Bengals, Steelers meet at Paycor for Sunday night clash with 1st place in the balance. What to watch

Bengals, Steelers meet at Paycor for Sunday night clash with 1st place in the balance. What to watch Advertisement Updated: 11:15 AM EST Nov 12, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ Fletcher Keel Digital Editor Bengals, Steelers meet at Paycor for Sunday night clash with 1st place in the balance. What to watch Updated: 11:15 AM EST Nov 12, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ Fletcher Keel Digital Editor CINCINNATI — The halfway point of the NFL season is upon us, and the Cincinnati Bengals are sitting in a good position as the back half of the campaign awaits. Having won four straight games, the Bengals are seeking revenge for one of their two blemishes on their 2026 record, when the Pittsburgh Steelers come to town for a Sunday night clash. Advertisement Pittsburgh handed Cincinnati its first loss of the season back in Week 3, when the Steelers won 30-27. After a convincing win in Madrid against the Atlanta Falcons last week, the Bengals moved into a tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers for first place in the AFC North, with both notching 6-2 records through the first half of the season. The stakes couldn't be higher for a midseason matchup, not that games between the Bengals and Steelers ever need extra fuel to fire either side up. Here are the biggest storylines ahead of kickoff Sunday. You can watch Sunday night's game on WLWT. Rolling With What You've Got With the NFL trade deadline having passed, most of the AFC contenders made moves to bolster their rosters as they prepare for a deep playoff run. However, there were two notable exceptions. Of the AFC teams that have won at least six games through the first nine weeks of the season, only the Bengals and Steelers didn't have a deadline deal announced , keeping their rosters intact for the home stretch. (Early Thursday morning, the Denver Broncos announced that a deal that had been officially announced, for Los Angeles Chargers' linebacker Daiyan Henley, was not going through, meaning they also didn't bring in a player after the trade deadline.) For the Bengals, that means moving forward with a slightly depleted defensive front with Cashius Howell still on injured reserve, and questions for Cincinnati's third level, with safety Kyle Dugger (quad) and cornerback DJ Turner (ankle) questionable ahead of Sunday. Likewise, Pittsburgh will move forward without shoring up their corps of defensive backs. As good as the Steelers' rush defense has been (more on that below), they've allowed 221.8 yards per game through the air, placing them in the middle of the pack in the NFL (16th). Pittsburgh also opted not to add to the wide receiver room, which has seen three players hit IR (Roman Wilson, Cole Burgess, Michael Pittman Jr.) and another miss significant time with injury (Ben Skowronek). Steelers' wide receivers account for just 48% of Pittsburgh's passing yards. After standing pat on Tuesday, they'll look to get more out of DK Metcalf and Germie Bernard as weapons to add to Aaron Rodgers' arsenal. Something's Gotta Give As rivals often are, the Bengals and Steelers enter Sunday's matchup as near perfect foils for each other. Through nine weeks, Cincinnati owns the league's seventh-best offense in terms of yards per game (371.1), the second-best scoring offense (30.0 points per game) and the best passing attack (285.5). On the flip side, the Steelers are the seventh-best defense (305.6 yards per game), the third-best rushing defense (83.9 ypg), and the fourth-best scoring defense (18.0 points per game). In the teams' first meeting in September, it was the Steelers who had the upper hand, holding the Bengals to 352 yards (269 of which came through the air) and 27 points, the third-fewest point total the Bengals have had this season. With the Steelers making their return trip to the Queen City, and the Bengals offense operating as one of the best in the NFL, Cincinnati will look to earn its revenge and keep Joe Burrow and company humming. Time to Shine It only took seven years, but Joe Burrow finally has what he's been asking for: A home primetime game against a division rival. Making his 86th start for the Bengals on Sunday, this week marks the first time in Burrow's career that he'll play an AFC North team at home under the lights. It's something he's made no secret about wanting, and now it comes with the highest possible stakes: Sole possession of first place in the division. Burrow, Bengals set for SNF game against Steelers: ‘Love playing in primetime’ “I love playing in primetime,” Burrow said. “Some guys would rather play at 1; I would rather play every game Sunday night, Monday night football. I want to be able to showcase what we do and how hard we work.” After the release of the 2025 schedule, Burrow lamented that the Bengals were getting a road primetime game in Baltimore for a fourth-straight year, saying it "isn't ideal." The NFL remedied that this year, too, with the Ravens coming to town on New Year's Eve Thursday night. Cincinnati did not get a single primetime home game last year, and had just one in 2024, a game they ultimately lost to the Washington Commanders, 38-33. That's the only time Burrow has lost in a primetime or standalone game at home since joining the NFL, including two Wild Card wins in the postseason. Make WLWT a preferred source on Google Add Preferred Source Share Infinite Scroll Enabled Top Picks Police: 1 killed, 4 injured in D.C. shooting; Suspect shot himself after police standoff Death toll rises to 8 in Brooklyn building collapse as rescuers dig through rubble Why are gas prices dropping and how low will they go? 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