The Bengals’ fourth-quarter comeback attempt wasn’t quite enough, and the Steelers won 27-21. After a scoreless third quarter, the Steelers added a touchdown early in the fourth on a play in which Ben Roethlisberger handed off to former Indiana University quarterback Antwaan Randle El, who threw to Mike Wallace for the score. The Bengals added a 27-yard touchdown pass from Carson Palmer to Terrell Owens and, after a Roethlisberger interception and a series of penalties that moved the ball to the one-yard line, a one-yard touchdown run by Cedric Benson. But the Steelers managed to drain several minutes off the clock despite failing to score in their next drive, and they got the Bengals to turn the ball over on downs to effectively end the game with 34 seconds remaining. Close call.
Overall, Roethlisberger had an uneven game, going 17-for-27 with 163 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. Rashard Mendenhall rushed for 99 yards, and Wallace had 110 yards receiving to go along with a touchdown. Owens had 141 yards receiving and two touchdowns for Cincinnati.