The Bengals are starting to fade fast as they have lost three of their last four games.  They are now 1-5 against teams over .500 this year.  The Texans have won six games in a row as they are rolling along right now.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Bengals have the ball:  The Bengals are likely going to try to be run heavy this weekend in an attempt to protect rookie QB Andy Dalton a little bit, as he has struggled lately.  Cedric Benson is likely in for a heavy workload against a Texans’ D that is allowing only 90.7 yards rushing per game, but 4.2 yards per carry.  The Texans have 35 sacks and 17 interceptions so far this year as their defense has been awesome against the pass.  The Texans will likely give safety help over the top on A.J. Green, so he could have a long day.  The good news is the TE Jermaine Gresham, WR Jerome Simpson and WR Andre Caldwell will likely have one on one matchups all over the field.

When the Texans have the ball:  The Bengals have a sturdy run defense as they are only allowing 96.3 yards rushing per game and 3.6 yards per carry so far this year.  They are going to go all out to stop RBs Arian Foster and Ben Tate in an attempt to put pressure on rookie QB T.J. Yates and his right arm.  WR Jacoby Jones will be taking over at WR for Andre Johnson (hamstring) and he’s a deep threat, but he’s not too consistent.  TEs Joel Dreessen, Owen Daniels, RB Arian Foster and WR Kevin Walter are the other guys Yates will be throwing to and none of them scare the Bengals’ D.

PREDICTION:  TEXANS 17, BENGALS 10

The Bengals don’t call on 27-year old RB Brian Leonard too much, but when they do, he always seems to make a big play.  Leonard has played in all 12 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has carried the ball 17 times for 85 yards (5.0 ypc).  He also has caught 20 passes for 191 yards (9.6 avg) so far this year for the Bengals.  Leonard has now played in 37 games in his first three years with the Bengals and he has carried the ball 53 times for 230 yards (4.3 ypc).  He has also caught 70 passes for 545 yards (7.8 avg) with 1 TD grab with the Bengals.  Brian Leonard is the Bengals’ secret weapon and he is the perfect #3 RB.

The Bengals have signed 25-year old DT Nick Hayden.  Hayden played in 14 games for the Panthers last year and he had 31 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 pass defensed.  He has now played in 26 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 51 tackles, 2 sacks,  3 tackles for a loss and 1 pass defensed.  Hayden will essentially replace Pat Sims, who was placed on I.R. to open up a roster space for him.

The Bengals have placed 26-year old DT Pat Sims on the Injured Reserve List, ending his season due to a severe ankle injury.  Sims played in 11 games for the Bengals this year and he had 20 tackles, 1 sack and 1 tackle for a loss.  He has now played in 52 games in his first four years with the Bengals and he has 121 tackles, 5 sacks, 6 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  The Bengals will likely miss Sims some as he has been a solid backup tackle.

23-year old DT Geno Atkins has really played solid football so far this year for the Bengals.  Atkins has played in 12 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has 34 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 3 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 3 passes defensed.  It seems like he’s always in the opposing backfield.  Atkins has now played in 28 games in his first two years with the Bengals and he has 50 tackles, 9.5 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 4 passes defensed.  The Bengals hope that Atkins continues to be a force in the middle of the field for them the rest of this year and in the future.

The Bengals couldn’t get much going against the Steelers today in Pittsburgh.  Andy Dalton only completed 11 of 24 passes for 135 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  Bruce Gradkowski finished up this game by completing 3 of 6 passes for 17 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT.  Cedric Benson led the way on the ground for the Bengals with 52 yards rushing on 13 carries (4.0 ypc).  Bernard Scott pitched in with 30 yards rushing on 5 carries (6.0 ypc) today.  WR A.J. Green led the way in the passing game for the Bengals today with 6 grabs for 87 yards (14.5 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He also carried the ball 1 time for 15 yards for the Bengals in this game.  TE Jermaine Gresham (3 rec, 37 yards) and RB Brian Leonard (4 rec, 20 yards) also pitched in for the Bengals in the passing game.  The Bengals finished up with 104 yards rushing on 22 carries (4.7 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 30 passes (46.7%) for 128 yards as they had possession of the ball for 27:16.

The Bengals gave up 28 points in the second quarter today, but it all wasn’t the defenses fault.  The Bengals gave up a 60-yard Antonio Brown TD return on a punt right before halftime.  Brandon Tate also lost a fumble in the second quarter that set up the Steelers for another TD.  CB Kelly Jennings led the way for the Bengals on D in this game with 7 tackles.  LB Rey Maualuga (6 tackles), safety Reggie Nelson (6 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 QB hit) and OLB Manny Lawson (6 tackles) also pitched in for the Bengals defensively today.  The Steelers finished up with 136 yards rushing on 33 carries (4.1 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 23 passes (65.2%) for 159 yards today.  The Bengals are now 7-5 on the season.

The Cincinnati Bengals bounced back last weekend against the Browns, after losing tough games to the Ravens and Steelers the two previous weeks.  The Steelers have won two games in a row and six of their last 7 games.  The Steelers beat the Bengals three weeks ago in Cincinnati.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Bengals have the ball:  The Bengals are probably going to try to remain balanced on offense against the Steelers this weekend in Pittsburgh.  Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott will be trying to power through the Steelers’ offense in this game.  The Steelers’ are giving up 96.3 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry so far this year, so the Bengals might have success if they stick with the running game.  Andy Dalton should be able to attack the Steelers down the field as long as he has time to throw the ball.  The Bengals’ O-Line has been pretty solid so far this year as Bengals’ QBs have only been sacked 17 times so far this year.  WR A.J. Green is back healthy for this game, which will give the Bengals the gamebreaking WR they might need this weekend.

When the Steelers have the ball:  The Bengals’ front seven should be able to handle the vastly overrated Rashard Mendenhall this Sunday in Pittsburgh.  The Bengals are only giving up 92.7 yards rushing per game and 3.5 yards per carry so far this year.  Ben Roethlisberger looked shaky last week with his broken thumb and he got it dinged in practice again.  Every time the Bengals get near him Sunday, they should be grabbing and slapping at his thumb.  His passes were sailing a lot last weekend, so the secondary is going to have a lot of shots to make big plays this Sunday.

PREDICTION:  BENGALS 23, STEELERS 20