a lot of factors. One of those is the most basic of fundamentals. Blocking and tackling. While the Steelers’ running game did show some flashes last week with Jaylen Warren, the O-line again struggled to stay on blocks and get to the second level. The defense meanwhile continued to struggle with missed tackles, especially those in the open field. THAT is going to be huge this week with all of the weapons the Bengals have. One way or another, the Steelers need to get back to the basics.
The ‘X’ Factor: Each week I will select a player from each team who I believe will need to play above and beyond in order for his team to win.
X-Factor Steelers: Cam Heyward. No one outside of defensive backs has more passes defensed than does Heyward. He will need to provide much more of that as the Bengals will no doubt stick to their quick passing game. While getting hands up is important I also need to see more ‘push’ from Heyward. He needs to get underneath blockers and shove them back into Joe Flacco as often as he can. This is the type of game where Heyward could have a huge impact.
X-Factor Bengals: Evan McPherson. The Bengals’ kicker will need to be extra focused this weekend heading into Acrisure Stadium. While the effect isn’t the same as it once was due to additions on the North end, one still has to be careful. Given too that winds are forcasted to be 15mph, that’s going to create problems. I worry less about Chris Boswell simply because of his experience. In a game that is expected to be high-scoring, McPherson cannot afford wayward PATs or field goals.
Prediction: Rarely do two divisional games look the same. With both of these teams coming into week 11 with pretty bad defensive numbers, it’s easy to expect another 33-31 type of shootout. I’m thinking this one is different. The Steelers’ offense is struggling. The Bengals’ defense is really bad. The Steelers’ defense has been slightly improved the last two weeks while the Bengals’ offense can be downright scary. I think there are limited turnovers and the Steelers will do their best to keep everyone in front of them and it will pay off… Barely.
Steelers 24 Bengals 23
Season Prediction Record: 3-6
