When I decided to add a few NFL games to the slate this year based on road teams I had yet to see, I planned to see the Steelers take on their AFC North rivals in Baltimore in early November. When that game turned out to conflict with an upcoming trip to Japan, I chose the other AFC North team that always plays Pittsburgh tough. Not Cleveland (although they tied back in Week 1) but Cincinnati. The Bengals and Steelers usually play hard-hitting games that are close, and I wanted to experience one for myself. So I booked a same-day return trip on Frontier and headed back to Cincinnati for the first time since seeing the Jays there in 2014.
The airport that serves Cincinnati is CVG, which stands for Covington (Kentucky), the nearest city when the airport opened. It is about 20 minutes to downtown Cincy by taxi (slightly longer by an infrequent bus), but I recommend getting dropped off in Covington and walking across the Roebling Suspension Bridge (above). Not only do you avoid the worst of the traffic heading to the game, but also you get a good view of the stadium from the bridge (below). Many fans take advantage of the cheap parking in Covington and do the same, so you will have company on the walk across.
I did not have a ticket, so I went in search of scalpers as I neared the stadium. There was only a single guy, who had a great seat down low at midfield. Those are the most expensive seats, but they offer the worst viewpoint, so I moved on. No fans had an extra that I saw, and with kickoff approaching, I made my way to security. Once through, I bought a ticket online. Surprisingly there was no price drop as kickoff approached, so I just got the cheapest ticket available, knowing that I would not sit there.
Instead, I went to Section 148, where you can stand under the overhang or in an open aisle seat. A very light drizzle commenced around the same time as the game, so I moved back and forth for much of the first half. As you can see above, all fans stand in this area, so there is always room in an aisle seat or two and you can get quite close, as I did for the picture below.
The end zone is no different, with fans standing from start to finish. It can be tough for shorter people such as myself but, as many fans decide to stand elsewhere on the concourse, there are spots available in the seating bowl with a clear view.
At halftime, The Ohio State Marching Band performed, playing "Hang On Sloopy" and the drawing of the script Ohio, both of which drew loud cheers from those who had remained in their seats for the show.
When that was done, I moved upstairs for a different look. Taking the ramp, I didn't get there until the second-half kickoff. There is a canopy covering the top 10 or so rows, something to remember if you are attending a game where rain is in the forecast. Up here, fans stay seated as well, so it is quite a bit more comfortable, though as you can see below, far away.
Note how much closer the end zone seats are below. I simply prefer being close to the action, so after a couple of possessions, I raced back down the ramp to watch the rest of the game from the lower bowl.
I stopped briefly at the 200 level and snapped a picture there as well (below). There are a few sections on either side of the club seats that seem quite relaxed and again, fans are seated.
Overall, I was quite glad to get back to Paul Brown Stadium. I always prefer to see a venue twice, something that was not possible during my 2013 NFL trip. Even though I didn't have time to tour the whole stadium again, I was able to relax and enjoy what turned out to be a pretty good game.
The Game
The story here was how both teams scored late in the half, only to have the other team score even later. With 5:25 to go in the first half and the score tied at 7, the Steelers took possession on their 25 and marched the length of the field over 8 plays, culminating in a James Conner 1-yard touchdown, his second of the afternoon (Le'Veon Bell was not missed on this day as Conner ran for 111 yards). That left 1:07 on the clock, which was more than enough time, especially after the Bengals Alex Erickson ran the kickoff back to the Steeler 49 and a penalty added 5 more yards, Andy Dalton completed 5 consecutive passes, with the final one a 14-yard touchdown strike to Tyler Boyd, his second TD catch on the day that sent us to halftime tied at 14.
A Pittsburgh field goal accounted for the only points of the third quarter, and another late in the fourth gave them a 20-14 lead with 3:32 left. After a touchback, the Bengals started from their own 25 and ran 8 pass plays to get to the Steeler 11 with 1:24 to go. Another pass to A.J. Green gained 3 yards, but Green ran out of bounds to stop the clock. Big mistake as Pittsburgh did not have to burn a timeout. On the next play, Joe Mixon ran it in from the 4 (that is him celebrating above) and fans went nuts as the game was tied. The extra point was successful and Cincy had the lead, but there was still 1:18 remaining when Pittsburgh took over on their own 23 after the kickoff return. Ben Roethlisberger began the drive with a couple of short passes to JuJu Smith-Schuster but two incompletions brought up 3rd and 10. Another incompletion was called back on a defensive holding call on Dre Kirkpatrick, giving Pittsburgh a first down at their own 46 with 22 seconds left. Cincinnati still had the advantage, but a 23-yard completion to Smith-Schuster put the ball on the Bengal 31. Pittsburgh was in field goal range and called timeout, but ran another play first. Helped by an illegal pick that wasn't called, Roethlisberger connected with Antonio Brown who raced to the end zone to give Pittsburgh the lead with just 10 seconds left. The two-point convert failed, but again their was a Bengal penalty, and Pittsburgh succeeded on their second try to make it 28-21. That's the way it finished as Cincinnati couldn't pull off the miracle comeback, falling to 4-2 while Pittsburgh is now 3-2-1.
In the NFL, a minute at the end of a half can be an eternity. The rules, timeouts, and defensive paranoia allow for several small plays, and that was true in both halves in this game. Of course, Bengal fans think the illegal pick cost them the game, but the Steelers were in field goal range by then. I know it is counter-intuitive, but a bit more time wasting when the Bengals had the ball late would have helped. Then again, so would more defensive pressure on the Steelers final drive. Either way, clock management was not ideal at the end of either half, something that is all too common in the NFL these days.
Notes
Again I was fortunate to have clear skies when leaving New York, giving me a clear view of the entirety of Central Park...
...and Staten Island. Click on the pictures to see them in full size.
Next Up
I'll be in Japan from Wednesday and looking to see a few sporting events while I am there. The most interesting will be the Bledisloe Cup rugby match between Australia and New Zealand, but I also hope to see some soccer and baseball. Recaps will be posted here, so check back on occasion.
Best,
Sean
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