CINCINNATI (vs. Pittsburgh):
The Bengals have scored in the 30s in three straight and seven of 12, but one of the recent exceptions was a 16-10 win at Pittsburgh in Week 8. The Steelers are allowing plenty of yards (366 per game, which ranks 22nd) but only seven teams have allowed fewer points. Their defense seems to have a good feel for Cincinnati’s offense, considering the Bengals haven’t scored more than 21 points in the series since 2009. The last three years, Cincinnati has scored 17, 13, 20, 20, 21 and 17 points. Cincinnati may win, but it doesn’t look likely to put up big numbers. ... Andy Dalton is having a solid season, at 266 yards per game with multiple touchdowns in nine contests. While Cincinnati has scored at a fairly modest clip in recent meetings in the series, Dalton has been pretty good in the most recent meetings -- responsible for nearly all the offensive success the team has enjoyed.
| Dalton versus the Steelers, 2013-2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Site | Result | Pass | Run | TD |
| 2013 Cincinnati | W, 20-10 | 280 | 10 | 1 |
| 2013 Pittsburgh | L, 30-20 | 230 | 20 | 2 |
| 2014 Cincinnati | L, 42-21 | 302 | 22 | 3 |
| 2014 Pittsburgh | L, 27-17 | 244 | 8 | 2 |
| 2015 Pittsburgh | W, 16-10 | 231 | 4 | 1 |
In those five games, Cincinnati has scored 11 TDs, and Dalton has had a hand in 9 of them (8 passing, 1 run). He’s averaged 270 yards (257 pass, 13 run). As in those previous years, Pittsburgh is much better defending the run (6th) than the pass (30th). Of the 27 TDs allowed by this defense, 23 have come on passes. Looks like another meeting where Dalton will provide the bulk of the yards and points Cincinnati comes up with. ... With the passing game likely to lead the way, A.J. Green should be very good. He’s demolished this defense in recent games, catching at least 8 passes in four straight meetings.
| Green versus the Steelers, last four | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Site | No | Yds | TD |
| 2013 Pittsburgh | 9 | 93 | 0 |
| 2014 Cincinnati | 11 | 224 | 1 |
| 2014 Pittsburgh | 8 | 82 | 0 |
| 2015 Pittsburgh | 11 | 118 | 1 |
Green stands to benefit if Tyler Eifert (neck) can’t go; he didn’t practice all last week and could be down another game. On Sunday, Green caught 5 balls for 128 yards and 1 TD, his 2nd-highest total of the season. Marvin Jones has put up ordinary numbers as the No. 2, averaging 50 yards per game with 4 TDs. Last week he had one of his better games, catching ...
This report is taken from today's Week 14 edition of Fantasy Index Weekly. The newsletter includes our player rankings and 20 pages of camp reports, plus stat projections and custom rankings for the games being played this weekend.
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... 5 balls for 55 yards and a touchdown. The Steelers have allowed only 14 TDs to wide receivers, which is average, but 8 of those have come in the last four games. Both players (and No. 3 Mohamed Sanu) should see more targets if Eifert can’t play. Tyler Kroft would start again, and it’s a favorable situation. Pittsburgh has allowed 8 TDs to tight ends. The third-rounder has only 2 catches all year, however, and shouldn’t be expected to take on a comparable role in the offense. Eifert caught 4 passes for 39 yards in the earlier meeting. ... Jeremy Hill (98 yards, TD) was a lot better than Giovani Bernard (35 total yards) against Cleveland, but that was one of the league’s worst run defenses. Pittsburgh is much better (6th), so Bernard should be a bigger part of the offense. That didn’t really pan out in Week 8; Hill carried 15 times for 60 yards, while Bernard got only 3 touches for 34 (12 run, 22 receiving). Still, Bernard has been more effective in recent games in the series. He caught 10 passes and a touchdown in the Pittsburgh games a year ago, and also scored 3 TDs against them the previous season. Hill was respectable last year, averaging 73 yards in the two games, but he didn’t score (and this is a better run defense). The Steelers have allowed only 4 rushing scores and only 1 TD reception by a running back; the numbers don’t look promising for either player. But Bernard looks a little better. ... Mike Nugent averages 7.6 kicking points; 6 or 7 in four of his last five games. He had 10 in the earlier meeting, but just 8 total in the series last year. Pittsburgh allows just over 6 kicking points per game. ... The Bengals Defense has been very good, with 32 sacks (9th) and 15 interceptions (4th). Ben Roethlisberger has been a little loose with the football (9 picks in eight games), but has been sacked only 12 times. He served up 3 of each in the previous meeting, but that was his first game back from a knee injury and he was rusty; he’s on top of his game right now. Last year he wasn’t sacked in either contest and threw one interception. We’re ranking the Bengals lower than usual.
