Last meeting
The Steelers defeated the Bengals 23-17 in overtime last December. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger completed a 67-yard pass to receiver Santonio Holmes to seal the win for Pittsburgh and end Cincinnati's post-season hopes.
Streaks
The Steelers have won four of the last six games and also dominate the overall series, 43-30.
Last week
The Steelers fell to the Denver Broncos 31-28 Sunday night. Pittsburgh came back from 21 points down to tie the score at 28, but Jay Cutler marched the Broncos down the field and kicker Jason Elam booted the 49-yard field goal as time expired. The Bengals scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to beat the struggling Jets 38-31 and end a four-game losing streak.
Key matchup
Steelers defense vs. Bengals offense. The Bengals finally showed some balance last week. Quarterback Carson Palmer only threw the ball 21 times (after averaging almost 41 attempts through Week 6) and reserve running back Kenny Watson ran for 130 yards and three touchdowns on 31 carries. All of Cincinnati's starters on the offensive line are back in the lineup this week facing a Steelers line that lost defensive end Aaron Smith to a knee injury against Denver.
Did you know?
Roethlisberger is 8-0 in his home state of Ohio (4-0 at Cincinnati, 4-0 at Cleveland) and aims for his 12th consecutive game with a touchdown pass. ... Bengals receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh seeks his seventh straight game with a touchdown catch, and teammate Chad Johnson leads the league with an average of 113.3 receiving yards per game.
