Johnson sets Cincy receiving mark; Titans quarterback Young held to 6 rushing yards.

Now that was more like it for the Cincinnati Bengals.  They had been waiting for a game like this all season, and they finally got it — a laugher, a breather, a no-doubter.  Dominating on the ground and through the air, the Bengals put a 35-6 hurtin' on Tennessee in front of 65,489 spectators at Paul Brown Stadium on Sunday, shipping the Titans back to Nashville with their third straight defeat.  "Obviously, that's the best game we've played this season," head coach Marvin Lewis said. "We made good plays in all three phases (offense, defense and special teams)." 

Quarterback Carson Palmer, rebounding from his four-interception game against Arizona, threw three touchdown passes and was 32-of-38 for a career-best completion percentage of 84.2, breaking his previous mark of 81.8 (27-of-33) set at Tennessee in 2005.  Tailback Rudi Johnson ran for 88 yards and scored his first rushing TD of the season. 

And wide receiver Chad Johnson exorcised all his end-zone demons with one of the most memorable performances of his seven-year career.  Johnson cranked out a career-best 12 catches for 103 yards and three TDs, ending a streak of eight straight games without a score.  He now owns the franchise record for career receptions with 537, shattering the mark of 530 set by Carl Pickens from 1992-99. 

Defensively, the Bengals were superb, holding Tennessee to a pair of field goals on five trips inside Cincinnati's 20-yard line. The Titans reached the Bengals' 3-, 10-, 5-, 18- and 1-yard lines, only to fumble once and turn the ball over on downs twice.  "It was a total team effort," strong-side linebacker Rashad Jeanty said, "with everybody flying around and playing with a lot of emotion."

Star of the game: Chad Johnson caught TD passes of 10, 2 and 3 yards. He has 71 catches for 1,041 yards — the sixth straight season he's cracked 1,000 yards.  "I wish I had half his talent," Pickens said via telephone from Atlanta, where he's retired and playing a lot of golf. "Chad's a great receiver."

Goat of the game:  Titans quarterback Vince Young passed for 246 yards, was held to 6 rushing yards on two carries and had both of his team's turnovers — a fumble and interception.  "I put it on myself when I cannot lead the team into the end zone," he said.

Turning point:  With the Titans down 7-0 and facing second-and-goal at the 3, linebacker Dhani Jones hit the daily double — sacking Young and forcing a fumble that Jeanty recovered.

Quote machine:  "It gives us something good to build on. We knew we had it in us. It was all about going out and doing it." — Bengals right guard Bobbie Williams.

Dayton Daily News

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