Steelers vs. Bengals: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2014 Regular Season

The Pittsburgh Steelers made up a ton of ground in the highly competitive AFC North by defeating the Cincinnati Bengals, 42-21, in Sunday's Week 14 showdown at Paul Brown Stadium.     

Le'Veon Bell continued to deliver as the Steelers' workhorse out of the backfield, amassing over 200 total yards for the third straight game to go with three total touchdowns.

Bell scored two of Pittsburgh's three touchdowns in a decisive fourth quarter in which it outscored the Bengals 25-0. The MMQB noted just how fast it all happened:

Dale Lolley of the Observer-Reporter highlighted the gaudy company Bell is now keeping after his latest sensational performance:

Prior to this epic divisional clash, Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin said he wasn't too concerned about Bell's workload on Tuesday, via ESPN.com's Scott Brown:

"

I'm not overly concerned about that. He's a highly conditioned guy, he's a mentally tough guy. Personally I think he's built for it. He's excited about having an opportunity to do that for us.

[...] A lot of the football went through him his last year at Michigan State and all you had to do was watch him over the course of that season and gain a level of comfort with his ability to tote the load. Obviously during his time here he proved that he is capable of doing that on an NFL stage.

"

Those words seemed to ring true by the time Sunday's game was over.

On the opening drive of the game, Pittsburgh star Ben Roethlisberger marched the Steelers down the field, going 75 yards in nine plays and hitting Heath Miller for a one-yard touchdown pass. Roethlisberger had a fine day himself, tossing three scores and amassing 350 yards through the air.

However, the Bengals answered when tight end Jermaine Gresham squeezed a 10-yard TD reception on the next possession.

One surprising wrinkle from the Bengals offense came when quarterback Andy Dalton kept the ball for a 20-yard rushing touchdown, giving Cincinnati 14 unanswered points with 2:57 left in the opening quarter.

ESPN's John Clayton praised Dalton's deceptive read-option fake to running back Jeremy Hill:

Bill Barnwell of Grantland reacted to the play in the context of something Tomlin said last year:

Then, it was Bell's turn to reply in this back-and-forth, highly competitive affair, as he showed off his amazing all-around ability on a 10-yard scoring reception.

David Todd of 970 ESPN broke down the play:

On the last play of the third quarter, when it appeared the home team might be down and out, Andy Dalton flung a beautiful deep ball to superstar receiver A.J. Green. The Pro Bowl pass-catcher added a nifty move in the open field to rumble the rest of the way, 81 yards for the touchdown.

ESPN's Trey Wingo observed just how explosive Green has been since entering the NFL—despite the lack of a consistent No. 2 receiving threat opposite him:

But Pittsburgh would have the last laugh. The big turning point came when Dalton fumbled the ball away to Arthur Moats on the Bengals' first drive of the fourth.

TribLIVE Radio's Ken Laird felt that Dalton's giveaway was the difference in the game:

Roethlisberger then hit Antonio Brown on a key 3rd-and-7 conversion, and Bell did the rest, taking it to paydirt from 13 yards out. After Cincinnati failed to score points on its subsequent outing, Big Ben made a big-time throw.

Impressive rookie receiver Martavis Bryant beat the Bengals' best cover corner in Leon Hall for a magnificent 94-yard score. Sports Pickle's DJ Gallo had an interesting observation:

Rotoworld's Cian Fahey commented on Hall's coverage, as Bryant's superior speed was clearly evident:

"

Couldn't see coverage, so it may not be just on him, but you rarely(never?) saw Leon Hall beat like that before that second Achilles tear.

— Cian Fahey (@Cianaf) December 7, 2014"

Bryant answered Green's play from before and confirmed that Pittsburgh is indeed a threat to win the division in the process.

Joe Starkey of 93.7 The Fan feels that the victors have been a bit too inconsistent on offense all year, though:

Michael Salfino of Meadowlands Media Group summarized the enigma that the 2014 Steelers are:

The Associated Press' Will Graves noted how Pittsburgh seems to elevate its play based on the quality of its opponent:

Now the AFC North is considerably tighter following Sunday's early action. Just a half-game separates Cincinnati from both Pittsburgh and Baltimore, as the Ravens defeated Miami in Week 14 to maintain pace.

The pressure is on the Bengals to remain out in front, which will be easier said than done when they travel to Cleveland to take on the Browns' surging defense next week.

Dalton went down after a big hit from Steelers defensive end Stephon Tuitt in the fourth quarter, which may make Cincinnati's outlook moving forward even less promising. That the Bengals were gashed so badly at home by Bell does not bode well for Week 15's showdown with a run-heavy Cleveland offense.

A road trip to take on the Atlanta Falcons' leaky defense is on the horizon for Pittsburgh. If the Steelers can keep executing on offense the way they did Sunday, they just might find themselves atop the division when Week 15 finishes.