Where is Dory from Finding Nemo to lead the chant for the Cincinnati Bengals?

“Just Keep Winning, Just Keep Winning!”

Cincinnati needs to do just that if it wants to be playing playoff football, as the AFC is jam-packed with teams 1 or 2 games above .500. At 8-6, Cincinnati has a chance to give us all an early Christmas gift and put the Steelers’ season into the ground on Saturday, while also increasing a 37% chance to make the playoffs to over 50%.

As I am typing this, Steelers’ Coach Mike Tomlin just announced that Mason Rudolph is taking over as Pittsburgh’s QB1 duties and I have never been more happy to have Jake Browning after reading that statement. With injuries to D.J. Reader and Ja’Marr Chase though, this certainly will not be a walk in the park. Before diving into the future though, what in the world did we just watch on Saturday? Let’s dive into some positives and negatives…

Positives

Cincinnati holds its own fate. If the Bengals keep winning, they will surely earn a wild card. They have three games remaining against the Steelers, Chiefs and Browns. All three are winnable games. I don’t believe the Bengals can afford losing to Pittsburgh, so Saturday feels like a must-win game.

TEE IS ALIVE! His gigantic reach and “Space Jam” stretch over the pylon was exhilarating. If Ja’Marr misses any time, the Bengals are going to need to see Tee act like a WR1 for the remainder of the season.

Santa or Nick Mullens? I am not sure who will give out more gifts this year. Mullens was horrific despite getting lucky on a few throws. His interception to BJ Hill was something I have never witnessed before. Thank you Saint Nick!

Mike Hilton time and time again! He is the definition of “Right place at the right time.”

Eleven different players had a reception on Saturday. Browning got everyone involved and everyone stepped in to help pull out a victory.

Trayveon Williams may not fill up a stat sheet, but he does so many things the right way off the ball. His blitz pick-up was phenomenal.

Before this past week, Cincinnati was 4-146 when trailing by 14 or more in the fourth quarter. Add one more to the win column!

Negatives

D.J. Reader, run stopper, is out for the season. If you thought the run defense was weak before, this adds even more to the fire.

If Ja’Marr remains out this week, the offense is really going to struggle. Without his presence on the field, you can expect Pittsburgh to really apply pressure to Browning for 4 quarters.

Charlie Jones stopped his route in what would have been a very impressive and needed touchdown. He hasn’t impressed me at all despite his speed on the field.

I had to increase my blood pressure dosage over the weekend. The Higgins touchdown, the called-back Pick 6, the 3rd and 4th down stop with inches to go, the no-call on pass interference. The mailman delivered packages during the game on my porch and I am surprised they didn’t call the cops.

If Coach Zac Taylor has anyone other than the quarterback throw the ball again this season … I don’t care if it works, it is unnecessary. The Tyler Boyd interception 2 weeks ago was enough for me to never want to see that ever again.

betJACK – Pick of the Week

Cincinnati is currently -2.5 on the road against Pittsburgh on Saturday. Nothing would bring more joy than seeing the Steelers get eliminated from contention at home right before Christmas. I think I am going with Cincinnati -2.5 simply because I want to see it, along with a Chase Brown anytime touchdown. Who Dey!

This column appears in several newspapers in southwest Ohio.