In terms of statistical intrigue, the NFL’s top matchup this week would have to be Monday night’s showdown between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Washington Redskins.

Having the 5-2 Steelers, the AFC North leader, face the 6-2 Redskins is more than a matchup of playoff teams. The game has political overtones. A Steelers win in Washington could foretell a victory for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama the following day.

Between 1936 and 2000, a Redskin victory in their last home game before Election Day meant the incumbent party kept control of the White House. So a Skins win on Monday night could be an inspiration to Republican presidential nominee John McCain. A Redskin loss could spell doom to the party that has inhabited the White House for the last eight years.

Wait a minute. . . are you sure?

STATS’ Los Angeles-based research group tells me that streak ended in 2004, when Washington lost a home game to the Green Bay Packers on the Sunday before Election Day. Despite the Skins’ loss, George W. Bush stayed in the White House.

The disparity in poll results in recent days suggests pollsters have no more idea who’s going to win on Tuesday than most football fans. If you’re more inclined to let a football team predict this election that never ends, STATS’ research group recommends the Cincinnati Bengals.

In nine of the past 10 presidential elections, the Bengals have tied their fate to the Democratic candidate. Since 1968, if Cincinnati won its last contest prior to Election Day, the Democratic nominee for the White House also was victorious. If Cincinnati lost its last contest before Election Day, the Democrat also lost. The lone exception was in 1988, when the Bengals defeated the Steelers on November 6. Two days later, Michael Dukakis lost the presidential election to George H.W. Bush.

The 0-8 Bengals wouldn’t have made Obama a good bet when the sun rose this morning, but Cincinnati is leading the Jacksonville Jaguars, 21-13 in the fourth quarter. Somewhere Obama has to be glued to a television.

STATS’ Los Angeles-based research group, which provides broadcast notes for nearly every NFL game played, is responsible for the statistical content of this ad and approves this message.