Aaron Rodgers isn’t sweating the loss to the Bengals

Thursday night did not go as planned Pittsburgh Steelers. Fans expected to see the usual: Pittsburgh beating their division rivals the Cincinnati Bengals. With Cincinnati struggling the last four weeks and Pittsburgh in the game, the other team was the clear favorite to win.

Instead, Steelers fans got a different vintage experience: the Joe Flacco experience. The Bengals quarterback has been in a fight Aaron Rodgers in the oldest KB game in NFL history. In the end, Flacco’s Bengals came out on top, as Pittsburgh lost for just the second time this season.

Despite the loss, Rodgers isn’t too worried. The Steelers quarterback knows full well that divisional games are unpredictable, and that they won’t get carried away by just one loss.

“We had a chance to really open up some space, but we’re 4-2, we’re still No. 1 in the division, we’ve got home games coming up, another chance Sunday night against my former team,” Rodgers said, per Brooke Pryor . “I’m not going to ride the roller coaster, and I know Mike isn’t. I hope you follow suit.”

Rodgers played out of his mind in the The Bengals-Steelers matchup affectionately dubbed the “Icy Hot Bowl” by fans. The veteran running back completed 23 of 31 pass attempts, throwing for 249 yards on the night. Rodgers threw four touchdowns and two interceptions, both in the second quarter.

The Steelers also had an effective ground game, with leading back Jalen Warren gaining 127 yards. So why did the Steelers lose? Well, their defense just couldn’t stop Flacco and the Bengals. Pittsburgh’s defense allowed a combined 142 rushing yards to Chase Brown and Samaje Perine. Their pass defense was much worse: Ja’Marr Chase had 16 catches for 161 yards, while Tee Higgins had 96 yards on 6 catches.

Overall, Flacco finished the game with 31 completions on 47 attempts, throwing for 342 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. After Higgins managed to set the Bengals up for a field goal, Rodgers attempted a vintage Hail Mary to save the Steelers. The pass reached the end zone but was brought down by a Bengals defender.

Now, the Steelers have a long week before they face a familiar foe for Rodgers. The Green Bay Packers visit Pittsburgh during Week 8 of the season. Rodgers and the Steelers will try to reset to prepare for that game.