Cincinnati Bengals Face MUST-WIN on Thursday Night Football vs Pittsburgh Steelers

If you’re interested in hope for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2025, that Thursday night football game in a couple of days sure is important. You are Locked On Bengals, your daily Cincinnati Bengals podcast, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. What up Bengals fans and welcome to another episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast part of the lockdown podcast network your team every day. I’m Jake Liscoco. He’s James Rene and we are your hosts of the Lockdown Bengals podcast bringing you onestop shopping for all your Bengals news and analysis on the internet since 2016 here on Lockdown Bengals. Welcome back to the everydays. Welcome back to those of you who make us your first listen. We appreciate all of you with great listening habits even though the Bengals are enduring a rough season to put it lightly so far. But there are some of you out there that would like to be hopeful. There’s some optimists listening to this show James Renee and we’re going to talk about a little bit of hope today. We’re gonna recognize, I think, the pessimists as well out there and in that camp because there’s a whole lot of Bengals fans, James, that are just done that are sick of hearing about the team’s aspirations for this year and how they’re trying to keep it afloat. And and I think that in an episode like this one where we’re going to talk about the importance of the Thursday night football game as it pertains to the Bengals hopes for 2025, I think that both perspectives will probably come up a little bit. Today’s episode is brought to you by Game Time. You can get tickets with the Game Time app and save $20 on your first purchase with promo code locked on NFL. $20 off your first purchase in the Game Time app with promo code locked on NFL. And James, the Bengals are two and four. They’re a few games back in the AFC North. The Steelers 4- one having had their buy, but they’re one and0 in the division. They’re two and one in the AFC. They’re losing a lot of games against NFC opponents, which obviously isn’t good. They’ve lost four straight. Obviously isn’t good. But if they’re interested in getting back into the race when the Browns are one and five and the Ravens are one and five and the Steelers are the primary competition in the AC North right now, taking a game off the Steelers would go a long way. It’s a game of the year. I It’s It’s the game of the year. You I would trade a loss at Lambo 10 times out of 10 for a win on Thursday night. And so for them to play better on offense in the second half, obviously the defense needs to be better, but if that offense comes out and and starts where they left off in Lambo, well then they have a shot to beat the Steelers, and they need to beat the Steelers. If they beat the Steelers, then they’re right back in it. They they really are. And if they lose, then I’m going to agree with everybody that says, “All right, well, that’s it.” because even if you win the next two weeks after that going into the buy, you’re four and five and you beat a bad Jets team that doesn’t have a win as of now and a Bears team that yeah, they had a nice Monday night win, but overall I I don’t think anyone’s buying Super Bowl tickets in in Chicago. So this this is such a huge swing game for this franchise and this is why you go get Joe Flacco. He’s 11 and 11 in the regular season as a starter against the Steelers. Jake Browning has gotten his butt whooped by the Steelers in in two games. And so you get Joe Flacco so you can keep your season alive by winning on Thursday night on a short week when he’s been in town for nine days. Like like that’s that’s really the reality. I mean, he’s going to play two games in nine days since being traded and you needed to get that Pittsburgh game. You had the tuneup, so to speak, on the road against Green Bay. And there’s going to be plenty of Steelers fans in the crowd on Thursday night. So it’s not like it’s going to be quiet. They they need to win this this game. This is a kitchen sink game. If I’m Zack Taylor, Dan Pitcher, Al Golden, leave no stone unturned because you you have to find a way. Darren Simmons. So, I I don’t care if it’s fakes. I don’t care if it’s a flea flicker where you’re actually blocking correctly. I don’t care what it is. You need to pull out every single stop, every single thing, every single rabbit out of a hat. Ryan Finley scramble. Ryan Finley Finley keeper on the RPO to beat the Steelers because if you do well that postgame show is going to feel a lot different than if they fought a two and five and and the Steelers gain another game on them and this team loses their fifth straight game without Joe Burrow. You’re saying run pass option or sorry read option Joe Flacco Joe Flacco keeper 40 yard touchdown if if if that’s what’s going to work you know you might need to get him one of those airport walkways and put that on the field and then maybe he maybe he gets there but I it really this is for all the dialogue all the discussion all of the negativity and a lot of it rightfully deserved and criticism rightfully deserved you can get right back in it if you win on Thursday night. If you don’t, then I I think the conversation in the dialogue and the the discourse on this podcast and really throughout Bengalum is going to change very much. So much hinges on when Joe Burrow is going to get back. We just have no idea, right? And so without that knowledge, if you’re the Bengals, you have to approach it like he’s going to get back as soon as possible. And if he’s going to get back as soon as possible, then that’s why you trade for Joe Flacco and try to win games. I I I think that that has to be their approach. I don’t see that they have a choice. But when when you point out the way Jake Browning played against the Steelers the last time he had an opportunity to start for this team and Joe Flacco’s career playing against the Steelers and the the chasm separating the success rate of those guys kind of puts into perspective Mike Tomlin’s comments from Monday. Mike Tomlin’s like picking at Andrew Barry and saying, “I don’t understand what Cleveland’s doing, trading a quarterback to a division rival that’s struggling at quarterback.” And then you think about how he must have been so looking forward to a couple weeks ago, another shot at Jake Browning after the way Browning played against them in 2023. And then the comparison of oh yeah, no, Flaco like was figuring some things out over the course of that game. Looks like he can read a defense. Looks like he can throw with anticipation. looks like he can be a guy that’s not going to melt down when things get a little bit muddy around him. How different that must be for for the Steelers and preparing. And look, I I don’t expect Joe Flacco to go out there and be amazing. We might have seen his best game as a Bengal in the second half against the Green Bay Packers. That is possible. Could he go out and play better than that? Also possible. I’m just trying to kind of talk about where expectations should be for Flaco. He hadn’t played well before he got to Cincinnati. He played great in the second half, but he gives you a shot that Jake Browning didn’t give you. So, that remains true. And I just thought it was interesting when you pointed out how how how Browning played against the Steelers versus how Flacco’s played against the Steelers for his entire career and and put that into context with Mike Tomlin’s comments. Well, when you hear Mike Tomlin’s comments, those that doubted the the Joe Flacco move or poo pooed it, it shows that the Bengals got it right because Mike Tomlin’s like, “What what the hell are you doing giving new life to a division rival that was dead in the water that was having quarterback issues? The quarterback couldn’t couldn’t move the ball, couldn’t utilize the the strength of the team.” And so, yeah, I think it’s very much a what did you guys do? Now, I’m not saying Mike Tomlin’s scared of Joe Flacco, but it gives the Bengals a competent quarterback, someone that can get the ball to their weapons, and it makes them far more dangerous than before. Far more dangerous than they looked in three games with Jake Browning starting, and and they need that to continue. You’re right. I mean, it’s not like this is Joe Burrow. It’s not like this is a Pro Bowl quarterback, but when you go from what they got for three weeks to competent level quarterback play there, there’s reason to me. There’s reason to buy in. If Joe Flacco goes out there, plays well, and they find a way to get a win. Then it’s like, all right, well, they just beat a good team. The Steelers are a good team. Now, the NFL is weird, but you’re going to look up and the Steelers are probably going to have nine wins again. They’re 4- one. They win ugly. I’m not saying they’re perfect. I’m not saying that Aaron Rogers is great or that that this team is a Super Bowl contender. That’s not what I’m saying. But if you’re going to dig yourself out of a two and four hole, it probably starts with beating the the team that leads the division by multiple games. And the the entire AFC North, Jake, is going to be rooting for the Bengals on Thursday night. Because if you’re Lamar Jackson and the Ravens, you probably Lamar probably thinks he’s going to rally that team, but it’s going to be really hard to rally if the the Steelers improve to five- one and move to to four games ahead of the Ravens. If the the Bengals can pull the Steelers back to the pack a little bit, it gives really the entire AFC North outside of Cleveland because there’s really no hope for them to to win the division. But for the the Ravens and the Bengals, it would give them some renewed life. The Ravens are really getting a taste of what the Bengals went through in 2024. The way that defense is playing. Like even if Lamar gets back, that defense for the Ravens has been such a problem and has so many injuries right now to boot. They’re they’re kind of experiencing a little bit of what the Bengals went through last year. Let’s continue this conversation, James, about the ideas of hope and what the Bengals can realistically be hoping for, how important this game is. Thursday Night Football, a chance to try to get back on the rails a little bit for a season that’s really off the rails right now for the Bengals. Coming up next, today’s show is brought to you by FanDuel. 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I’m Cody Ror from Lockdown Broncos and this episode is brought to you by Pelaton. Pelaton is shaping the future of fitness with the brand new Pelaton crossraining tread plus powered by Pelaton IQ. This is Pelaton’s most advanced equipment yet, giving you realtime guidance and endless ways to move. Whether you’re running, lifting, or you’re crossraining with your favorite instructors like Alex Tusant, it’s training reimagined to make your workout more personal. Pelaton is built for breakthroughs. With features that help you plan, stay motivated, and hit peak performance. You can let yourself run, lift, flex, and go while Pelaton handles all the rest. Plus, Pelaton IQ provides real time strength coaching, tracking your progress and suggesting weights that challenge you so you can get stronger. Plus, the new movement tracking camera. It counts your reps and corrects your form in real time, making sure every rep is safer and smarter. So let yourself run, lift, flex, push, and go. Explore the new Pelaton crossraining tread plus at onepelon.com. Jake, this has a chance to be season saving, honestly. I mean, that that’s that’s where it’s at, and that’s how I view it. Like if you get away to win with the upcoming schedule, you you there’s renewed hope and a realistic chance that you could go into the buy with a winning record. And that would be something. Not everything, and I’m not saying that would still happen, but uh this is the toughest game I think of the three that they have between now and the buy. It’s the Steelers on a short week, then you have the Jets, and then the Bears before the by-week. The NFL this year isn’t good. You talk about this idea the Steelers are a good team and I think people that have been listening for a long time know that my standard for a good team is a little bit different from your standard for a good team. For me, you’re either good or you’re bad. And if you’re good, that means you’re a Super Bowl contender. If you’re bad, it means you’re not. Then there’s the horrible teams that just are halfless on any given Sunday. Um and and this year doesn’t really seem like there’s a runaway good team in the first third or so of the season that we’re through. Six games through the season. The Colts are five and one. The Buccaneers are 5- one. I’m not buying either of those teams as strong Super Bowl contenders. At least not yet. Maybe they convince me later. The Steelers are four-1. Not buying them as a strong Super Bowl contender. Those are the three teams in football with the best winning percentage this year. You get to the back of the NFL and there are some really really bad teams in the NFL right now. And right now I would say the Bengals are among them and and that includes the Titans and the Browns and the Saints and the Jets and the Dolphins. And right now the Ravens, although when Lamar Jackson gets back, maybe that changes for the Ravens and they work their way back to the middle of the pack. But right now, until the Bengals prove otherwise, they’re one of those really, really bad teams in the NFL. You want to start proving otherwise, you go beat one of those middle of the pack teams. The Pittsburgh Steelers 4- one. And who are the Pittsburgh Steelers beaten? The Jets, the Browns, two of their wins. Two terrible teams. Unambiguously terrible teams this year so far. They also beat the Vikings and they beat the Patriots. The Patriots turning out to be one of those middle of the pack teams. Lost to the Seahawks pretty badly. Seahawks might be a decent team. So, it’s not like the the Steelers are out there beating anyone that’s particularly good. And you look around the league, you look last uh Monday night is kind of a extreme example this year of parody and any given Sunday mentality. That’s where I’m going with this is to me there there’s no great separator in the NFL this year. There’s some teams that look halfless like I said and the Bengals need to show us that they’re not going to be one of those teams all season long and getting a win this week starts that. But if they do get the win this week and then they play one of those halfless teams in the Jets, you can build a little bit of momentum going into that Bears game, the third game of a three threeame home stand going into the buy. And if you can build a little bit of momentum, show that you’re in fact one of the any given Sunday teams and not one of the get-Right teams, which is what they have been too much in the early part of this season, then you can start to buy in. Even if you’re one of those that’s totally dismissed hope, if you win those three and has to start this week, not trying to get too far ahead and show that you’re you can be in any given Sunday team, well then at least people are interested in the games on Sunday. At least you’re you’re thinking realistically they have a chance to win every time they take the field. And that’s that’s what we’re going to learn Thursday because if they are one of those teams, you’re right, the the Steelers have talent, but they’re not this unbeatable juggernaut. Our version of good is different. There’s plenty of good teams that aren’t Super Bowl contenders, but you feel differently. That’s fine. But the the bottom line is it’s just a definitional difference. I I understand where you’re coming from, too. It’s just a funny thing that I pointed out. Yeah. No, I know. But if the Steelers get to 5-1, they’re going to win the division. They’re going to win the division unless something catastrophic happens because they’re going to just have such a big lead that it’s not going to matter how good they are because they’re going to walk into a few more wins and then they’ll look up and they’ll be good enough. That’s probably what’s going to happen. Maybe not. Maybe the Ravens hit this this turbo jet button and the the Steelers stubb their toe a bunch after this week, but that’s probably not going to be the case. And if you get off to too much of a head start, no one’s going to catch you. And so it’s a big game for the Steelers from that perspective because I think it could be a potential knockout blow in the division just because of where everybody else is. But for the Bengals, it it would give them life and it would give them a chance to kind of lick their wounds on the mini buy, catch their breath and and try to make a push here before the buy. And then if you do that, guess who you have coming out of the buy? You get the Steelers again. You get a chance to make up that ground. It’s not like three and four versus four and two feels like you’re all that close, but you get the Steelers twice in a month and you’ll be well rested and it’ll be your first road game since Green Bay. And and that’s it. That’s the that’s the path here. That’s the the place they’ve put them themselves in position. And I guarantee you internally that’s what the Bengals are thinking. But it has to start now. And that’s where the pressure comes from because if it doesn’t start Thursday night, you’re you’re giving it’s too big of a a canyon between you and the Steelers. And that really is the path as bad as the AFC is. And and I you’re right there there there certainly aren’t many great teams. I don’t know if there are any great teams right now. you you have to feel like if you get a win and you get to three and four and you’re one-on-one with Joe Flacco and you’re competitive against Green Bay and you have this big road or big division win against the number one team in your division, it’s like, all right, well, we hit the reset button. We’ve rebounded here and we have a shot. And I do think the Bengals felt that way last week in the locker room. I think the players and coaches felt that way. nothing that happened in Green Bay I knocked their confidence or change that confidence. So now it’s time to prove it. They got to go out there and prove it. This is the the the time. They can’t wait any longer. It can’t be, oh well, the offense was was solid and the defense was solid, but we came up short. You can’t come up short. And and so we’ll see if and I know they know that, but they’re going to have to go out there and show it. That’s what I think a lot of people have been looking for. And and that’s where like th those people out there and I know you’re out there that are in the comments like why are you guys pedaling hope? Why are you guys talking about this team like they’re not going to be competing for one of the top picks in the draft instead of competing in NFL games? Because that’s not any NFL team’s approach obviously and and maybe they go out and get their teeth kicked in. Maybe they can’t hang with the Steelers and the pass rush that the Steelers present and Joe Flacco just can’t deal with the pressure after the Bengals dealt with Green Bay and Micah Parsons pretty well last week. Found ways to get to the quick game effectively. Maybe that’s the case. Maybe the Bengals just don’t generate any pass rush of their own for old man Aaron Rogers on the other side. And what maybe Trey Hendrickson doesn’t get back this week is it’s now a hip injury on the official injury report apparently instead of a back injury and they just don’t have enough guns on defense to deal with whatever the Steelers throw at them. DK Mechaf, Aaron Rogers, tight ends and and we’ll get to all those topics in the crossover tomorrow as as that’ll serve as your game preview this week on the short week. But they still have a lot of season left and this is a team that we’ve seen time and time again get themselves into early holes before they figure it out. There’s no Joe Burrow to save them right now, but this is a team that’s been able to figure things out over the years and maybe they don’t this year, but there’s still a chance that they do. And to James’ point, if it’s going to matter, needs to start this week. Maybe they go get some help too on the coaching staff. Some consulting help. Do it. Let’s get to some Callahan ideas to finish a show coming up next. 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Again, that’s promo code L O C K D O N. Locked on NFL for $20 off. Swipe, tap, ticket, go. Download Game Time today. James, the Tennessee Titans made a move at head coach, dismissing Brian Callahan from his head coaching duties. his father, Bill Callahan, deciding that he will depart the team with Brian. And tough situation for Brian Callahan with the Titans. They fire the GM. They keep him around. They go get a quarterback and the team just isn’t very good. Nothing really worked out for for Cali in Tennessee. And you know, feel for him losing that opportunity. But from a Bengals perspective, which Callahan do you call first? If you’re Zack Taylor, if you’re Duke Tobin, if you’re Mike Fra, if you’re Scott Peters, whi which Callahan are you interested in? Or or is it just both that you’re interested in bringing along to to get some consulting help in some capacity with the Bengals for the rest of the year? I mean, if you’re Scott Peters, as much as I don’t know if Scott Peters once spoke Calhana anywhere near Pacore, even though they’re familiar with each other and work together in Cleveland, I don’t it’s it’s potentially a replacement, right? But I I get your point and we could go down the list there. I’m being nitpicky. The Bengals should be interested in both of them. This is a team that hasn’t scored a touchdown in the first half in four straight weeks. I hear a lot of people trying to tarnish what Brian Callahan did here and and pretend that his head coaching and what he’s done as a head coach has anything to do with what he did as an offensive coordinator with the Bengals. The Bengals best seasons of the Joe Burrow era were with Brian Callahan. And that to me acting like he couldn’t help in some way is ridiculous. Now you’re right, he’s not going to come in and just suddenly be the offensive coordinator. That’s Dan Pitcher’s job. He’s not going to come in and be the quarterback’s coach. That’s Brad Craigthor’s job. Both of those guys, by the way, were on the the staffs that went to the Super Bowl in the FC Championship game. So, is it a consulting role? Probably. But, am I totally open to Brian Callahan coming back to Cincinnati? I am. The Bengals should be. I think he should be. I think it makes a ton of sense. Now, the reason I started with him is because I know that there’s push back on social media and people are trying to rewrite history because he didn’t work out in Tennessee. tough situation. Not sure if they’ve ever gotten if they’ve gotten the right quarterback anyway. And uh Zack Taylor was in a similar situation here. The difference is you had Joe Burrow and everyone knew that he was really good and Joe Burrow believed in Zack. It’s a big difference um between the two situations and and the GM and all those things. Doesn’t matter. It’s irrelevant to to what he could potentially bring to this offense. Uh, but Bill Callahan has to be the priority here. And maybe that’s a package deal. If it is, the Bengals shouldn’t flinch at it. They shouldn’t care. They should be all in on it because Bill Callahan is arguably the best offensive line coach in the NFL. We’ve talked about the offensive line being a problem. You say it on every show now. We’ve been around since 2016. The Bengals offensive line has been an issue since 2016. It’s been literally uh during that season when locked on Bengals debuted, the offensive line uh was in shuffle mode and has been problematic at some point or another throughout uh the nine plus years that we’ve been here. That’s why you go get Bill Calahan. And there’s ties to the Bengals through Zack Taylor. He coached Zack Taylor at Nebraska. This is something that the Bengals kicked the tires on in 2020. Zack Taylor’s a bit too loyal to Jim Turner. They should have just hired Bill then. He goes to a division rival. We’ve seen what the Browns have done in the trenches over the past five years. It worked. And uh I would I would do anything to get Bill Callahan within reason. And that includes move on from Scott Peters. I don’t think you’ll have to do that. I think that’s not something that you would need to do because of the the history Scott Peters coached with Callahan in Cleveland. You could work that out. But however you need to get Bill Callahan in the building, get him in the building because he’s going to help you in a key area that you need to to develop some of these young guys. You would hope you would hope. I mean, maybe not. You never know if a coaching hire is actually going to make a difference. Obviously, that’s the caveat that you always throw out there. But like on paper, it makes a whole lot of sense to reunite Scott Peters with Bill Callahan, which were the best years for that Cleveland offensive line in recent history when those guys were developing players together and Bill was doing his thing with the the scheme and and the run game in particular as if the Bengals run game couldn’t use a little shot in the arm and and Bill Callahan couldn’t help you with that. And it didn’t go great for Bill Callahan in Tennessee. JC Laam didn’t develop the way you wanted to see him develop, but and I mean, even in their most recent game, they had issues with free runners and getting protections set, right? And and how much of that is Bill Callahan versus the the rest of what was going on with that team? I I I don’t know. I don’t know what you would be asking, you know, Brian to do if you were to bring him back in a consulting capacity, but I think it would be pretty clear uh what what Bill’s role would be. you know, maybe Brian Callahan’s there to help around the edges, help you find little marginal improvements where his expertise can can come in handy. He obviously has a great collaborative relationship in terms of the history of working with Dan Pitcher and Zack Taylor and and this Bengals offense during his time in Cincinnati, but from a Bill Callahan perspective, I mean, the the results when he was with Scott Peters in Cleveland were really really good. Yep. And I’m not saying you can reproduce that. The the the players are different. The structure around the Bengals now versus the structure around those guys when they were in Cleveland is different. The the scouting staff is different. All these things. But all it cost you is a little bit of money. And it’s not my money. So I guess that’s easy to say. But if you’re the Bengals and you’re trying to do everything you can to win, that shouldn’t really be an issue for you either to try to get one of these guys or both of these guys in a consulting capacity. Yeah, it money better not be an issue. Like like if we find out like if there’s a report that like because there’s going to be a bunch of teams interested, right? That oh well, Bill Callahan had options and was really interested in reuniting with Zack Taylor, but what you call it team X offered more. Well, I will crush the Bengals. I will because this isn’t just a move for this year, just to be clear. Like you bring Bill in like even if it is only for the rest of the season to try to keep him around long term and maybe it’s to see how it goes and then you go from there, whatever. But get him in the building. Now, maybe he just wants to kick it on the beach and breathe and and and be a grandpa and Brian just wants to catch his breath and not jump back into coaching. And they they very well could feel that way and that’s fine. But if they coach again this year, the Bengals should be knocking knocking knocking knocking knocking knocking and doing everything they can to get him in stripes, get them in stripes because I do think if you call Bill, it would naturally involve Brian. And I’m totally fine with that. And like I said, I think it’s kind of ridiculous how people have on social media, and it’s probably a minority, but it I I just want to make it clear, Brian was a really good head coach here, or a really good coach here, and just because he didn’t have success as a head coach, who cares? No. No one’s saying bring him in to be Zack’s successor. Saying bring him in to help the offense. It’s Yeah, he he didn’t have a great time in Tennessee. You can’t rewrite that history either. And sometimes that can derail things for guys. But my impression of Brian Callahan has always been that he has a great head on his shoulders, really understands what he’s talking about when it comes to offensive football. Uh we’ve always found him to be an insightful coach to talk to as well. Obviously, we had him as a guest several times when he was the offensive coordinator for the Bengals. So, we’ll we’ll see what shakes out there. Maybe he just doesn’t want to be around football for a little bit. That sometimes happens when when guys lose head coaching jobs. they take a little bit of break of a break and then emerge a year later. We’ll see if that’s the case. Maybe that’s what Brian wants to do. Uh but I don’t I don’t see how it hurts, right? That that’s kind of the the perspective from from my end. It’s not very often you get a an opportunity to reconnect with coaches that you have a relationship with that exists that one of them in particular knows your processes extremely well in Brian Callahan. the other one, many connections between Bill and and Zach and this coaching staff, Scott Peters. So, those guys having worked together before, it’s a it’s a rare opportunity in season to potentially add some brain power to your coaching staff. If Bill was available in January when Frank Pilot got fired, that would have been the only name we mentioned. We would have mentioned one name and we would have said, “Go get him and that’s it.” Like for me, I mean, it would have been open, shut, get it done. You played for him at Nebraska, Zach. You have the relationship. You wanted to hire him in the past. Deep down, it didn’t work out. Fine. Let’s write this wrong. And maybe it’s a little clunkier now because it’s October, but it’s still the right decision. And so, however you got to get there, get there. Will it happen? Like you said, they they may want to be on a beach somewhere. If so, Brian, call me because I would love to go to the beach and we can have a few cocktails. If not, uh, then get your butt back in Cincinnati and let’s, uh, let’s see if y’all can help help this offense. Is a beach water park still a thing in Cincinnati? Nah, it’s close. Oh, I was going to make a beach in Cincinnati. Joe can’t do it. RIP the beach because you’re from Canada. I’m just kidding. I know. You’re going to confuse all the people again. I know. Yeah, they’re going to be like, “Ah, that Canadian Jake.” That’s going to do it for this episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast. The crossover serves as your game preview this week with Thursday Night Football. That will be next with Christopher Carter from the Lockdown Steelers podcast. Until then, thanks for listening to this episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast. Good day and have a good

The Bengals have to beat the Steelers on Thursday night to realistically keep their season alive. Joe Flacco and the Bengals need to snap their losing streak, beat Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers and get back in the AFC North race.

James Rapien and Jake Liscow discuss the significance of the matchup, what a win would mean versus a loss, plus thoughts on the possibility of Brian Callahan and Bill Callahan potentially joining Zac Taylor’s coaching staff.

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12 comments
  1. U know wast crazy n as funny as this may sound we always have bad beginning n get it right every damn time only difference this time we won 2 games Bac to Bac but if u think about it the first 2 months be these record

  2. Pittsburgh will score 34 or more and Bengals will be lucky to score 21, so it's goodnight playoffs… and hello top 5 draft pick. Bengals just need to roll over and play dead so that they have a better shot at the top 5 draft pick for 2026. Why else do you think the damn Browns gave Bengals a good QB? To position themselves higher in the draft… duh.

  3. Huh? Pittsburgh beat Minnesota. Who destroyed the Bengals. They beat N.E. Who is in first place in their division, and has a win over Buffalo. They beat the Browns, much worse than the Bengals beat the Browns. The Bengals have a win over the Browns, courtesy of the Browns' kicker missing an extra point and not being able to kick a chip shot of a field goal. I'm not sure I'd denigrate Pittsburgh's record so far.

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