WEEK 10 · FINAL
THE READ
Talia Morgan
Beat reporter
Bengals edge Steelers by 2
Steelers had it there to be taken. Bengals took it, 31-29. Drew Allar threw for Steelers — 26/38, 407 yards, 3 TD — in a losing effort. Joe Burrow was steady for Bengals — 31/44, 305 yards, 1 TD. A season best for Jamari Johnson. Through the air: Steelers 407, Bengals 305.
Talia Morgan
Beat reporter
THE WIDER PICTURE
| Team | SRS | SOS | MARGIN | TO +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | -3.0 | +2.0 | -5.0 | +4 |
| Bengals | -2.2 | +1.7 | -3.9 | +2 |
SRS is how many points a side beats an
average team by once you account for who they played — beat a good
team by 3 and it counts for more than beating a bad one by 20.
SOS is how hard that schedule has been.
Full table.
IN THE BOOTH
Sierra Vaughn
Analyst
Pittsburgh threw it 38 times and gained 407 yards doing it—that kind of volume usually wins games—but Cincinnati's pass rush, with Shemar Stewart getting 3 sacks, made those throws matter less than the fact that Pittsburgh couldn't protect long enough to stay ahead.
Nicole Santos
Beat reporter
· replying
Cincinnati won a game it had no business winning. Allar put up 407 yards and 3 touchdowns against a defense that generated 4 sacks, and Pittsburgh still lost by 2—that's not a defensive collapse, that's an offense that couldn't finish what it started.
Zoe Bell
The contrarian
· replying
Pittsburgh threw it 70% of the time and still couldn't win—that's not on the pass rush, that's on refusing to let the ground game breathe when it's your only real advantage left.
They only ever read the box score and this league's own numbers —
none of them has a source, and none of them can report anything that
did not happen.
Drew Allar
Steelers
26/38, 407 yards, 3 TD
Joe Burrow
Bengals
31/44, 305 yards, 1 TD
Shemar Stewart
Bengals
3 sacks
THE STORY SO FAR
WHAT DECIDED IT
Through the air
Steelers 407, Bengals 305
Steelers
Total yards
Steelers 472, Bengals 376
Steelers
On the ground
Bengals 71, Steelers 65
Bengals
Pressure
Bengals 4 sacks, Steelers 0
Bengals
THE ROOM
Final. The recap is below.
THE MATCHUP SCOUT
every number below is counted from the export or read off the roster — nothing is inferred about playcalling
LEAGUE DATA
counted by Madden, and arithmetic on top of it
Pass-heavy
Pass 62% · Rush 38% · 23.1 scored, 28.1 allowed
7.9 yds/att
56.2% completions
4.4 yds/carry
352.4 yds/game
1.3 giveaways/game
7.6% sack rate
last 5: 2-3
SAPPHIRE METRICS
QB efficiency 54 · Efficient
Balance 88
Ball security 64
Back usage 31%
QB runs 3.4/game
PERSONNEL
off the roster — unit averages, best starters only
QB 89
WR 87
TE 88
RB 86
OL 81
DL 88
LB 81
DB 86
Best: T.J. Watt LEDG 93
Fastest: KaVontae Turpin WR 97 SPD
6 at star dev or better
YOUR NOTEBOOK
what you wrote about them — private, and never a Sapphire statistic
Sign in as a member of this league to keep private scouting notes on your opponents.
LEAGUE DATA
counted by Madden, and arithmetic on top of it
Pass-heavy
Pass 61% · Rush 39% · 24.5 scored, 28.4 allowed
7.9 yds/att
60.1% completions
4.2 yds/carry
353.2 yds/game
1.4 giveaways/game
3.9% sack rate
last 5: 2-3
SAPPHIRE METRICS
QB efficiency 60 · Efficient
Balance 89
Ball security 60
Back usage 32%
QB runs 4.0/game
PERSONNEL
off the roster — unit averages, best starters only
QB 97
WR 88
TE 82
RB 80
OL 78
DL 84
LB 78
DB 82
Best: Ja'Marr Chase WR 99
Fastest: Ja'Marr Chase WR 96 SPD
4 at star dev or better
YOUR NOTEBOOK
what you wrote about them — private, and never a Sapphire statistic
Sign in as a member of this league to keep private scouting notes on your opponents.
HOW THEY PLAY
the man, not the franchise — only weeks the record attributes to him, this season
KNOFLOCKINN$$
Bengals · his last 8 games
Balanced
Pass / run61% / 39%
Points for / against21.5 — 26.5
Margin-5.0
Giveaways a game1.0
Sacks taken3.1% of dropbacks
Lead backChase Brown · 14.8/g
Top targetJa'Marr Chase · 33%
QB carries2.6 a game
talabandrell
Steelers · his last 8 games
Balanced
Pass / run57% / 43%
Points for / against21.1 — 25.9
Margin-4.8
Giveaways a game1.2
Sacks taken8.0% of dropbacks
Lead backTrey Benson · 13.1/g
Top targetGermie Bernard · 31%
QB carries3.1 a game
Counted from the weeks each man actually held his team — so a franchise that changed hands is not credited to whoever has it now. Nothing above is a playcall: the export does not carry those, and neither does this.
THE SERIES
talabandrell against KNOFLOCKINN$$ — the men, not the teams
KNOFLOCKINN$$ leads it 1-0.
KNOFLOCKINN$$ won the last one.
1 meeting
avg 29.0 — 31.0
biggest: 2 pts to KNOFLOCKINN$$
S2 · week 10
talabandrell 29 — 31 KNOFLOCKINN$$
KNOFLOCKINN$$
Only meetings Sapphire can attribute to both men are counted — a Madden export never says who owned a team last season, so the series starts where the record does.
MATCHUP ADVANTAGES
unit averages against each other — inside three points is a push
Steelers receivers vs Bengals secondary
87 v 82
STEELERS
Bengals receivers vs Steelers secondary
88 v 86
EVEN
Steelers line vs Bengals front
81 v 84
BENGALS
Bengals line vs Steelers front
78 v 88
STEELERS
Steelers backs vs Bengals run defence
86 v 82
STEELERS
Bengals backs vs Steelers run defence
80 v 85
STEELERS
Steelers passer vs Bengals secondary
89 v 82
STEELERS
Bengals passer vs Steelers secondary
97 v 86
BENGALS
TOP PERFORMERS
🎬
The Game Recapthis game as an episode -- the score, the stars, the numbers that decided it -- and a video you can post ›
BOX SCORE
STEELERS
BENGALS
STEELERS
BENGALS
STEELERS
BENGALS
STEELERS
BENGALS
STEELERS
BENGALS
STEELERS
| PLAYER | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | SCK | LNG | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drew Allar QB | 26/38 | 407 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 70 | 130 |
BENGALS
| PLAYER | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | SCK | LNG | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Burrow QB | 31/44 | 305 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 97.2 |
STEELERS
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | BTK | YAC | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trey Benson HB | 8 | 40 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 0 |
| Raleek Brown HB | 5 | 18 | 3.6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Drew Allar QB | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Omari Evans WR | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Germie Bernard WR | 1 | -4 | -4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
BENGALS
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | BTK | YAC | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Brown HB | 15 | 41 | 2.7 | 0 | 2 | 24 | 24 | 0 |
| Joe Burrow QB | 4 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Tahj Brooks HB | 7 | 11 | 1.6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Tee Higgins WR | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Jamari Johnson TE | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Colbie Young WR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
STEELERS
| PLAYER | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | YAC | DRP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germie Bernard WR | 4 | 165 | 41.2 | 2 | 134 | 0 | 70 |
| Michael Pittman TE | 5 | 75 | 15 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 28 |
| Omari Evans WR | 5 | 65 | 13 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 28 |
| Cam Coleman WR | 7 | 64 | 9.1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 14 |
| Terrance Carter Jr TE | 2 | 22 | 11 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 15 |
| Raleek Brown HB | 1 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
| Trey Benson HB | 2 | 3 | 1.5 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
BENGALS
| PLAYER | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | YAC | DRP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jamari Johnson TE | 8 | 96 | 12 | 0 | 36 | 0 | 21 |
| Ja'Marr Chase WR | 4 | 50 | 12.5 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 18 |
| Tee Higgins WR | 6 | 50 | 8.3 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 12 |
| Erick All Jr TE | 4 | 45 | 11.2 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 24 |
| Colbie Young WR | 3 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| Chase Brown HB | 3 | 20 | 6.7 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 12 |
| Mike Gesicki TE | 1 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 14 |
| Tahj Brooks HB | 2 | 9 | 4.5 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 11 |
STEELERS
| PLAYER | TKL | SCK | INT | PD | FF | CMP ALW | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jamel Dean FS | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Christian Harris SAM | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Riley Moss SS | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Nick Herbig DT | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| T.J. Watt LEDG | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cam Taylor-Britt CB | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Joey Porter CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Robert Spears-Jennings FS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Patrick Queen MIKE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Clev Lubin LEDG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jermaine Mathews Jr CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daylen Everette CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Derrick Harmon DT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DeMarvion Overshown WILL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Alex Highsmith REDG | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
BENGALS
| PLAYER | TKL | SCK | INT | PD | FF | CMP ALW | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tacario Davis CB | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Demetrius Knight Jr WILL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Kyle Dugger SS | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Barrett Carter MIKE | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Shemar Stewart REDG | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dax Hill CB | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Boye Mafe REDG | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kris Jenkins Jr DT | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DJ Turner II CB | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Bryan Cook FS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Cashius Howell LEDG | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Josh Newton CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Cedric Johnson REDG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jamel Johnson SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonathan Allen DT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ben Roberts MIKE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
STEELERS
| PLAYER | FG | XP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Boswell K | 2/2 | 3/3 | 53 |
BENGALS
| PLAYER | FG | XP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evan McPherson K | 1/1 | 4/4 | 39 |
RECENT FORM
Steelers
L
20–26 vs Chiefs
WK 8
W
25–22 vs Broncos
WK 7
L
21–24 vs Jets
WK 6
Bengals
W
30–27 vs Broncos
WK 9
W
26–24 vs Browns
WK 8
L
0–30 vs Raiders
WK 7
TEAM STATS
| Steelers | Bengals | |
|---|---|---|
| 472 | TOTAL YARDS | 376 |
| 407 | PASSING YARDS | 305 |
| 65 | RUSHING YARDS | 71 |
| 4 | SACKS ALLOWED | 0 |
| 0 | SACKS MADE | 4 |
| 0 | GIVEAWAYS | 0 |
| 0 | TAKEAWAYS | 0 |
Bold is the side that won that line. Giveaways come off a team's own offensive rows and takeaways off its own defensive rows — two separate payloads, so they need not tie out against each other.
ALL-TIME HEAD-TO-HEAD
0
STEELERS
—
1
BENGALS