Bengals safety Geno Stone, who grew up an hour from Pittsburgh in New Castle, Pa., went to his first NFL game when he was 11 at Acrisure Stadium and saw the Steelers beat the Ravens in an AFC Divisional for another classic AFC North chapter.

Stone’s mother beat the traffic that day, but they saw the winning score walking out. Stone returns to the building this Saturday (8 p.m.-Cincinnati’s Channel 9 and ESPN), to direct traffic for the Bengals against the Steelers in what amounts to a playoff elimination game for Cincinnati in another division drama.

With Stone, the former Raven playing his best ball of his first season with the Bengals, Bengals.com senior writer Geoff Hobson sat down with him for one of his conversations to talk about life in the AFC North.

GH: You were a big-time quarterback and defensive back for New Castle. Did you ever play in the Steelers stadium in high school when it was Heinz Field?

GS: We played Thomas Jefferson in a state championship game.

GH: Really? They blanked the great Geno Stone’s offense?

GS: Crazy game. Probably my worst game in high school.

GH: And you played there when you were with the Ravens. What’s it like being a New Castle guy in the NFL going back to play in that stadium?

GS: It’s great. My first ever game I went to growing up was at Pittsburgh. It was a Divisional playoff when the Ravens played the Steelers. I think the Steelers won it when (running back) Rashard Mendenhall scored. It’s great. I can see all my friends and family. They all come. They’re all Steelers fans. They’re against me, but at the same time, they’re rooting for me.

GH: That’s a big group of family people, right?

GS: I’ve got a big support system back home. Especially me growing up, I had a bunch of guys who liked playing sports. The whole city kind of rallied behind us, so I’ve got a bunch of people back home.

GH: What about going down there and playing for the playoffs? That’s got to be a big thrill.

GS: I’m ready. It’s my first game actually starting and playing meaningful snaps there. Before, it was playing special teams, playing rotational. I just can’t wait to be out there all the time playing in front of all my family and friends.

GH: It’s going to be a lot like that AFC Divisional (Jan. 15, 2011) with Baltimore and Pittsburgh. Same kind of weather. Almost the same weekend. You guys need to win to keep going.

GS: It was cold. It was snowing. I can’t wait. It’s home to me. I love playing there.

GH: You were 11 at that game.

GS: Yeah, the year (the Steelers) played Green Bay in the Super Bowl.

GH: I think you’d have to agree in the last month you’ve played your best ball since you’ve been here.

GS: Yeah, definitely. I feel like I just kind of caught rhythm. All the picks came in bunches. The ball was finding me. I just felt like I was being me, putting my skin on the defense. How I play. I’ve just felt a lot more

comfortable throughout the past few months.

GS: Lou’s (defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo) putting me in great spots. The defense kind of changed a little bit. The way he’s calling things. I think it kind of fits more how I play. I just feel a lot more comfortable at this point. My mindset was just to go get the ball. Wasn’t trying to do too much. Wasn’t trying to think. I was out there playing free.

GH: At what point did you say that?

GS: After the last Pittsburgh game (Dec. 1). In my head, just be me. I didn’t play my best in that game. I had a lot of open-field tackles I could have had back.

GH: Missed tackles as a team it was something like 14.

GS: Yeah, I hate doing that because I just didn’t put my best performance out. So after that, I just put on myself to be the best me. Limit all the missed tackles. My thing is you give up one missed tackle in a game, OK, you’re not going to make every tackle. It’s the NFL. Everyone is great. If you can limit it to one, or as a team to five, six, missed tackles, you’ve got a great chance to win the game.

GH: Just being you. What’s that mean?

GS: Just being the ballhawk I am. Playing fast, being physical, making plays. That’s kind of what got me here. Being in the right spots, being there at the right time. Being a guy that the coach can depend on, my teammates can depend on, put everyone in right spots and be able to communicate.

GH: Some of the guys have said it’s simplified a bit. But it’s the NFL, so it can’t be all that simple. Plus, you’re a 3.5 GPA guy in high school courted by some Ivy League schools, so you’ve handled some things.

GS: That never bothered me. I can make any adjustment … We still have calls in there where you have to think. I think it’s more simplified because we have different guys in now. It’s not me and Vonn (Bell) back there. JB (Jordan Battle), we’ve got a lot of young guys playing now with Fig (rookie cornerback Josh Newton). You’ve got Marco (November waiver wire pickup Wilson) playing now. So it’s kind of simplified for a bunch of new guys.

It’s kind of like training camp. Line up and play the calls … I had some injuries early. Things like that I had to get through. I feel like I’m playing my best ball. No one is really thinking out there. Just line up, play the call, everyone plays fast, and go get the ball and do what you do.