PITTSBURGH -- Rookie running back Joe Mixon helped set up the Bengals' first touchdown against the Steelers with a 25-yard run in the first half of a 29-14 loss. Then he essentially disappeared.
Mixon did not have a carry in the second half, although quarterback Andy Dalton did throw two passes his way. He voiced his frustration for the Cincinnati running back group after the game.
"It's frustrating. I feel like I'm seeing [Le'Veon Bell] got the ball 35 times, and I got it seven in the first half and then don't touch the ball again," Mixon said. "[Jeremy] Hill only got one touch in the second half. It's frustrating to us running backs. We feel like we're in the room and we feel like we're part of the offense. If it worked in the first half, why not do it in the second?"
Mixon, who finished the night with seven carries for 48 yards and three receptions for 20 yards, said he couldn't help but notice the Steelers' success running the ball, with Bell getting 35 carries for 134 yards.
Mixon said he didn't understand why the Bengals didn't give him a chance to do that, as well, when he was averaging 6.9 yards per carry. The Bengals attempted two runs in the third quarter, with Hill and Giovani Bernard combining for nine yards. Two of the third-quarter drives were cut short by turnovers.
"Me personally, I feel like I can do way more than [Bell] did. Like I said, I only had seven carries. I can't showcase nothing if I don't get the ball. There's nothing else I can say," Mixon said.
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis was terse when asked about the absence of Mixon, who briefly went to the locker room during the game but quickly returned.
"He was there in the third quarter," Lewis said. "Whatever plays are called are called."
