The Worksheet, a fantasy football overview by Rich Hribar, breaking down everything you need to know for the Week 12 Pittsburgh Steelers vs Cincinnati Bengals Sunday afternoon game on November 24, 2019 at 1 pm ET.
PittsburghRank@CincinnatiRank
-6.5Spread6.5
22.75Implied Total16.25
2024Points/Gm14.730
20.213Points All./Gm27.628
58.630Plays/Gm64.711
66.728Opp. Plays/Gm64.120
38.9%20Rush%32.8%31
61.1%13Pass%67.2%2
42.1%24Opp. Rush %52.4%32
57.9%9Opp. Pass %47.6%1
  • The Steelers have won eight straight games against the Bengals, matching their longest winning streak in this rivalry. 
  • Pittsburgh is tied for second in the league in sack differential (+19) while the Bengals are 31st (-22).
  • Ryan Finley is averaging 13.4 passing yards per drive, 44th out of 45 qualifying quarterbacks. Andy Dalton was averaging 25.9 passing yards per possessions, ninth of the same group.
  • The Bengals have allowed opponents to score on 53.5% of their possessions at home this season, the highest rate in the league.
  • Pittsburgh has scored on 18.4% (9-of-49) of their possessions on the road this season, the lowest rate in the league.
  • The Steelers are 31st in rate of runs that fail to gain any yardage (25.0%) while the Bengals are 30th (24.2%).
  • Mason Rudolph is averaging 7.78 yards per pass attempt when kept clean as opposed to 3.14 Y/A under pressure. That 4.65 Y/A drop is the largest gap is the largest in the league.

On the Cusp (proxy of a player’s average)

  • Joe Mixon: Mixon has at least 17 fantasy points in each of his past three games with 21, 32, and 16 touches in those games. He’s gone over 100 yards from scrimmage in back-to-back games for the first time this season. He’s still had more than two receptions in just two of his past eight games. Mixon had just 63 yards on 19 touches when these teams last played in Week 4 while the Steelers are ninth in rushing points allowed (11.3) and eighth in receiving points (8.9) allowed per game to backfields. That said, it’s hard to run away from the touches Mixon has been getting as an RB2 option. 

Bust (down-week production for that player’s standards)

  • Bengals Passing Game: We can make this real easy here. The Bengals have scored 23 points total the past two weeks under Ryan Finley and have scored 17 or fewer points in five straight games. They may not even score here and managed just three points when these teams played in Week 4, with just 175 yards of total offense. That was with Andy Dalton under center. The Steelers are second in the league in pressure rate (30.3%) and registered eight sacks in that Week 4 game. Under Finley, Bengals wideouts have combined for 16 receptions for 163 yards and zero touchdowns.

If You Must (intriguing bench option or deeper league play) 

  • Steelers RBs: Early in the week, we don’t have a strong idea if James Conner will be available this week. If Conner plays, then he’s starting, but if he’s held out, then we should see both Jaylen Samuels and Benny Snell involved against a Bengals defense that is 29th in yards from scrimmage allowed to backfields (162.5). Samuels has 48 touches the past three games with Conner playing just one quarter while Edmunds has 24. Samuels has been largely ineffective running the ball (27 carries for 65 yards) over that span, but has 21 receptions for 103 yards. When these teams last played in Week 4, the Steelers only ran for 66 yards, but their backs totaled 209 total yards on 38 touches, with Samuels having 18 touches for 83 yards. 
  • Steelers WRs: James Washington and Diontae Johnson will benefit from the absence of JuJu Smith-Schuster and his 18.6% target share while Johnny Holton will get extra work. Washington has had the hotter hand, catching 13-of-16 targets for 208 yards and a touchdown over the past three weeks, but Johnson posted a 6-77-1 line when these teams last played. Both are upside FLEX options.
  • Vance McDonald: McDonald has been a top-20 tight end in just two games this season, but with all of the potential injuries to the Pittsburgh receiving corps, he could see a target influx this week against a Bengals defense that 26th in yardage allowed per game (59.5) to tight ends.
  • Mason Rudolph: Rudolph is horrible against pressure, but the Bengals are 27th in the league in pressure rate. His lone QB1 scoring week this season came against the Bengals (16.9 points) where he threw for a season-high 8.2 yards per pass attempt. If both Smith-Schuster and Johnson are out, then he still takes a step of faith to use outside of 2QB formats.

More Week 12 Fantasy breakdowns from The Worksheet:

IND at HOU | MIA at CLE | CAR at NO | NYG at CHI | OAK at NYJ | PIT at CIN | DET at WAS | SEA at PHI | TB at ATL | DEN at BUF | JAX at TEN | DAL at NE | GB at SF | BAL at LAR