A week and a half after arriving in Cincinnati, Joe Flacco has, for the moment, saved the Bengals’ season. The 40-year-old Flacco, in his second start for his sixth NFL team, threw for 342 yards and three touchdowns in a rollicking 33-31 win over the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers.

Ja’Marr Chase set a franchise record with 16 catches and finished with 161 yards and a touchdown, but it was Tee Higgins (six receptions, 96 receiving yards, one touchdown) who made the deciding play of the game, catching a deep pass from Flacco and sliding down instead of scoring late. After three Flacco kneel downs, Evan McPherson knocked through the game-winning 36-yard field goal.

The Bengals (3-4) weren’t officially out of the woods, as Aaron Rodgers — the king of the Hail Mary — made one last heave, but cornerback D.J. Ivey knocked the ball down near the goal line to seal the win.

The Steelers (4-2) took the opening drive and went right down the field, with Aaron Rodgers capping it with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith, and the Steelers made it 10-0 early in the second quarter.

Then the Bengals flipped the script in the blink of an eye. Flacco capped the ensuing drive with a beautiful 8-yarder to Chase, Jordan Battle intercepted an ill-advised deep ball from Rodgers into double coverage, and three plays later, Flacco found Higgins for a 29-yard catch and run.

DJ Turner II then made one of the best defensive plays of the year, ripping the ball away from DK Metcalf (with help from a big Geno Stone hit) for Rodgers’ second interception of the night, and McPherson knocked through a 49-yard field goal as time expired in the half.

The fireworks continued in the second half. Down 20-10, Rodgers ripped a beautiful 19-yard seam ball to Pat Freiermuth for a touchdown. Flacco answered right back with his own touchdown drive ending with a Noah Fant touchdown, but Rodgers responded with a touchdown pass of his own to Darnell Washington to make it 27-24, Cincinnati.

After a Bengals field goal, the teams exchanged punts — the only two punts of the second half — and Rodgers found Freiermuth for a 68-yard touchdown.

But Flacco, as it turned out, had the last laugh, and the Bengals have life.

Here are our takeaways from the game:

Joe Flacco, Aaron Rodgers put on a show

I mean, what more can we say about Joe Flacco that hasn’t been described already?! Flacco was precise and showed incredible chemistry with his wideouts, especially considering he’s only been on the team for just over a week.

Flacco certainly knows where his bread is buttered: He targeted Chase 23 times (tied for the second-most targets by a player this millennium) and targeted Higgins 10 times. But one of his best throws of the night was to Andrei Iosivas.

On this play, both Chase and Higgins were doubled. Flacco was decisive and accurate all night; he released the ball early when he could, stood strong in the pocket when needed to, and took just two sacks. He threw with anticipation on some long, out-breaking throws to Chase, but the touchdowns to Chase and Higgins were quick-release ones.

Chase now has 26 receptions over the past two games, both quarterbacked by Flacco.

“It’s honestly been amazing,” Chase told the broadcast postgame. “He comes in and [is] just throwing it. He’s giving me opportunities, and I can never tell a quarterback no at the end of the day. It’s been amazing.”

Chase is just an absolute superstar. He can win on every single route, he has incredible hand-eye coordination and body control, he runs hard after the catch … you don’t win receiving triple crowns by accident, and the Steelers’ cornerbacks were no match for his quickness and athleticism.

Rodgers was also terrific (outside of two plays, which we’ll get to), tossing four touchdown passes, all to tight ends. He’s just the second player in the last 10 years to have four touchdown passes to tight ends in a single game, joining Patrick Mahomes, who did it in 2022. The touchdowns to Freiermuth — one on a third and 18, one on a second and 20 — were terrific.

One would have thought the second one would be enough to win, but …

Steelers defense gets torched, and concerns arise

Flacco was awesome, and nothing can take away from that.

But this was a concerning performance from the Steelers’ defense, and not just against the pass. Chase Brown entered this game averaging 2.7 yards and a  single-game season-high of 47 yards.

Thursday, he ripped off 108 yards on 11 carries — that’s 9.8 per yards carry — and the Bengals finished with 142 yards on the ground. This previously dormant ground attack found wide open lanes to run through.

Darius Slay allowed five catches for 75 yards on six targets as the primary defender, Joey Porter Jr. was called for two pass interferences, and Ramsey got beat on the Chase touchdown.

The Steelers now rank 28th in yards per game allowed and 31st in passing yards per game allowed, and the pass rush has been just average. The defense has been excellent in the red zone, but that’s not always sustainable. There are questions to answer.

The final drive was the perfect encapsulation. The Steelers completely blew a coverage on an 18-yard Chase gain, and Higgins beat Ramsey for the 28-yarder that set up McPherson’s game winner. Cincinnati scored on seven of its final eight drives.

Bengals defense makes two plays, and that’s enough

The Bengals outgained the Steelers 470-386, but Pittsburgh averaged more yards per play and had a higher offensive success rate.

The difference proved to be two huge plays by the Cincinnati defense. First, it was Battle’s interception. Until that point, the Bengals’ defense had really struggled.

The ensuing drive resulted in a touchdown. On the next drive, Turner made a truly outstanding play, and the Bengals got a field goal right before halftime.

Flacco and the offense won’t be this good every week. The defense will have to be better down-to-down. But for Cincinnati to force two turnovers even with Trey Hendrickson out was an encouraging sign and a major difference maker in this game.

What’s next

The Bengals will feel rejuvenated, and for good reason. They’ll host the Jets (currently winless) next. The Steelers, meanwhile, have a major challenge on their hands in Week 8 matchup back home against the Packers on “Sunday Night Football.”