The Pittsburgh Steelers are set to take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1 of the 2022 regular season on Sunday afternoon. The highly anticipated NFL season has arrived and the schedule for head coach, Mike Tomlin's team is not going to be the easiest. It starts by going head to head with the reigning AFC champions on the road. A year ago, the Bengals outscored the Steelers 65-20 in the two matchups between the two teams. While many believe the offensive line is going to be the main thing to watch each week, it will be something completely different Sunday. It all begins with the defense completely shutting down Cincinnati's rushing attack.
Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman, Cameron Heyward (#97) runs a drill during 2022 training camp. | Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
The Steelers allowed 146.1 rushing yards per game a season ago which was the worst mark in the NFL. Joe Burrow only had four games in 2021 of 200 passing yards or less and two of those came against Pittsburgh. The Bengals had such a dominant rushing attack that he only had to throw a total of 42 times in the two games that the teams faced off against one another.
The real issue for the Steelers was running back, Joe Mixon. Last season, the Pro Bowler rushed for 255 yards against Pittsburgh. He averaged 5.5 yards per carry and the defense for Tomlin's team was completely out of rhythm in both games. Scoring only 20 points combined between the two contests is not a recipe for winning. The defense didn't really give the offense a chance, especially in game two when the Bengals chewed up over 35 minutes of possession when Mixon had 28 carries.
Mixon has had a phenomenal career against the Steelers. The ball-carrier has averaged 5.5 yards per carry in games against Pittsburgh. He has gotten consistently better over the years, not rushing for less than 60 yards against the organization since 2017, his rookie season. The efforts from the entire defense will be crucial, but Devin Bush is going to need to make a statement in his first game of 2022. He needs to be a lot more explosive and better against the run than he was a year ago.
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker, Devin Bush stretching before practice at 2022 training camp. | Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Another key factor will be newcomer Larry Ogunjobi as he faces off against his old team. Ogunjobi wasn't necessarily known for his run defense when he signed with Pittsburgh, but was impressive in the category during his limited snaps in the preseason. He has the chance to make his presence known after Week 1 if he can help to limit Mixon's effectiveness.
Shutting down the rushing attack from Cincinnati doesn't just help with clock management. It limits the ability for Burrow to successfully and consistently run the play-action. In 2021, the Bengals averaged 12.3 yards per reception in game one and 9.5 in game two. There is a ton of talent at wide receiver with Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. Shutting down the rushing attack with the front six or seven allows for the secondary to sit back, hunt the ball and fluster Burrow.
The Steelers intercepted Burrow twice last season, but had no forced fumbles. T.J. Watt and co. should be hunting for the ball all year in order to create short fields for a young and inexperienced offense. Altogether, we will be talking about the offensive line most of the year, but the season begins with pressure on the defense. The unit is going to need to carry the team for the entirety of 2022 and it begins Sunday.
Don't get it wrong, the offensive line certainly has to perform, and better than they did last year as Ben Roethlisberger was sacked seven times in two games, but if the defense can't get off the field and the Bengals use the rushing attack to chew clock and wear out the defensive side of the ball, it could make for a very long Sunday afternoon.
What positional group or players are your X-factors heading into the Week 1 matchup against Cincinnati? Let us know in the comments below!
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