Game Info
Kickoff: Sunday, November 26th @ 1:00 PM ET
Location: Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio
Betting Odds: PIT -1, 34.5 total via PFF.com
Network: CBS
Writer: Matthew Cava (@cavaM_ on Twitter/X)
Pittsburgh Steelers
Quarterback
Kenny Pickett (Sit)
The Steelers have been able to overcome poor play by Kenny Pickett this season, but couldn’t do so in the 13-10 loss to the Browns this past week. Pickett completed 15 of 28 attempts for 106 scoreless yards. Funny enough, despite not throwing an interception since Week 4, he’s not doing much else with the ball. He owns a 6:4 passing touchdown-to-INT ratio through 10 games, and remains on your waiver wire. And that’s even with the news that broke Tuesday morning that OC Matt Canada was fired.
Running Backs
Najee Harris (Start, FLEX), Jaylen Warren (Start, RB2)
Entering Week 11, Najee Harris had been consistent, averaging 15.1 full-PPR points per game since Week 7. However, he laid a stinker against Cleveland, turning 12 carries into 35 scoreless yards, which was good for only 4.6 fantasy points. His counterpart, Jaylen Warren, has become the best Pittsburgh playmaker this season. He had just nine carries against the Browns, but turned them into 129 yards and a touchdown, catching all three of his targets for 16 yards in the process.
While Harris is still involved, Warren is the Pittsburgh ‘back you expect to have a bigger impact.
Wide Receivers/Tight End
Diontae Johnson (Start if you must, WR3), George Pickens (Sit), Pat Freiermuth (Sit)
Given the QB woes that don’t appear to getting any better, Diontae Johnson – despite the target share – is losing his value as the weeks move forward. Against the Browns, he caught just two of eight targets for 16 yards. Not to mention, the Steelers are leaning much more on their run game as of late, swaying Johnson toward the WR3 radar.
Because of Pickett, George Pickens has been demoted to your bench, as he’s just not a very consistent option in this offense.
Pat Freiermuth returned to action from his hamstring injury, but was a non-factor, catching his lone target for 7 yards. He’s no longer a worthy stream at this point in time.
Cincinnati Bengals
Quarterback
Jake Browning (Sit)
The Jake Browning era is upon us in Cincinnati, with Joe Burrow ruled out for the remainder of the season with a wrist injury (torn ligament) suffered last Thursday against Baltimore. This loss not only sinks the Bengals season, but essentially the season of their pass-catchers as well.
In short, Browning doesn’t hold any fantasy value.
Running Back
Joe Mixon (Start, RB2)
Joe Mixon was on the receiving end of what would become Burrow’s last touchdown of the season prior to exiting the game. Any manufactured Mixon touch is going to be easy to spot out with Browning under center, but the Steelers’ run defense has been favorable to opposing ‘backs, so let’s keep Mixon on the RB2 radar until further notice. Entering Week 12, the Steelers are allowing the 13th-most fantasy points to opposing RBs this season.
Wide Receivers/Tight End
Ja’Marr Chase (Start, WR3), Tee Higgins (Start, FLEX if you must), Tyler Boyd (Sit), Irv Smith Jr. (Sit)
As mentioned earlier, the Cincy WRs will be tough to trust going forward given their situation at quarterback. Even with the Steelers having a leaky pass defense, Ja’Marr Chase still may very well see a high target share. But it’s left to be seen how productive he can be with Browning throwing him the ball. Based on our site’s projection threshold, brace for Chase to finish as a WR3 this week (10-15 points). The plus side is, the Steelers are allowing the ninth-most fantasy points to opposing WRs this season.
At the time of writing, it’s unclear whether or not Tee Higgins is set to return to action after his hamstring injury, but even if he is, I would be hard-pressed to want to rely on him a great deal.
If Higgins does return, Tyler Boyd will revert back to the WR3 pecking order in this offense, and regardless, without Burrow, his outlook is bleak.
Tanner Hudson has been involved more over the last few weeks, even with Irv Smith Jr. and Drew Sample healthy. Since Week 9, Hudson has 14 receptions on 16 targets for 127 (scoreless) yards. That said, none of the Cincy TEs possess consistent streaming value for fantasy.