Steelers hope to force young McCarron into mistakes
PITTSBURGH – First impressions often can be lasting. But the Steelers might not know what the Cincinnati Bengals have in quarterback A.J. McCarron despite playing against him last month.
McCarron was thrown into that Dec. 13 game, a 33-20 Pittsburgh win, after Cincinnati starting quarterback Andy Dalton suffered a fractured right thumb tackling defensive lineman Stephon Tuitt following an interception on the Bengals’ first possession.
The second-year quarterback performed reasonably well given the circumstances, completing 22 of 32 passes for 280 yards and two touchdowns, but also threw two costly interceptions, including one that was returned for a score early in the third quarter by Steelers cornerback William Gay.
McCarron has started the last three games for the Bengals (12-4) and will do so again when Cincinnati hosts the Steelers (10-6) in an AFC Wild Card game Saturday night at Paul Brown Stadium.
McCarron will be attempting to become the first quarterback with fewer than four career starts to win a postseason game since Gifford Nielsen for Houston against San Diego in 1979. To do that, McCarron will have to protect the football.
McCarron did not throw an interception in his three starts, though he did have a costly fumble on a mishandled snap in an overtime loss to Denver.
“He’s done a really good job of not turning the football over,” said Cincinnati offensive coordinator Hue Jackson. “In that game we had two turnovers, and that led to our demise. That put our defense in a tough spot. We had an interception returned for a touchdown. I think if we take care of the football, we have a chance to make good things happen.”
The Bengals have helped McCarron by not asking him to do too much. In the two games Cincinnati won with him at quarterback – against San Francisco and Baltimore – he attempted 21 and 27 passes. In the games in which he’s had the majority of playing time and the Bengals lost – against the Steelers and Broncos – he has passed 32 and 37 times.
“They’ve done a good job of kind of maintaining the clock with the running game and throwing when they need to to A.J. (Green) and the tight end (Tyler Eifert),” said Steelers cornerback Brandon Boykin. “They’ve got weapons everywhere. We’ve got to try to eliminate the run and not let them dictate the game and tempo.”
While Pittsburgh has been respectable against opposing rushing attacks, ranking fifth in the league in yards against (91.2) and sixth in yards per carry (3.8), the pass defense has been atrocious. The Steelers finished 30th in pass defense and gave up 29 touchdown passes.
Pittsburgh has made up for that by relying heavily on takeways. When the Steelers get at least one takeaway, they are 10-2. When they have failed to force a turnover, they’re 0-4.
But will the turnover-conscious Bengals trust McCarron to test Pittsburgh’s defense?
The Bengals have relied on running backs Jeremy Hill and Giovanni Bernard since Dalton’s injury. In McCarron’s starts, the Bengals have attempted 96 rushes and 81 passes. And 17 of those pass attempts have gone to Bernard or Hill.
Green, Cincinnati’s leading receiver, has only 10 catches for 128 yards with McCarron as the starter. Last month against the Steelers, he had six receptions for 132 yards, including a 66-yard touchdown catch.
“I think he’s just been taking what he’s been given,” Boykin said. “In the game we played him, we played a lot of zone and he was able to find the seams. We have to eliminate that this week. I’m sure they’ve seen film on what we’ve given up and they’ll be trying to do what they can do.”
Why wouldn’t they?
“Ultimately, we have to stop the run first to get them in third-and-long situations,” said linebacker Arthur Moats. “That would put the pressure back on him. Lately, Cincinnati has been doing a great job running the ball, so he is in favorable third-down matchups. He can take those chances when they are there. Any time you get a young guy, and you are able to get him in third-and-long, mix up the looks, I feel like we will be able to have a lot of success.”