3 under-the-radar Bengals who must contribute vs. Steelers in Week 3

The Cincinnati Bengals have a chance to grab an important divisional win in Week 3 against their rival foe, the Pittsburgh Steelers. Being on the road, Cincinnati has a big challenge on their hand this week.

Getting a tough road win in the NFL requires both key pieces and unexpected players to have good performances. The Bengals will look for several under-the-radar players to step up in a big way versus the Steelers.

Nearly every successful franchise out there has the unsung heroes perform on a week-to-week basis. Some elite players in the NFL can efficiently do the stuff most do not want to do, making them the ultimate team player. For instance, a tight end that can help in pass protection or a nose tackle that eats up blocks.  Not every player has flashy appeal-like stars, such as Tyreek Hill or Jalen Ramsey.

With that said, Cincinnati certainly has some underrated contributors through two weeks of action. Here are three specific under-the-radar Bengals who have to step up against the Steelers.

Under-the-radar Bengals vs. Steelers – No. 3: Mike Hilton

Even though Ben Roethlisberger’s recent pass rating has been quite average at 83.7, the Bengals still have a lot to worry about in stopping Pittsburgh’s passing attack. The Steelers have a great receiving trio with JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and Chase Claypool, and some solid tight ends in Eric Ebron and Pat Freiermuth. Also, don’t sleep on the rookie back Najee Harris’ ability to be a receiving threat.

Due to so many good weapons in the passing game, slowing down the Steelers’ offense still remains a challenge. Cincinnati’s secondary will be directly challenged during Sunday’s battle with Pittsburgh.

Right now, who starts opposite of Chidobe Awuzie at cornerback is up in the air. Trae Waynes’ debut sounds like a real possibility this weekend, but it is not for sure. This still leaves the possibility that Eli Apple starts once again.

Even if Waynes does start, he could be on a limited snap count, or he could be rusty. Remember, Waynes has not played a regular-season game in nearly two years, chances are he has some inconsistencies.

Thankfully, Awuzie as basically a No.1 corner has worked well this season. Cincinnati will need their slot cornerback, Mike Hilton, to also play well against the Steelers. If the Bengals can feel comfortable with two of their three corners in Week 3, that makes things a lot easier for the defense.

Plus, the story of Hilton playing his former team creates some extra motivation for him. Hilton has played well through two weeks, he had a PFF grade of 73.6 vs. the Bears.

Right now, it feels like we know what we’re getting from Awuzie from week to week. Awuzie has trailed Justin Jefferson and Allen Robinson through two weeks, he performed well against both. Meanwhile, Hilton has quietly played above average this season. Hilton has not consistently seen a good receiver in the slot in two games, this week he will see that. How he plays against the great competition will be something to watch.

Furthermore, the slot becomes even more important when Roethlisberger has heavily targeted the slot in recent seasons. In the 2018 season, he had the fourth-most targets to the slot over the last four seasons at 280 targets. He could get back to that this season with his most experienced receiver in Smith-Schuster playing the slot on 67.3% of snaps.

Hilton has the chance to be targeted a lot on Sunday, he will look to lock up his former teammates.