The Bengals found a way to make Sunday’s loss to the Steelers feel even messier, and the final snap said plenty about how the night went. Joe Burrow was sacked for the only time in the game, coughed up the ball, and Pittsburgh’s Sabastian Joseph-Day came away with the recovery to end it.
That sequence officially sealed the result, but it also sparked a small pile-up moment that caught Dalton Risner’s attention. The right guard, who was charged with the sack, said he had a clear look at the play and knew Joseph-Day had the ball and was down with contact. Still, what happened in the scrum afterward left him raving about tight end Erick All’s effort.
“Erick All comes running from downfield and finds a little crevice in that pile and literally jumps in there,” Risner said. “After about two minutes of being on the ground, he comes up with the football, bro.
Like Erick was the last person on that pile, somehow managed to get in there and take it from a defensive tackle. And that’s just who he is; I love that guy.”
All and Tanner Hudson both acted as if the Bengals had recovered the ball, and the play went to review to sort out the recovery. In the end, the Steelers kept it. But even with the outcome settled, All’s charge into the pile gave the Bengals one last flash of fight on a day when they gave away too much elsewhere - special teams mistakes that handed Pittsburgh 10 points, a defense that couldn’t get enough pressure or stop the run, and then the final turnover that closed the door.
In Other News...
Bengals Legend Blames One Reckless Decision For Steelers Loss
The Bengals loss to the Steelers has been picked apart from plenty of angles, but T.J. Houshmandzadeh zeroed in on one third-quarter sequence he changed the feel of the game. Speaking on the Speakeasy podcast, the former Cincinnati receiver blamed the decision to try to block a punt, a gamble that instead produced a roughing the kicker penalty and handed Pittsburgh a fresh break in a tight spot.
Houshmandzadeh called the call reckless, arguing that the odds of successfully blocking a punt in the NFL are so slim that the risk rarely justifies the reward. That backdrop matters because blocked punts remain one of the leagues rarest plays, with only 59 since 2020, which only sharpens the scrutiny on a decision that left the Bengals paying for a mistake rather than cashing in on one. [Read more 🡒]
Bengals Face A Stretch That Could Change Everything Before Madrid
The Bengals Week 3 loss to the Steelers only sharpened the focus on what comes next, because the road before the trip to Madrid looks like the kind of stretch that can define a season. Cincinnati is staring at a run of games against the Jaguars, Dolphins, Ravens and Titans, a mix that tests everything from pass rush and coverage to the ability to stay steady while injuries and coaching decisions continue to shape the week-to-week outlook.
Jacksonville and Miami bring their own challenges, while Baltimore always raises the stakes for Cincinnati in a division race that leaves little margin for error. Tennessee can be a different kind of test, but the bigger question is whether the Bengals can use this stretch to reset their footing before the spotlight shifts overseas, or whether the issues that surfaced against Pittsburgh keep following them into October. [Read more 🡒]
Bengals Secondary Injuries Just Opened A Real Opportunity At Nickel
The Bengals secondary came out of Week 3 in a rough spot, and the ripple effects go beyond the safety room. Bryan Cook and Kyle Dugger are both banged up, Jalen Davis has landed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, and Cincinnati has already added two safeties as it tries to keep the back end stable. That leaves a real opening at nickel, where the next man up is suddenly more than a camp body.
Bralyn Lux is the name worth watching, especially after earning a place on the practice squad as an undrafted free agent. The Bengals like his coverage ability and the way he tackles, two traits that matter even more when the middle of the defense is being stretched thin. Whether he gets the call now or later, the door is open for Lux to turn an injury crunch into a genuine role. [Read more 🡒]