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Bigger challenges than Raiders await Bengals the rest of the way Compared with the closing stretch of the Bengals’ schedule, the game yesterday against the Oakland Raiders was strictly hors d’oeuvres. But Cincinnati understood that if it gagged on the appetizer, it might not have a chance to sink its teeth into the main course of Indianapolis, Denver and Pittsburgh and have it mean much. After all, Bengals teams have been known to slip up at inopportune times against inferior teams. They stumbled against Buffalo late last year in a loss that stopped their momentum after winning the AFC North. They lost to winless Tampa Bay two months ago to help put them into a hole out of which they have only now climbed. The Bengals did not falter yesterday. They took control early and cruised to a 27-10 victory over the Raiders in Paul Brown Stadium. In winning its fourth straight game, Cincinnati (8-5) increased its hold on a wild-card berth because of losses by Kansas City, Denver and the New York Jets. "We’re peaking at the right time," receiver Chad Johnson said. "This is a big win, especially heading into Indy. We need to take the momentum into Indy next week." Johnson (101 yards) and fellow receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh (118) each had 100-yard receiving games, and running back Rudi Johnson ran for 117 yards. It is the first time in franchise history that two receivers had triple-digits in receiving yards and a running back had 100 yards rushing in the same game. "That’s the toughest that we’ve seen," Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha said. "Their offense is loaded. What are you going to do? They’ve got Carson Palmer, Rudi Johnson, and three wideouts. That right side of the offensive line (Bobbie Williams and Willie Anderson) just has some beasts." The Raiders (2-11) entered the game with the NFL’s thirdranked defense, and they showed that’s no fluke. On Cincinnati’s first series, Asomugha broke quickly on a decently thrown sideline pass and intercepted Palmer, the first of three Raiders pickoffs. This was not a revelation to the Bengals. Anderson said offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski began a meeting Wednesday with a blunt message. "The first thing ‘Brat’ said was that if any of you guys think it’s going to be an easy game, you can walk out of here," Anderson said. "These guys have been in low-scoring games. They would lose in the end, but that’s a good, well-coached defense." The Raiders would lose because they have a horrible offense, and that again proved to be the case. On the Raiders’ first play after Asomugha’s interception, Aaron Brooks completed a short pass to Alvis Whitted, who allowed Bengals cornerback Johnathan Joseph to strip him of the ball. Cincinnati took over and drove 61 yards for a touchdown, the final 8 yards on a pass from Palmer to Chris Henry. After Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski’s 51-yard field-goal attempt clanked off the left upright, the Bengals went 59 yards for another score, the first of Rudi Johnson’s two touchdown runs. That was all the offense the Bengals needed. The Raiders failed to gain a single rushing first down, and Brooks proved to be typically inconsistent — throwing a dart into coverage for a first down on third-andlong, then missing open receivers badly. The Bengals built a 27-3 lead in the fourth quarter before the Raiders scored a late TD. "It was not our best football game of the season," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said, "but we did a lot of good things." Against the Raiders, that was plenty. Now, bigger challenges await. Columbus Dispatch http://columbusdispatch.com/bengals/bengals.php?story=dispatch/2006/12/11/20061211-D1-01.html |
