The Steelers’ Week 10 trip to Cincinnati comes with the answer staring them right in the face: slow down Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, or risk getting burned again.
Pittsburgh already handled the Bengals once at home in Week 3, and a win on Sunday Night Football would complete the sweep. But the same problem that wrecked the Steelers’ defense the first time around is still the biggest threat now, and it starts with Cincinnati’s two-star receiver tandem.
Chase and Higgins were already one of the NFL’s most dangerous pairings before the 2026 season, and they’re tracking toward something no receiver duo has ever done. If their first-half pace holds over a 17-game season, they would become the first pair on the same team in the same year to top 100 catches, 1,300 yards and 12 touchdowns.
That kind of production is rare enough from one wideout. The Bengals have two of them.
The first meeting showed exactly why that matters. Cincinnati’s offense carved up Pittsburgh’s secondary, with both Chase and Higgins going for at least 90 yards and a touchdown.
Joe Burrow leaned on them heavily, targeting the duo 19 times and completing 15 passes for 188 yards and two scores. His passer rating when throwing to Chase and Higgins against the Steelers in Week 3 was 142.9.
That kind of night can’t repeat if Pittsburgh wants to leave Cincinnati with a win and stay atop the AFC North race.
There was also a clear adjustment point in that first game. Cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. was pulled after giving up 61 yards and two touchdown catches, and rookie Daylen Everette stepped in and allowed just 22 yards on 20 coverage snaps the rest of the way, according to Pro Football Focus’s premium stats. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Graham turn to Everette earlier this time.
Even that won’t be enough unless the Steelers can get to Burrow. They don’t need to shut Chase and Higgins out entirely - nobody does that - but they do need to make the pocket uncomfortable and keep Burrow from working at full rhythm.
The task is simple to say and hard to do: contain the Bengals’ receivers, pressure Burrow, and survive long enough to take control of the game. If Pittsburgh can do that, it can walk out of Cincinnati with a Week 10 win and a head-to-head tiebreaker that could matter later if the two teams finish with the same record in 2026.
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