The Bengals won against the Steelers on Monday night and one reason was the play of running back Giovani Bernard, who had two touchdowns in the game, including one on a nice 27-yard reception that helped put the team over the top against Pittsburgh.
The Bengals are now 1-1 and Bernard is starting to show promise after being a draft pick for the Bengals out of North Carolina and after being considered a big sleeper, he is a must add in all leagues, especially PPR leagues. Bernard finished the day with eight carries, but he averaged 4.8 yards and gained 38 yards in the game whiel scoring his first rushing TD. Bernard also added one catch for 27 yards and a score and that is good to get him going from the backfield, as he made 40 catches or more in both his seasons at North Carolina.
The Bengals will be a tough offensive team if Bernard can be productive out of the backfield, as there are plenty of weapons around with Tyler Eifert, AJ Green and Jermaine Gresham. The Monday Night Football matchup was between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals is a divisional battle it had the potential to be one of the best in the week and the broadcast will start up at 8:30 pm on ESPN with Mike Tirico and Jon Gruden on the call.
The Bengals have some of the best offensively talented skill players in the NFL with wideout AJ Green and running back Giovani Bernard and while the rookie is not quite up to par yet with Green since he has limited experience, he could have a breakout game on Monday night against the Steelers. Bernard put up some monster numbers in college with the North Carolina Tar Heels and head coach Marvin Lewis love his speed and the counter attack he has with BenJarvus Green-Ellis.
Neither player has been off to a great start and one reason was the fact that the Bengals played against the Bears in Week 1 and they have a tough running defense. Green-Ellis is the leading rusher right now with just 25 yards and he averaged just 1.8 yards per carry in the opening loss to Chicago. Last season Ellis put up some great numbers down the stretch and while Bernard will take away some of his carries, he should still be looked at as a fantasy option in most leagues.
Bernard is being looked at as a prime sleeper in fantasy and reality this season and the Bengals are hoping they have the second coming of Ray Rice. Bernard has quickness and speed and is also a fantastic receiver out of the backfield, as he made over 40 catches in each of his two seasons in college. Despite getting just four carries against the Bears, the rookie made the most of it, rushing for 22 yards and averaging 5.5 yards per carry, something that could be very valuable if he keeps it up. He also made one catch for eight yards and with the Steelers looking pretty banged up after Week 1, he could be poised for a very nice game.
The Bengals passing game will be a prime focus for the Steelers and after making nine catches last week for 162 yards and two touchdowns, AJ Green will be the top target for Any Dalton. The quarterback looked at Green 13 times in the game against the Bears and now he will be the number one focus for the Steelers and that could leave the tight ends to have a nice game.
Jermaine Gresham is coming off of a season in which he caught over 60 passes and now the team also adds a hot rookie in Tyler Eifert to the mix. Eifert was one of the best tight ends in college last season and while he had just five catches in the season opener, he could have some great matchups against a depleted Steelers linebacker unit. Eifert is a big dude with nice hands and good speed and that is one reason why he was able to catch all five targets that came his way. According to ESPN.com, he was on the field for all but 19 of the Bengals' 59 snaps against the Bears and that could mean more in Week 2.