Bengals stun Steelers in back-and-forth Week 7 thriller

Brian Batko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Oct 16, 2025

Published in Football

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CINCINNATI — The AFC North race is a marathon, not a sprint.

Just when it seemed everything was breaking right for the Steelers, the Bengals rose up and threw a wrench into those plans with a 33-31 win Thursday night at Paycor Stadium. The Steelers (4-2) lost for the first time since Week 2, and the Bengals (3-4) closed the gap while the Ravens and Browns are left floundering at the bottom of the division standings.

Joe Flacco diced up the Steelers like he was in his prime, throwing for 342 yards and three touchdowns on 31-of-47 passing with no interceptions. Ja’Marr Chase racked up 161 of those yards, Tee Higgins was four shy of 100 himself and running back Chase Brown rushed for 108 on just 11 carries.

Chase got a whopping 23 targets and Higgins 10. Aaron Rodgers had a day, too, with 249 yards and four scores on 23-of-34 passing. But it wasn’t enough to cover for a Steelers defense that looked more like its early self this season than the one that stifled a rookie quarterback Sunday.

It was over when: Bengals kicker Evan McPherson hit a 36-yard field goal, set up by a Higgins 28-yard catch over Jalen Ramsey, and Rodgers couldn’t wind back the clock for Hail Mary heroics as time expired.

Player of the game

Flacco. Whether they blitzed him or whether they sat back in coverage, the Steelers just couldn’t get the savvy old veteran to make the one big mistake they needed. Flacco’s sudden turnaround is fascinating, from six interceptions in his first three games with the Browns to now five touchdowns with zero picks in just two outings with the Bengals. He’s probably not one of the better quarterbacks left on the Steelers’ schedule, but he did plenty to get the job done on his 10th day at the new gig.

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Pat Freiermuth. Acquiring Flacco is one thing, but maybe the Bengals should try to trade for Freiermuth. He becomes Travis Kittle when he plays in Cincinnati, and just when it appeared that he was in for another vanishing act this season, he cashed in his yearly check at Paycor Stadium. He now has 29 catches, 414 yards and four touchdowns in five career games here. Now if only the Steelers can get him going consistently a little farther up the Ohio River and elsewhere.

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Darius Slay. Gave up a 37-yard catch 1-on-1 to not Chase or Higgins, but struggling slot receiver Andrei Iosivas. It seemed the Bengals were targeting Slay, the oldest and smallest member of the Steelers’ ballyhooed cornerback trio. Slay also dropped an interception or two last week against the Browns, but it didn’t matter in that stifling performance. If he can’t shore up his man coverage, the Steelers will need to adjust their secondary plans, whether that’s with schematics or personnel.

Up next

A much-anticipated Rodgers rematch with the Packers — Sunday night football style — at Acrisure Stadium.