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Stealing the WC Round thread from ATL in hopes of better luck this year... 
(ignore the new avy... I lost a bet lol)
Injuries:
PIT... Obviously D-Will is the big name here. He's still listed as day-to-day. Hasn't tested the foot on the field yet, only in the training room. Martavis is dealing with a strained neck, but expected to suit up. JJ is also expected to play. No mention of AB's wrist so it must be a non-issue.
CIN... Dalton will likely suit up, but as a backup. His hand likely will not be ready by Saturday. This go-round we will see Eifert & Pacman Jones suiting up.
Analysis:
O... No secrets in this one... PIT's offense is, at the moment, looking very 1-dimensional without D-Will. They are preparing the tandem of Touissant & Todman, with W-Johnson as the emergency option. Haley will need to figure out a way to get the ground game established. That will put a lot of pressure on the O-line so hopefully they can rise to the task. If not, Haley could abandon the run game again like he did against BAL last January. In that event expect Cincy to role with nickel packages & drop the 2 safeties deep. You can guarantee that Cincy is going to gameplan against AB so they will need a lot of help from Bryant, Wheaton, DHB, & Miller. Bryant needs to "toughen up" as Ben put it. 2 catches for 6yds the past 2 weeks. I hope he accepts that challenge. If they can keep Ben upright and give him time, then the Cincy secondary will have their hands full. A-Vill & Gilbert are going to be tasked with a lot of 1-on-1 matchups so Wallace can get help inside. They have been doing a solid job with that, so let's hope for that to continue!
D... Handling McCarron won't be as easy as it sounds. He was able to carve up the Steeler secondary in garb time last time these teams faced off. But then again, who hasn't. I hope Butler commits to cover 2 earlier in this game. But with the safety blitzes he has been having success with we will see the cover 3. I only pray that someone keeps Blake off the field when they do that. Any time I see #41 out there i will be holding my breath. Maybe Butler is planning on unleashing Boykin this week as a surprise move. Doubtful, but I'll keep my fingers crossed. The pass rush has been doing well, albeit inconsistent.
Overall... I expect this team to play with a lot of passion this week. They seem to be highly motivated at the moment, so I don't expect to be disappointed. It's going to be another tough AFCN bout. There is a lot of bad blood between these 2 teams so we should see some fireworks Saturday night.
PIT 28 - CIN 20
GO STEELERS!!!!
(ignore the new avy... I lost a bet lol)
Injuries:
PIT... Obviously D-Will is the big name here. He's still listed as day-to-day. Hasn't tested the foot on the field yet, only in the training room. Martavis is dealing with a strained neck, but expected to suit up. JJ is also expected to play. No mention of AB's wrist so it must be a non-issue.
CIN... Dalton will likely suit up, but as a backup. His hand likely will not be ready by Saturday. This go-round we will see Eifert & Pacman Jones suiting up.
Analysis:
O... No secrets in this one... PIT's offense is, at the moment, looking very 1-dimensional without D-Will. They are preparing the tandem of Touissant & Todman, with W-Johnson as the emergency option. Haley will need to figure out a way to get the ground game established. That will put a lot of pressure on the O-line so hopefully they can rise to the task. If not, Haley could abandon the run game again like he did against BAL last January. In that event expect Cincy to role with nickel packages & drop the 2 safeties deep. You can guarantee that Cincy is going to gameplan against AB so they will need a lot of help from Bryant, Wheaton, DHB, & Miller. Bryant needs to "toughen up" as Ben put it. 2 catches for 6yds the past 2 weeks. I hope he accepts that challenge. If they can keep Ben upright and give him time, then the Cincy secondary will have their hands full. A-Vill & Gilbert are going to be tasked with a lot of 1-on-1 matchups so Wallace can get help inside. They have been doing a solid job with that, so let's hope for that to continue!
D... Handling McCarron won't be as easy as it sounds. He was able to carve up the Steeler secondary in garb time last time these teams faced off. But then again, who hasn't. I hope Butler commits to cover 2 earlier in this game. But with the safety blitzes he has been having success with we will see the cover 3. I only pray that someone keeps Blake off the field when they do that. Any time I see #41 out there i will be holding my breath. Maybe Butler is planning on unleashing Boykin this week as a surprise move. Doubtful, but I'll keep my fingers crossed. The pass rush has been doing well, albeit inconsistent.
Overall... I expect this team to play with a lot of passion this week. They seem to be highly motivated at the moment, so I don't expect to be disappointed. It's going to be another tough AFCN bout. There is a lot of bad blood between these 2 teams so we should see some fireworks Saturday night.
PIT 28 - CIN 20
GO STEELERS!!!!
