W2L4: How Joe Flacco Can Beat Aaron Rodgers in ‘Icy Hot’ Bowl in Thursday Night Football

Steelers (4-1) at Bengals (2-4) Thursday, Oct. 16 at Paycor Stadium (Field Turf CORE), 8:15 p.m. ET, TV: Prime Video: Locally WCPO-TV Ch. 9 (Cincinnati) Al Michaels (PBP), Kirk Herbstreit (analyst), Kaylee Hartung (sideline). Radio: Dan Hoard, Dave Lapham. 700 WLW AM, WEBN-FM (102.7 FM), ESPN1530. National: Westwood One: John Sadak (PBP) and Ross Tucker (analyst).

CINCINNATI — Get your Icy Hot ready.

For just the fourth time in NFL history, two quarterbacks at least 40 years of age will square off against each other when 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers visit 40-year-old Joe Flacco and the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday night in Cincinnati.

The only previous three times occurred in 2020, when 41-year-old Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints beat 43-year-old Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers twice in the regular season and once in the playoffs. This particular matchup has been dubbed the “Icy Hot” Bowl by Pittsburgh defensive tackle Cam Heyward.

Flacco could have had the opportunity last week if he had not been traded from Cleveland to Cincinnati on Oct. 7. Flacco made four starts for the Browns before being benched in Week 5.

“It’s one thing (the media) can’t talk about this week in terms of me being older, at least, but it’s pretty neat,” Flacco joked on Tuesday. “Aaron’s been in the league a few years longer than me, but we both started playing in 2008, so doing it for a long time. It’s pretty cool.”

The Bengals (2-4) enter desperate for a win in the start of a three-game homestand that they hope will kickstart their season after four straight losses, including Sunday’s 27-18 set back at Lambeau Field.

The Steelers (4-1), coming off a 23-9 home win over Cleveland, are in prime position to run away with the division if they can claim the road win in Cincinnati, a place they’ve recorded three straight wins dating back to 2021. Overall, the Steelers have won 13 of their last 15 meetings with the Bengals in Cincinnati, with the only two breaks in the streak coming in 2020 and ’21.

In Sunday’s win over Cleveland, Rodgers continued his early season roll with the Steelers, completing 21-of-30 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns without a sack or turnover.

Since losing star quarterback Joe Burrow to left big toe surgery just two games into the season, the Bengals have been winless in three starts by Jake Browning and Flacco’s debut last week in Green Bay, just five days after being acquired in a trade from Cleveland.

In his first start since the trade with Cleveland, Flacco completed 29 of 45 passes for 219 yards and two TDs with no turnovers. Both touchdowns against Green Bay came on fourth down.

While the offense started slowly at Lambeau Field in a first half which saw Green Bay outgain Cincinnati by 175 yards, the Bengals’ defense was able to limit the Packers in the red zone and keep the halftime deficit at 10-0. Flacco opened the third quarter by directing a season-long 17-play scoring drive, and the unit managed to find a consistent rhythm over the final two periods.

“I thought as an offense, we settled in probably sometime in the second quarter,” said Flacco. “I thought we were able to get over the hump in that quarter, but we came out and played a good second half. Usually, playing against a good football team, playing one good half isn’t going to be good enough, but we gave ourselves a chance at the end. I think we did some good things, but just not enough early on.”

Flacco’s quick adaptation to the Cincinnati offense caught the attention of Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, who directed some sarcasm on Monday at Cleveland general manager Andrew Berry for trading Flacco to a division rival that was “hurting.”

“It’s reasonable to expect him to be significantly better in Week 2,” Tomlin said of Flacco. “He’s been in the stadium with them. They’ve been in the stadium with him. They understand his demeanor, how he deals with circumstances. I would imagine they worked hard a week ago on developing timing and cohesion.”

The Bengals will closely monitor the availability of three key players. Leading pass rusher Trey Hendrickson suffered a back contusion and left in the final minute of the first half Sunday at Green Bay and did not return. Tight end Mike Gesicki suffered a pectoral injury in the first half and did not return and starting right tackle Amarius Mims sustained an ankle injury and came out in the fourth quarter.

The Bengals are expected to get a key piece of their defense back as rookie first round defensive end Shemar Stewart is expected to play after missing the last four games with an ankle injury, according to defensive coordinator Al Golden.

For the Steelers, safety Miles Killebrew suffered a knee injury in Sunday’s win over Cleveland and may not be available Thursday. Wide receiver Calvin Austin is fighting through a shoulder injury while linebacker Malik Harrison was cleared to begin practicing off the injured list.

Cincinnati now not only faces a short week of preparation, but heads into a crucial game in the race for the AFC North Division title. Pittsburgh enters Thursday night riding a three-game winning streak, and at 4-1 on the year, the Steelers have a chance to extend their lead in the divisional standings. For the second-place Bengals, a win in front of their home crowd would not only close the gap in the AFC North, but also provide a much-needed spark as they approach the midpoint of the season.

“You don’t have a lot of time to lick your wounds here,” said Taylor after the loss at Green Bay. “It’s more of a mental week this week, but what a tremendous opportunity. Look at where our division is at. What a tremendous opportunity to go get the team that’s leading it right now, in our first opportunity at home in prime time. They’ve got a short week. We’ve got a short week. It’s a fair playing field. They’re going to come in here with a lot of confidence, obviously, with the way that they’ve won their games. We’re going to find a way to get up for it and do everything we can to find a win.”

Thursday night also marks the return of Cincinnati’s “White Bengal” uniform combination, as the team will pair its primary white uniform, white pants and white socks with the fan-favorite alternate white helmet. The Bengals have worn the white helmet five times since its introduction in 2022, and collected a 4-1 record in those games.

The series: The Steelers lead 71-40 overall, including 2-0 in postseason. The two postseason games both were Steelers wins in Wild Card round contests at Paycor Stadium (formerly named Paul Brown Stadium), after the 2005 and ’15 seasons.

The Bengals have played more games against the Steelers (111) than any other foe. Cleveland is second in that category at 104, and Tennessee (formerly Houston Oilers) is third at 80.

Here’s what to look for:

• When the Bengals have the ball:

The Bengals finally showed signs of a functional offense in the second half against Green Bay. Most of their inability to move the ball in the first half could be written off to Joe Flacco learning the Bengals offense and Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. But their offense truly woke up on the first drive of the second half, when the Bengals committed to running ball for the first time since the season’s first drive in Cleveland. Can the Bengals get Chase Brown going from the start of the game against the Steelers front? That would go a long way toward neutralizing Alex Highsmith, T.J. Watt and Heyward. Also, keep a close eye on Noah Fant. The tight end needs to be activated in the Bengals offense with Mike Gesicki (pectoral) on IR and Tanner Hudson out in concussion protocol. Fant has just 16 catches for 107 yards, and a touchdown in six games. Jalen Ramsey vs. Ja’Marr Chase should be worth watching all night.

• When the Steelers have the ball:

With Aaron Rodgers, the Steelers are not an explosive offense but they are functional and patient. They have a dynamic receiver in DK Metcalf, who can make big catches in space, run through tackles and outrun the defense. He’s the most explosive weapon the Steelers have, and Aaron Rodgers still has the arm to get it to him downfield. The Steelers run 12 personnel, meaning they have a base offense of one running back and two tight ends. The Steelers will use all four tight ends. Pat Freiermuth has been a Bengal-killer over the last three seasons, including 14 catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns in two games last season and nine catches for 120 yards in 2023. Jaylen Warren is the feature back, with Kenneth Gainwell also getting a significant share of the workload. The Bengals need to tackle much better than blowing 19 tackles last Sunday in Green Bay.

• Bottom Line:

This is the last chance for the Bengals to truly save their season. If the Bengals can win this game, they’re 3-4 with a chance to rest over the mini-bye and get right at home against the Jets and Bears. Pittsburgh is not a powerhouse and if the Bengals can find a way to finally play complementary football and not overwork its young defense. Give Joe Flacco a running attack and then give him a chance to work the ball around the field, and the Bengals should be able to take some shots downfield against the Steeler secondary. This game could turn into a shootout between two former Super Bowl MVP quarterbacks. The Bengals should enter with more urgency.

Bengals 27, Steelers 24