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NFL fans were in for a real treat on “Thursday Night Football,” as the Cincinnati Bengals snapped their three-game losing streak with a thrilling 31-30 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers at home.
The Bengals, desperate for a win after starting the season 2-0, are now 3-4, while the Steelers fall to 4-2 on the year.
And while they may be past their prime, Aaron Rodgers and Joe Flacco put on a show like it was the early 2010s in Cincinnati.
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Joe Flacco of the Cincinnati Bengals throws a pass against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first quarter of the game at Paycor Stadium on October 16, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
It started with Rodgers, who seems to have gotten better every week with the Steelers in his debut season. He needed just eight plays to go 69 yards and score a touchdown to tight end Jonnu Smith from 10 yards out, as he scrambled, inspected and threw a strike to his man to take a seven-point lead.
For Flacco, success didn’t come immediately in his home debut with the Bengals, as they were forced to punt twice. But the third possession saw the boost Bengals fans have been desperate for since Flacco was traded from the Cleveland Browns to relieve Jake Browning of his starting duties.
Flacco went 10 plays and 72 yards where he found Ja’Marr Chase on one of many passes, this one for an eight-yard touchdown to make the score 10-7.
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Then, Cincinnati’s defense immediately rallied as the momentum shifted to the home team. Jordan Battle intercepted Rodgers on an incredible play, snatching the ball out of DK Metcalf’s hands and staying inbounds as he did so. Flacco took advantage of that opportunity and found Tee Higgins, who ran through several Steelers defenders for a 29-yard touchdown.
Rodgers would be taken out again on the next drive, and the Bengals were able to kick a field goal before the end of the first half to head into the locker room with a surprising 17-10 lead.
If the first half wasn’t wild enough, the second half blew the doors off their primetime divisional fight. There were five consecutive scoring drives, including three straight touchdown drives, with Flacco finding Noah Fant and Rodgers using his tight ends Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington to make the game 27-24.
Aaron Rodgers of the Pittsburgh Steelers throws a pass against the Cincinnati Bengals during the first quarter of the game at Paycor Stadium on October 16, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
The Bengals were able to give Evan McPherson a field goal attempt, which he buried to move their lead to 30-24, but Rodgers had a chance late in the fourth quarter to give his team a chance to take the lead they had been chasing since the first quarter.
With 2:21 left on the clock, Rodgers escaped the pressure and his eyes lit up when he saw Freiermuth alone on the field and threw him a pass that was caught and off to the races. Freiermuth went 68 yards to tie the game and the extra point was good to give Pittsburgh the 31-30 lead.
But was it too quick a score for the Steelers considering how Flacco and the Bengals offense were playing? You bet.
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Flacco dissected the Steelers defense once again with a seven-play drive that was capped by a perfectly placed 28-yard pass to Higgins, who smartly slipped into the red zone to waste time and allow McPherson a chance to score the field goal. He made it from 36 yards out and the Paycor Stadium crowd was in a frenzy when they finally got back into the win column.
Looking at the box score, Chase broke his own franchise record for most receptions in a single game, catching 16 of his 23 targets from Flacco for 161 yards and his touchdown. Those 23 targets were, by a mile, the most any player has had all season in the NFL.
Higgins also added 96 yards with his touchdown on six receptions, while Chase Brown finally got the running game he wanted with 108 yards on 11 carries after struggling through the first six games.
Ja’Marr Chase of the Cincinnati Bengals celebrates after a touchdown during a Pittsburgh Steelers NFL football game at Paycor Stadium on October 16, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Flacco finished an incredible 31-of-47 for 342 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. As for Rodgers, his patented Hail Mary didn’t work in the end. He was 23 of 34 for 249 yards with four touchdown passes and two interceptions.
Jaylen Warren had 127 rushing yards and 31 passing yards on four receptions, while Freiermuth had his big game this season with 111 yards on five receptions.
