The Pittsburgh Steelers are making the short trip to Paul Brown Stadium to take on the Cincinnati Bengals. Both teams are at very different points coming into the regular season. The Bengals are coming off of a Super Bowl appearance last season after being projected to finish last in their division. This season, they are expected to follow up their incredible season with another deep playoff run. Over the offseason, they made great moves to beef up their offensive line and defense. On the flip side, the Steelers lost quarterback Ben Roethlisberger over the offseason due to retirement. Over the offseason, they have had a competitive QB battle that is still technically ongoing. The Steelers coaching staff had hoped that Kenny Pickett would have proven himself as a capable starter, however, he has fallen a bit short of expectations and will be starting the season as the third-string quarterback. Outside of the quarterback position, the Steelers are a pretty well-rounded team this year, however, it is clear that their roster does not have what it takes to compete in a hyper-competitive AFC North this year.
Cincinnati Bengals Look to Avoid Super Bowl Hangover
As previously mentioned, the Cincinnati Bengals had an incredible year last season which almost ended with them taking home a Super Bowl. Although they fell short of that ultimate goal, they are still an extremely young team and have one of the most promising rosters in the entire NFL. After a very well-done retooling of the roster, the Bengals are coming into the season looking better than ever and looking to possibly win the first Super Bowl in franchise history. With the Steelers beginning to rebuild after the departure of Big Ben, this should be a cakewalk for the Bengals and an easy first-week matchup to avoid a Super Bowl hangover loss. This matchup will also be a perfect opportunity to see what the newly retooled Bengals defense will look like this season in a game against a below-average offense.
Pittsburgh Steelers Look to Compete With Mitch Trubuisky at Starting Quarterback
Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers having one of the worst quarterback rooms in the NFL, they are still a solid and well-rounded team for the most part. They have one of the top running backs in the league in Najee Harris who will be the focal point of the offense this season. Along with this, they have a very solid offensive line to block for him. No matter who is under center for the Steelers this season, they will have a plethora of reliable weapons around them. In week one, Mitch Trubisky will be taking over as the starting quarterback. Trubuisky has had a rough stint in the NFL up to this point after being a first-round pick to the Chicago Bears. After backing up and learning from Josh Allen on the Buffalo Bills, Trubuisky hopes to take what he has learned and establish himself as a quality starting quarterback.
