CINCINNATI, OH — In the course of a single play, the AFC playoff picture may have changed.
Down 7-0 in the first quarter of Sunday’s game versus AFC North rival Pittsburgh Steelers, Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton had his pass intercepted attempting to complete a screen pass, and injured his thumb in the ensuing tackle. The play effectively doomed the Bengals in this game, and possibly cast doubt on their lofty post-season aspirations. Pittsburgh won the game 33-20 as backup Bengals quarterback A.J. McCarron finished with 2 TDs and 2 INTs in an up-and-down showing in his first meaningful playing time in the NFL. He’ll need a talented offense to make plays around him going forward, a plan complicated by star tight end Tyler Eifert’s probable concussion.
The Steelers have now won four of their last five, the last two of which have been against AFC division leaders. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is orchestrating a symphony of scoring with his talent-laden receiving corps, moving the ball up and down the field against what had been a stout Bengals defense. Despite Pittsburgh’s superb play as of late, if the AFC Playoffs started today, the Steelers would be at home. They’ll need to root for a slip up by either the Jets or Chiefs to sneak into the wildcard, and a possible rematch against the Bengals.
Cincinnati still holds the inside track on the AFC North, with a two-game lead on the Steelers. But the exact timetable of Dalton’s return is unknown, and a safe bet would put his return after the end of the regular season at the earliest (though early reports indicate he may not need surgery). If the Bengals could somehow hold on to one of the top two seeds, the bye week would do wonders for them; but with New England winning and a Dalton-less game at the Broncos on the horizon, Cincinnati may find itself consigned to the No. 3 seed and a first round date with either the red-hot Chiefs, the hard-charging Steelers, or the talent-laden Jets. Given the Bengals’ (and Dalton’s) history in the post-season, Bengals fans have to have more than a bit of trepidation thinking about those scenarios.
Other AFC Notes
The Patriots suffered a loss of their own as running back LeGarrette Blount left with a hip injury, and the Denver Broncos offense sputtered against the Oakland Raiders, giving the Bengals a ray of hope in their quest for a first-round bye in the playoffs. The Jaguars, by dint of their win over the Indianapolis Colts and the Houston Texans’ lost, find themselves just a game out of first in the underachieving AFC South.
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