The Pittsburgh Steelers' performance during the 2023 season was an emotional rollercoaster. It was the typical season where Pittsburgh needed to pull off a miracle in the final weeks in order to make the playoffs, which they did. Despite struggling at times, Pittsburgh was able to dominate the AFC North, going 5-1 throughout the year. They pulled off the sweep against both the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals, and split their two games with the Cleveland Browns.
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Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris stiff arming a Bengals defender during the 2023 season.
The Steelers shouldn't expect to be able to handle the Bengals as well as they did in 2023 going forward, as both times they played Cincinnati, the Bengals were without Joe Burrow. He suffered a wrist injury in Week 11, which kept him sidelined for the remainder of the regular season. Jake Browning stepped in and quarterbacked the Bengals the rest of the year.
Former Bengals offensive coordinator and current head coach of the Tennessee Titans, Brian Callahan was on the most recent episode of Bussin' With The Boys, where he shared that the Steelers' defense humbled Browning in his first start of 2023.
"He goes into the first Pittsburgh game, and we were kind of like, 'You sure you feel good about this,' and he was like, 'Yeah, just call the game how you call it for Joe. I'll operate, I'll play well.' And he didn't. He came back the next week and was like, 'Don't call this, don't call this, don't call that. Call these things. Give me more pure progression.' And finally, we were like, 'Thank you, this is what we need from you, this feedback.'"
Browning essentially tried to completely fill Burrow's shoes once he went down with his injury, which is hard to do considering Burrow is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL when he is healthy. This is an issue with a lot of backup quarterbacks in the league -- they try to do what the starter does, rather than playing their own game. Browning tried to do that against the Steelers' talented defense, and failed.
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Bengals backup quarterback Jake Browning during the 2023 season.
Browning took on Pittsburgh in his first career start, in which the Steelers won 16-10. Browning through a touchdown and an interception during the game, while throwing for 227 yards. For a backup, that stat line sounds pretty good, but during the game, he looked flustered and was constantly taking check downs, abandoning his reads down the field. He also fumbled once in the game, while taking four sacks, which totaled 30 yards lost for Cincinnati's offense.
Overall, Browning's seven-and-a-half game span as the Bengals starter is viewed positively. He went 4-3, and made the proper adjustments after being brought back to reality following the Week 12 loss to Pittsburgh. He finished the season with 12 touchdowns and 7 interceptions, and nearly 2,000 yards passing, while completing 70 percent of his passes.
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Steelers defensive back Eric Rowe secures an interception off Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Jake Browning during a 2023 regular season game.
Steelers Dominated Browning Again In Week 16
Browning had to take on the Steelers once more during Week 16, this time the game being in Pittsburgh. The Steelers needed to win this game, and the two after if they wanted a realistic shot at making the postseason. The game resulted in the Steelers' best win of the season, beating the Bengals by a score of 34-11.
Browning played even worse in his second game against Pittsburgh, which was a matchup of backup quarterbacks as Mason Rudolph started the game for the Steelers. Browning threw 3 interceptions, fumbled, and got sacked 3 times in the loss. It was pure domination from the Steelers defense. The Steelers would go on to win their next two games, and get some outside help to make the postseason, while the Bengals didn't advance past the regular season.
What do you think of Callahan's story about the Steelers humbling Browning? Let us know in the comments below!
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