Andy Dalton’s cast comes off, still likely he won’t start

The Steelers defense is significantly better than it was in the first half of the season, so, again, this battle against the Pittsburgh secondary is one Green should and will have to dominate.

Just after coming in and relieving an injured Andy Dalton in last month’s Bengals’ home loss to the Steelers, McCarron caught up with Roethlisberger on the field and told him about their meeting.

The Bengals and Steelers kick off at 7:30 p.m. CST Saturday in an AFC playoff game that will be televised on CBS.

It sets the stage for a juicy rubber match of a series that was split this season and the only intra-divisional playoff matchup in the first round.

“I think the number one thing he has proven is he is capable of calling and executing their offense”, said Tomlin. “We definitely come to work this week and get ready to go”.

Bill Cowher: “Given his health…A.J”.

McCarron is preparing to start his fourth straight game in Dalton’s place.

It’s not been announced yet whether Dalton will be cleared to play Saturday, or if he is cleared, whether he will start.

McCarron was a lot better in the past three games.

If/when that happens, it will add another interesting chapter to the quarterbacks’ relationship-one that goes back more than a decade.

Things wrapped up this week on The #1 Cochran Ben Roethlisberger Show with Ben sharing with us the message he’ll deliver to his teammates right before kickoff Saturday night. Their goal has to be to make Cincinnati one-dimensional. McCarron also expressed that he did not feel he took good care of the football the last time he faced the Steelers as the backup.

The Bengals were on the rise in 2005 when they hosted the Steelers in the wild-card round.

After starting out 8-0, the Bengals went. But unlike Cincinnati, Baltimore also has a Super Bowl title in that time frame. I think the guys coach each other in terms of the approach in terms of pursuit of the football, not pursing behind the same colored jersey. The Steelers have worked on putting together a shot at a seventh by withstanding the loss of Bell, center Maurkice Pouncey, left tackle Kelvin Beachum and four-plus games without Roethlisberger. The losses to Houston, Arizona, and Denver were by a total of about 10 points. That a spot in the playoffs – any spot really – is all they required to prove they were as good as the sum of their considerably talented if occasionally erratic parts. Getting Tyler Eifert back is going to be big and they have so many weapons. They’ve got confidence and momentum, which are important assets this time of year. “The biggest question for them is at the quarterback position”. This is a great group of guys we have; guys want to win games. The Red Rifle had his cast removed yesterday, but that does not necessarily mean that he will be able to play anytime soon. Who the Bengals need to watch is tight end Heath Miller. After averaging 15.1 yards per reception in an excellent but injury-impeded 2014 campaign, Green has matched that 15.1 average this season.