Cincinnati Bengals Look to Get Revenge on Hines Ward

It was only few week ago in week 7 when Hines Ward broke Bengals linebacker Keith Rivers' jaw on a crushing hit which sent him straight to the hospital and the Bengals definitely haven't forgotten.

In week 12 the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals will face off again and you better believe that the Bengals cross hairs will be pointed straight at Hines Ward's back to invoke some form of revenge for the hit on Keith Rivers.

Hines Ward is arguably one of the hardest hitters in the NFL today, hard to believe at times that he is actually a wide receiver. I don't think anyone on offense hits as hard as Ward, in fact I can't even think of any offensive player that hits with the force that Ward can. The guy could easily play linebacker.

Although almost anyone would be worried about an entire professional football team out to put a lick on then, Ward just says:

"I always keep my head on a swivel," Ward said. "It's football. ... Their heads should be on a swivel."

"I continue seeing those blocks, they've been going on the entire age of football," Ward said. "There's nothing cheap about it. ... If I really was trying to hurt Rivers, I would have gone low on him and tried to take out his knee."

Needless to say, even though the Steelers will be heavily favored, the Steelers vs. Bengals rematch will be one to watch just to see if they go after Ward or if he delivers another crushing blow to one of the Bengals.

HINES WARD'S HIT ON KEITH RIVERS IN WEEK 7

Steelers Sign Cornerback Roy Lewis

Since the Pittsburgh Steelers have had some injury trouble at cornerback with both Deshea Townsend out with a hamstring injury and Bryant McFadden out of action due to his broken arm, Pittsburgh decided to take a chance on rookie cornerback Roy Lewis.

Steelers cornerback Bryant McFadden will miss his fourth consecutive game in week 11 against the San Diego Chargers, but the cornerback is hopeful that he can return when the Steelers take on arch rival Cincinnati Bengals on November 20th at Heinz Field.

McFadden had the cast on his broken forearm taken off two weeks ago.

"It's been very, very tough not being able to contribute," says McFadden, "Regardless of when I get back out there, I have to pad it up. If I'm not 100 percent, it's something I have to deal with."

To make some room for the rookie Lewis, the Steelers had to cut wide receiver Dallas Baker who played in eight games this season, but only caught one pass for 6 yards.

Banged Up Big Ben Might Play Against Colts

A separated shoulder, a torn ligament in his left pinkie finger, but Big Ben Roethlisberger still thinks he will be able to play against Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday in week 10.

Got to give him credit, Roethlisberger is one tough dude! In fact the guy is starting to remind me of Brett Farve playing through injuries like this! Being tough definitely is a huge plus playing professional football, but you have to think with Pittsburgh's chances to do something in the AFC this season, is it a wise decision to play against the Colts when you have a backup like Leftwich who proved he can hold his own against the Redskins.

Big Ben has been out of practice all week trying to heal up enough to be able to make the start against the Colts, but if he can't go, Byron Leftwich will get the call from coach Mike Tomlin. Leftwich played great in relief of Roethlisberger last week's win over the Washington Redskins throwing for a touchdown and 127 yards with no interceptions.

Willie Parker Right Back the Injured List

Just when you thought running back Willie Parker would finally be back as the feature running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, he injures his shoulder and is put right back on the injured list once again.

When Parker is in the backfield for the Steelers, Pittsburgh is extremely tough on offense. Not saying that Big Ben and company aren't great offensively, but with Willie Parker as a legitimate threat in the running game, the Steelers are that much harder to defend for the opposition.

One positive in this Steelers' injury report is it isn't Parker's knee that is keeping him out of action this time. I know having another injury isn't good news at all, but if it was his knee that kept him out of four games this season, then he might have had to be shut down for the season.

There are a couple injuries that a running back can sustain that can be considered a danger zone area for either a career ending injury. One is the ankles, if a running back consistently gets ankle sprains or needs surgery on the injured ankle, then the players future is in serious doubt. The other is the knee, if a running back has bad knees after injuries that is a big red flag for his future.

Fortunately, Parker's status for Sunday's match up against the Indianapolis Colts is uncertain, which is always good news as they haven't completely ruled him out of action just yet.

Big Ben Goes Down in MNF Win Over Washington Redskins

Big Ben Roethlisberger has had his fair share of injuries in just a short time as the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback, but no one ever questions his toughness as no injury has kept the Super Bowl champ down for long.

It wasn't a pretty sight for any fan of the Steelers Monday night when Big Ben attempted a quarterback sneak in the second quarter against the Washington Redskins and went down hard on the same shoulder that he injured in the first game of the season. The injury didn't seem all that serious as Roethlisberger jogged into the locker room, but it was enough for him not to return in the second half.

Although no football fan wants to their favorite team's backup quarterback come into an important game, but Steelers backup Byron Leftwich played a great taking over for Big Ben as he lead the team to victory over the Redskins 23-6.

Byron Leftwich's stats were pretty impressive, better than what Roethlisberger was able to do against Washington in fact, as he threw for 129 yards and a touchdown completing 7 of 10 passes. Not bad, not bad at all!

As for Big Ben he will undergo an MRI on Tuesday on his injured shoulder. His status is uncertain on whether he will play against the Indianapolis Colts next week.