Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cincinnati Bengals: 2001 Week 16 Recap

Game story

In Week 16 of the 2001 NFL season on 2001-12-30, the Cincinnati Bengals took care of business against the Pittsburgh Steelers, pulling away with a 26–23 final that came down to the wire.

The highest-scoring period was Q1 with 14 combined points — the stretch that most shaped the final margin.

J. Kitna (Cincinnati Bengals) paced the passing game, with +6.62 total EPA.

On the individual side, J. Kitna (Cincinnati Bengals) delivered the top overall EPA impact at +6.62 — the clearest player-of-the-game signal on the analytics sheet.

The momentum swing (+35.3% win probability) landed in overtime when Pittsburgh Steelers changed the game: (9:56) 4-J.Miller punts 38 yards to CIN 1, Center-54-M.Schneck, downed by PIT-83-L.Jackson.

Line score

Final score and points by quarter.

Stars of the game

Top performers by total expected points added (EPA) across passing, rushing, and receiving.

1. 1 J. Kitna · Cincinnati Bengals · Passing · +6.62 total EPA · 75 snaps · +0.09 EPA/play
2. 2 P. Burress · Pittsburgh Steelers · Receiving · +5.04 total EPA · 10 snaps · +0.50 EPA/play
3. 3 T. Houshmandzadeh · Cincinnati Bengals · Receiving · +4.88 total EPA · 15 snaps · +0.33 EPA/play
4. 4 R. Dugans · Cincinnati Bengals · Receiving · +3.36 total EPA · 1 snaps · +3.36 EPA/play
5. 5 C. Fuamatu-Ma'afala · Pittsburgh Steelers · Receiving · +3.25 total EPA · 5 snaps · +0.65 EPA/play
6. 6 K. Stewart · Pittsburgh Steelers · Passing · +2.93 total EPA · 39 snaps · +0.08 EPA/play
7. 7 D. Scott · Cincinnati Bengals · Receiving · +2.86 total EPA · 12 snaps · +0.24 EPA/play
8. 8 P. Warrick · Cincinnati Bengals · Receiving · +2.44 total EPA · 20 snaps · +0.12 EPA/play

Player of the game

FantasyHQ analytics player-of-the-game pick based on total EPA and signature plays.

Who scored touchdowns and field goals

Every touchdown and field goal with the player named in official play-by-play.

Touchdowns

• Pittsburgh Steelers — P. Burress (K. Stewart pass) (Q1 51:32)
• Pittsburgh Steelers — P. Burress (K. Stewart pass) (Q1 47:49)
• Cincinnati Bengals — B. Simmons (Q2 34:54)
• Pittsburgh Steelers — C. Fuamatu-Ma'afala (K. Stewart pass) (Q3 18:54)
• Cincinnati Bengals — R. Dugans (J. Kitna pass) (Q4 2:51)
• Cincinnati Bengals — D. Farmer (J. Kitna pass) (Q4 0:45)

Field goals

• Pittsburgh Steelers — K. Brown (Q2 31:05)
• Cincinnati Bengals — N. Rackers (Q2 30:03)
• Cincinnati Bengals — N. Rackers (OT 4:17)

How it unfolded, quarter by quarter

A quarter-by-quarter recap built from live scoring plays and play descriptions.

The opening quarter: Pittsburgh Steelers won the period 14–0. Pittsburgh Steelers found the end zone from the CIN 42 (Q1 51:32) — (6:32) 10-K.Stewart pass to 80-P.Burress for 42 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Pittsburgh Steelers added 1 points from the CIN 2 (Q1 51:22) — 3-K.Brown extra point is GOOD, Center-54-M.Schneck, Holder-4-J.Miller.; Pittsburgh Steelers found the end zone from the CIN 28 (Q1 47:49) — (2:49) 10-K.Stewart pass to 80-P.Burress for 28 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Pittsburgh Steelers added 1 points from the CIN 2 (Q1 47:43) — 3-K.Brown extra point is GOOD, Center-54-M.Schneck, Holder-4-J.Miller..

The second quarter: Cincinnati Bengals won the period 10–3. Cincinnati Bengals found the end zone from the CIN 25 (Q2 34:54); Cincinnati Bengals added 1 points from the PIT 2 (Q2 34:41) — 5-N.Rackers extra point is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris.; Pittsburgh Steelers connected on a field goal from the CIN 20 (Q2 31:05) — (1:05) 3-K.Brown 38 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-54-M.Schneck, Holder-4-J.Miller.; Cincinnati Bengals connected on a field goal from the PIT 17 (Q2 30:03) — (:03) 5-N.Rackers 34 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris..

The third quarter: Pittsburgh Steelers won the period 6–0. Pittsburgh Steelers found the end zone from the CIN 37 (Q3 18:54).

The fourth quarter: Cincinnati Bengals won the period 13–0. Cincinnati Bengals found the end zone from the PIT 6 (Q4 2:51) — (2:51) {No huddle} 3-J.Kitna pass to 81-R.Dugans for 6 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Cincinnati Bengals added 1 points from the PIT 2 (Q4 2:46) — 5-N.Rackers extra point is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris.; Cincinnati Bengals found the end zone from the PIT 18 (Q4 0:45) — (:45) 3-J.Kitna pass to 83-D.Farmer for 18 yards, TOUCHDOWN..

Overtime: Cincinnati Bengals won the period 3–0. Cincinnati Bengals connected on a field goal from the PIT 13 (OT 4:17) — (4:17) 5-N.Rackers 31 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris..

Turning points

Plays that moved win probability the most — the swings that decided the game.

• Pittsburgh Steelers (OT 9:56) — (9:56) 4-J.Miller punts 38 yards to CIN 1, Center-54-M.Schneck, downed by PIT-83-L.Jackson. [WPA +35.3% · EPA +0.89]
• Cincinnati Bengals (Q4 0:45) — (:45) 3-J.Kitna pass to 83-D.Farmer for 18 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA +21.8% · EPA +3.76]
• Cincinnati Bengals (OT 6:58) — (6:58) (Shotgun) 3-J.Kitna pass to 80-P.Warrick to PIT 26 for 13 yards (55-J.Porter). [WPA +21.2% · EPA +1.76]
• Cincinnati Bengals (OT 9:01) — (9:01) 36-B.Bennett right guard to CIN 46 for 36 yards (41-L.Flowers). [WPA +20.4% · EPA +2.08]
• Pittsburgh Steelers (Q4 0:21) — (:21) (Shotgun) 10-K.Stewart pass INTERCEPTED by 34-K.Kaesviharn at CIN 21. 34-K.Kaesviharn to CIN 21 for no gain (86-H.Ward). [WPA -20.2% · EPA -0.23]

Impact plays

Highest expected-points added snaps that flipped field position and scoring chances.

• Pittsburgh Steelers (Q2 34:54) — (4:54) (Field Goal formation) 4-J.Miller FUMBLES (Aborted) at CIN 33, RECOVERED by CIN-23-R.Bean at CIN 34. 23-R.Bean to CIN 44 for 10 yards. Lateral to 56-B.Simmons for 56 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA -14.4% · EPA -8.64]
• Pittsburgh Steelers (Q3 18:54) — (3:54) (Shotgun) 10-K.Stewart pass to 45-C.Fuamatu-Ma'afala for 37 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Penalty on CIN-99-O.Gibson, Personal Foul, offsetting. Penalty on PIT-72-W.Gandy, Unsportsmanlike Conduct, offsetti [WPA +10.3% · EPA +5.30]
• Pittsburgh Steelers (Q1 51:32) — (6:32) 10-K.Stewart pass to 80-P.Burress for 42 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA +13.3% · EPA +4.69]
• Cincinnati Bengals (Q1 60:00) — 3-K.Brown kicks 54 yards from PIT 30 to CIN 16. 84-T.Houshmandzadeh to CIN 39 for 23 yards (51-M.Jones). FUMBLES (51-M.Jones), RECOVERED by PIT-31-M.Logan at CIN 39. 31-M.Logan ran ob at CIN 24 for 15 [WPA -8.7% · EPA -4.60]

Quarterback report card

J.Kitna led all passers in efficiency for Cincinnati Bengals, setting the tone in the passing game according to FantasyHQ analytics.

• J.Kitna (Cincinnati Bengals) · 75 dropbacks · 46.7% completion · +0.09 EPA/play · +6.62 total EPA
• K.Stewart (Pittsburgh Steelers) · 39 dropbacks · 48.7% completion · +0.08 EPA/play · +2.93 total EPA

Team stats comparison

Side-by-side offensive and defensive efficiency from FantasyHQ analytics.

By the numbers

Both offenses finished within striking distance on EPA per play (Pittsburgh Steelers -0.13, Cincinnati Bengals -0.08) — a true toss-up on the analytics sheet.

• Cincinnati Bengals: 17 drives, -9.83 total EPA, 4 scoring drives
• Pittsburgh Steelers: 16 drives, -10.72 total EPA, 5 scoring drives

Key takeaways

What to remember for fantasy research, film review, and follow-up box score digging.

• Cincinnati Bengals leaves with the win and the better postgame narrative for Week-to-week momentum.
• One-score margin — fantasy managers should double-check garbage-time stats before drawing conclusions.
• J. Kitna (Cincinnati Bengals) is the first name to pull up for highlight reels and prop-retrospective research.

Every scoring play

Chronological scoring with field position and full play-by-play context.

1. Pittsburgh Steelers TD (+6) — Q1 51:32 · CIN 42 · Score 6-0
   (6:32) 10-K.Stewart pass to 80-P.Burress for 42 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers XP (+1) — Q1 51:22 · CIN 2 · Score 7-0
   3-K.Brown extra point is GOOD, Center-54-M.Schneck, Holder-4-J.Miller.
3. Pittsburgh Steelers TD (+6) — Q1 47:49 · CIN 28 · Score 13-0
   (2:49) 10-K.Stewart pass to 80-P.Burress for 28 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
4. Pittsburgh Steelers XP (+1) — Q1 47:43 · CIN 2 · Score 14-0
   3-K.Brown extra point is GOOD, Center-54-M.Schneck, Holder-4-J.Miller.
5. Cincinnati Bengals TD (+6) — Q2 34:54 · CIN 25 · Score 14-6
   (4:54) (Field Goal formation) 4-J.Miller FUMBLES (Aborted) at CIN 33, RECOVERED by CIN-23-R.Bean at CIN 34. 23-R.Bean to CIN 44 for 10 yards. Lateral to 56-B.Si
6. Cincinnati Bengals XP (+1) — Q2 34:41 · PIT 2 · Score 14-7
   5-N.Rackers extra point is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers FG (+3) — Q2 31:05 · CIN 20 · Score 17-7
   (1:05) 3-K.Brown 38 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-54-M.Schneck, Holder-4-J.Miller.
8. Cincinnati Bengals FG (+3) — Q2 30:03 · PIT 17 · Score 17-10
   (:03) 5-N.Rackers 34 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris.
9. Pittsburgh Steelers TD (+6) — Q3 18:54 · CIN 37 · Score 23-10
   (3:54) (Shotgun) 10-K.Stewart pass to 45-C.Fuamatu-Ma'afala for 37 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Penalty on CIN-99-O.Gibson, Personal Foul, offsetting. Penalty on PIT-72-W.
10. Cincinnati Bengals TD (+6) — Q4 2:51 · PIT 6 · Score 23-16
    (2:51) {No huddle} 3-J.Kitna pass to 81-R.Dugans for 6 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
11. Cincinnati Bengals XP (+1) — Q4 2:46 · PIT 2 · Score 23-17
    5-N.Rackers extra point is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris.
12. Cincinnati Bengals TD (+6) — Q4 0:45 · PIT 18 · Score 23-23
    (:45) 3-J.Kitna pass to 83-D.Farmer for 18 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
13. Cincinnati Bengals FG (+3) — OT 4:17 · PIT 13 · Score 23-26
    (4:17) 5-N.Rackers 31 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-91-R.Chevrier, Holder-8-N.Harris.