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Palmer

"And Andre Caldwell beat him on the flea-flicker for a touchdown when Carson threw it to Chad," says Big Bird of the 44-yarder to Chad Ochocinco. "Carter got beat twice last week up in Chicago. (Bears tight end) Greg Olsen boxed him out for a touchdown. This one really favors the Bengals."

The Sage gives the QB matchup to Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger because "he's proven to be such clutch player late in games," he said. "He's the one guy in the league I'd want to give the ball needing a score with two minutes left.

"I still don't know if the Bengals can protect Carson. Last week up in Green Bay I thought Cullen Jenkins hit him so hard he blew his knee out. He played well except for the two picks, and if they give him time, we know he can give their secondary major problems. They can't do what they did last week on offense. Give them 14 points and 13 penalties."

Whitworth

Harrison is looking for his first sack of the season after last year's monster 16-sack season. Whitworth is coming off a tough game in Green Bay where he was called for holding twice and some communication mixups with new left guard Evan Mathis ended up in some pressures and one sack.

But Whitworth isn't worried about the holds, saying they could be called on every play. He is preparing for Harrison's brew of energy, power and leverage coming out of a compact 6-0, 241-pound frame against his 6-7, 330 pounds.

"I give the edge to Whitworth at home," The Sage says. "He'll be able to handle Harrison on the outside and use his size on him."

The Eye says Whitworth does have the size advantage, but he has to be careful of Harrison's strategy of setting up blockers with speed and then getting them off-balanced enough to bull rush.

"Whitworth is big, but not as big if he's standing on one foot," The Eye says. "He won't get as much help as Anthony Collins did last year on Harrison, but he's a good athlete who has seen guys like this before."

In his few games at tackle, Whitworth has already battled and lived to tell about it against elite guys like Dwight Freeney, Robert Mathis, Elvis Dumervil and Trent Cole, a guy that gave him problems last year. But Whitworth had moved from guard to replace the injured Levi Jones cold during the game against the Eagles.

Cook

Cook's first big test in his third NFL start. One of the knocks against Eric Ghiaciuc is he couldn’t anchor against the big 3-4 noses like Hampton.

Both former players give the nod to Hampton because of an edge in strength and experience. Big Bird says he saw Cook get thrown by the Packers' Johnny Jolly, something that can't happen against Pittsburgh.

But The Eye says Cook is plenty powerful (he bench pressed 225 pounds 39 times back in the spring) to get the Bengals running game going.

"He has to hold his ground and not get pushed back and stay on him," The Eye says. "Cook can do that. He's held up pretty well in the first two games. He holds his ground and the back can cut off him. They've got more strength there than they've had in a awhile."

Collins

The Bengals have a big challenge here. Smith is power and Woodley is speed and the Bengals are trying to decide how to rotate these two to counter the combo. The 6-9 Roland is also making appearances as a tight end and figures to be prominent in the running game. Known as a technician, Roland will have to be virtually perfect against the Steelers gazelles.

"The Steelers front seven has the edge over the Bengals offensive line and tight ends and this is one of those big spots," The Sage says. "They're going to have to help them protect in the passing game with a running back because I think their tight ends are struggling blocking."

Henry

The Sage is a big proponent of playing Henry more. The Pittsburgh fan base is frightened of Henry, who has caught two 60-yard plus balls on the Steelers and averaged 18.7 yards per catch against them. But The Sage wanted to call them and let them know Henry hasn't played much.

"If he plays, he's a guy they have trouble with because of the way they cover Chad," Sage says. "They rely on their front seven to get there with the blitz. The corners are pretty average. They usually take Chad out by running a linebacker out to the numbers in front of him and a safety over the top, but if Henry is running down the field they can't cover it."

Huber

Logan may be just 5-6 and 180 pounds, but he's giving the Bengals big headaches this week as they watch him return punts and kicks.

"Like a waterbug?" special teams coach Darrin Simmons was asked.

"Oh yeah," Simmons said. "Quick. He's made a big play in both games for them. He's popped some punts, but they've been called back."

"This guy Logan is slippery," The Sage says. "The problem they're going to have is you can't find him because he's so short."

But Big Bird is a big fan of the rookie Huber.

"I love Huber," The Bird says. "The guy keeps you in games with that big leg. He's a game-changer."

Odom

Classic matchup. NFL sack leader vs. the NFL's most dangerous quarterback against the rush. The table gives Odom the nod working against 6-8 right tackle Max Starks because his feet aren’t great. But that is when the job is just beginning.

The Sage has seen guys think they had Roethlisberger down, but only to hear on the ground the roar of the crowd cheering a 25-yard completion.

"You have to his throwing arm, otherwise the guy is going to get it off on you at the last minute," Big Bird says. "I don't believe in Odom yet. Yes, he's long. Yes, he has good speed. But he got a lot of his sacks against a backup."

But they also allow that given Roethlisberger's propensity for holding the ball and the fact this offensive line has allowed the most sacks in the three previous seasons (139), the Bengals pressure gets the edge.

Maualuga

If the Steelers are going to try and get their running game healthy Sunday, the counter power is their signature run and the 6-3, 344-pound Kemoeatu is a mauler who is going to be pulling right at Maualuga. It is a matchup that Big Bird gives to the Bengals rookie. And Maualuga is just one of the new guys on this defense that make people think the Steelers won't be able to run at will like years past.

"I'm not sure about Rey against the pass yet," The Bird says. "But coming downhill against the run, that dude is good. Very good. About as good as anyone I've seen in a long time."

Williams

Miller has always caused problems for the Bengals and in the last two weeks Big Bird had been concerned about Williams' ability to cover. He's not as concerned.

"Roy has played well in the back end," The Bird says. "And he's playing well against the run. He'll come up and hit you. But he's also playing well against the pass. Better than I thought he would. This is going to be a big test for him."

Hall

Super Bowl MVP, playmaker, long-ball artist, you name it and Holmes has done it. He's still running away with the Bengals 2006 playoff berth with that 67-yard TD in overtime.

"I give the edge to the Bengals here," Bird says. "(The Packers) Greg Jennings is better than Holmes and Donald Driver is a better receiver than Hines Ward. And last week they didn't give Jennings a catch. I love the way Hall and Joseph are playing. You have to get in Santonio's face on the line of scrimmage. Disturb him off the line, don't let him get off the line. They played a little off last week, but still had the angles covered. But they've got to stay on him longer because of Ben's ability to extend the play."

The Sage offers, "I think the Steelers receivers are more a product of Ben's ability to keep a play going and to get out of pocket."