Tennessee Titans (6-4) at Cincinnati Bengals (3-7)

Transcription

1 Cincinnati Bengals One Paul Brown Stadium Cincinnati, Ohio (513) administrative offices (513) administrative fax (513) 621-TDTD (8383) ticket office WEEKLY NEWS RELEASE NOV. 20, 2007 Tennessee Titans (6-4) at Cincinnati Bengals (3-7) Kickoff: 1 p.m. EST. Television: CBS broadcast with Bill Macatee (play-byplay) and Steve Beuerlein (analyst). The game will air in the Bengals home market on WKRC-TV (Channel 12) in Cincinnati, WHIO-TV (Channel 7) in Dayton and on WKYT-TV (Channel 27) in Lexington, Ky. Radio: Live on the 24-station Bengals Radio Network, with a triple-cast on flagships WLW-AM (700) The Big One, WCKY- AM (1530) Homer (all sports) and WOFX-FM (92.5) The Fox. Broadcasters are Brad Johansen (play-by-play) and Dave Lapham (analyst). The game also will be carried to a national audience over the Sports USA Radio Network. Broadcasters are Howard David (play-by-play), Charles Arbuckle (analyst) and Rich Herrera (sideline reporter). Setting the scene: Bengals WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh says the Bengals playoff prospects are easy enough to analyze at the grim 10-game mark of the 2007 season. Convoluted postseason scenarios are not part of NFL life at 3-7. It s not rocket science to figure it out, the NFL receptions leader said after last week s home loss to Arizona. It doesn t look good for us. But the season goes on, with Tennessee on tap this weekend at Paul Brown Stadium. The Titans are 6-4 and very much in the playoff picture. So for the Bengals, at least for now, can anyone spell spoilers? We get paid to play, said Houshmandzadeh. We feel bad for 24 hours (about Arizona) and then quit dwelling on it. It s time to get ready to play Tennessee. In the area of not dwelling, Bengals QB Carson Palmer may need a little support from T.J. this week. Palmer, darned nearly flawless over the course of his first 54 starts, suffered a careerhigh four INTs in start No. 55. Cardinals CB Antrel Rolle swiped three, tying the Bengal opponents record, and Rolle tied another mark by returning two for touchdowns. I feel like I let our team down, said Palmer. Our coaches, the players, the organization and our fans. Any time you throw four interceptions and give your opponent 14 points, it s going to be almost impossible to win. It will be tough to forget this one. There are a number of plays I can t stop thinking about. The only way to get rid of this feeling is to get a win. The Cincinnati rushing game is also in need of a major boost entering the Tennessee game. In the last three contests, the Bengals have averaged only 56.7 yards on the ground, and their per-carry average has been 2.4 yards. Don t put all the blame on Carson, said LG Andrew Whitworth. We re not running the ball like you have to, and he s throwing into all kinds of different coverages, trying to make Game information Week 12, Game 11 Sunday, Nov. 25, 2007 at Paul Brown Stadium Next up: Week 13, Game 12 Dec. 2 at Pittsburgh something happen for us. Our quarterback is a fine, fine player, said head coach Marvin Lewis. We don t anticipate many days for him like last week. The Bengals defense showed consistency in the loss to Arizona, holding the Cardinals to 247 yards, a season-low for a Bengals foe. The Cardinals went only three-for-11 on third down. The defense kept giving us chances, said Palmer, and they didn t give up those 14 points on the interceptions. The Bengals have held opponents under 300 yards in consecutive weeks, having allowed only 272 in Cincinnati s Nov. 11 win at Baltimore. But the defense had no takeaways, contributing to a seasonworst minus-five in turnover differential for Cincinnati. (The differential does not reflect the blocked punt Cincinnati s special teams converted into a TD). And the bottom line is still 3-7. It feels bad and it should feel bad; it hurts, said head coach Marvin Lewis, who is yet to experience a losing season at the Cincinnati helm. We kept hanging around, did a good job playing on third down, but we could not make that key play when we needed it. The series: The Bengals and Titans (formerly Houston Oilers) have met 70 times, making the Titans the second-most played foe in Bengals history. Cincinnati has played more games only against Pittsburgh (75). The Titans lead the series with the Bengals, The Bengals won the last meeting, at Tennessee during their 2005 AFC North Championship season. The series includes one postseason game, a Bengals win in a 1990 season Wild Card game at Riverfront Stadium. The Bengals lead as the home team, but Tennessee has won in its last five visits to Cincinnati. The most recent game in Cincinnati was a Titans win at Paul Brown Stadium in The last Bengals home win over Tennessee was at Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium) in Only 12 total points separate the teams over the 70 games thus far, the Titans having scored 1647 to the Bengals Neither side has ever been shut out in the long series, and the series includes the only regular-season tie in Bengals history, a American Football League deadlock against the Houston Oilers at the Astrodome in Team bests from the series: Bengals MOST POINTS: 61 (twice), in wins of at the Astrodome in 1972 and 61-7 at Cincinnati in The games are tied for the Bengals all-time high score in any game. LARGEST VICTORY MARGIN: 54, in the 61-7 game in 1989 (Bengals largest winning margin in any game). FEWEST POINTS ALLOWED: 3, in a 13-3 victory at Cincinnati in Page 1

2 (Team bests from the series, continued) Titans MOST POINTS: 48, in a victory at Houston in LARGEST VICTORY MARGIN: 35 (twice), in wins of 41-6 at Houston in 1988 and 38-3 at Cincinnati in FEWEST POINTS ALLOWED: 3 (five times), most recently in a 35-3 win at Nashville in The last meetings: Complete summaries of the last two Bengals-Titans games played in 2004 and 05, both at The Coliseum are on page 14 of this release. Is this the week? Chad Johnson needs six catches against the Titans to supplant Carl Pickens as the Bengals alltime receptions leader. Pickens had 530 catches, and Johnson raised his total to 525 with his eight catches last week against Arizona. In four previous games against the Titans, Johnson has averaged 5.5 catches. Already this season, Johnson has become the Bengals alltime leader in receiving yards. There s more on Chad in the Bengals Information section of this release. As for the all-time receptions rankings, here is the current alltime top five: PLAYERS YEARS SEASONS RECEPTIONS Carl Pickens Chad Johnson * Cris Collinsworth Isaac Curtis Darnay Scott * Still active in seventh season. No. 9 s ninth: The last time the Bengals played Tennessee, on Oct. 16, 2005, QB Carson Palmer posted a passer rating. It was the ninth straight game at 100 or more for Palmer, covering his last three games of 2004 and the first six contests of 05. The streak is tied for longest in NFL history (minimum 15 attempts per game). Palmer shares the record with two other notables, New England s Tom Brady and Indianapolis Peyton Manning. The first to string nine 100s together was Manning, doing it in Games 5-13 of Palmer s streak was next, and Brady joined the group on Oct. 28 of this season, completing a streak that began in the 06 season finale. Individually vs. Titans: Bengals QB Carson Palmer posted an 81.8 completion percentage (27-for-33) in his last game against the Titans. That figure remains his career high. He passed for 272 yards, with two TDs and no INTs, in a Bengals win in 2005 at Nashville. Palmer is 1-1 in two starts against Tennessee, having piloted a loss at Nashville in He has a two-game passer rating against the Titans of 93.8, with 47 completions in 69 attempts (68.1 percent) for 519 yards with two TDs and one INT. Other career performances by current Bengals while playing for Cincinnati against Tennessee include: HB Rudi Johnson: Two games; 137 rushing yards on 35 carries (3.9), two TDs; three receptions for seven yards (2.3). HB Kenny Watson: One game; two receptions for 13 yards (6.5). HB Chris Perry (PUP): One game; 28 rushing yards on six carries (4.7); nine receptions for 45 yards (5.0), one TD. FB Jeremi Johnson: Two games; One reception for one yard. WR Chad Johnson: Four games; 22 catches for 322 yards (14.6), one TD. Johnson was eight-for-135 with a 14-yard TD catch at Tennessee in WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh: One game; four receptions for 81 yards (20.3); Houshmandzadeh s 62-yard reception at Tennessee in 2004 is the longest of his career. He missed the last meeting (2005) due to an injury. WR Chris Henry: One game; one reception for five yards. WR Tab Perry (Reserve/Injured): One game, one rush for seven yards. TE Reggie Kelly: Two games; one catch for eight yards. Records vs. Titans: In their long series against the Titans (formerly Oilers) franchise, the Bengals have posted a number of record performances: The Bengals record for points in a game was set in a win at Houston on Dec. 17, 1972, and Cincinnati tied that mark 17 years to the day later in a 61-7 win vs. Houston on Dec. 17, The Bengals record for victory margin (54) was set in the 61-7 win over Houston in The Bengals records for touchdowns (4) and points (24) in a game were first set by FB Larry Kinnebrew at Houston on Oct. 28, 1984, and those marks were tied by HB Corey Dillon vs. Tennessee on Dec. 4, The longest field goal in Bengals history, 55 yards by Chris Bahr, came at Houston on Sept. 23, Cincinnati scored a team-record five rushing TDs vs. Houston on Oct. 6, 1983, and then tied the mark vs. the Oilers on Oct. 23, The Bengals record for first downs (35) was set vs. Houston on Dec. 17, The only tie game in Bengals history came at Houston. The clubs deadlocked in an American Football League contest at on Dec. 9, Bengals red-zone report BENGALS OPPONENTS Inside-20 poss.: 34 Inside-20 poss.: 35 Total scores: 31 (91.2%) Total scores: 31 (88.6%) TDs: 15 (44.1%) TDs: 18 (51.4%) FGs: 16 (47.1%) FGs: 13 (37.1%) TD% rank: 21st TD% rank: 16th No scores: 3 (8.8%) No scores: 4 (11.4%) Fumble: 2 (5.9%) Interceptions 3 (8.6%) Interceptions: 1 (2.9%) End of game: 1 (2.9%) Titans red-zone report TITANS OPPONENTS Inside-20 poss.: 35 Inside-20 poss.: 22 Total scores: 29 (82.9%) Total scores: 19 (86.4%) TDs: 12 (34.3%) TDs: 11 (50.0%) FGs: 17 (48.6%) FGs: 8 (36.4%) TD% rank: 30th TD% rank: 15th No scores: 6 (17.1%) No scores: 3 (13.6%) Bengals-Titans NFL rankings BENGALS TITANS SCORING (AVG. POINTS): Points scored...7th (24.6) 18th (19.8) Points allowed... 31st (28.6) T-8th (18.6) NET OFFENSE (AVG. YARDS): Total...5th (354.7) 20th (310.4) Rushing...26th (84.9) 4th (139.1) Passing...4th (269.8) 29th (171.3) NET DEFENSE (AVG. YARDS): Total...30th (369.6) 4th (278.7) Rushing...27th (126.5) 5th (86.0) Passing...26th (243.1) 7th (192.7) TURNOVERS: Differential...T-16th (even) T-20th (minus-3) Bengals-Titans connections: Bengals DT John Thornton played for the Titans from Titans TE Ben Hartsock played at Ohio State and is from Chillicothe, Ohio (Unioto High School)... Titans S Donnie Nickey played at Ohio State and is from Plain City, Ohio (Jonathan Alder High School)... Titans G/T Jacob Bell played at Miami (Ohio)... Titans K Rob Bironas is from Louisville, Ky. (Trinity High School)... Titans Page 2

3 (Bengals-Titans connections, continued) assistant head coach/running backs Sherman Smith was a QB at Miami (Ohio) from , and was on the Miami coaching staff in Titans offensive coordinator Norm Chow coached Bengals QB Carson Palmer when Chow was coordinator at the University of Southern California... Bengals DL coach Jay Hayes played for the USFL Memphis Showboats in Bengals assistant strength and conditioning coach Ray Oliver was on the University of Memphis conditioning staff from Marvin Lewis is in his fifth season as Bengals head coach. His record is in regular season, 0-1 in postseason and overall. Lewis has the third-most wins of any Bengals head coach, trailing only Sam Wyche (64) and Paul Brown (55), who each coached eight seasons. Lewis led the Bengals to an 11-5 finish in 2005, the club s most wins since Lewis is the only Bengals coach never to experience a losing season. Lewis teams have drawn Bengals-record regular-season attendance during all four of his seasons, and the 2007 season was declared a sellout prior to the season opener. The Bengals have sold out 32 straight regular-season and postseason games. Lewis was named the ninth Bengals head coach on Jan. 14, In 2002, he directed the NFL s fifth-ranked defense with Washington, serving as assistant head coach in addition to his defensive coordinator s role. Prior to his year with the Redskins, he was a record-setting defensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens. His six seasons ( ) with the Ravens included a Super Bowl victory following the 2000 season. In the 2000 regular season, Lewis Baltimore defense set the NFL record for fewest points allowed in a 16-game campaign (165). Lewis entered the NFL as linebackers coach with Pittsburgh from , guiding the careers of Pro Bowl selections Kevin Greene, Chad Brown, Levon Kirkland and Greg Lloyd. Born Sept. 23, 1958, in McDonald, Pa., near Pittsburgh, Lewis played linebacker at Idaho State and earned All-Big Sky Conference honors in each of his three seasons ( ). He began his coaching career at Idaho State in T.J. pads lead just a little: No Bengal has ever claimed an NFL season receptions title. But in 2007, Cincinnati s T.J. Houshmandzadeh is enjoying what has amounted to a wireto-wire hold on the lead. Houshmandzadeh s 76 receptions lead the league by four through Week 11 play. Baltimore s Derrick Mason is second at 72. Houshmandzadeh was two ahead of Mason through Week 10, but he had eight catches last week to Mason s six. Houshmandzadeh suffered a back strain against Arizona last week that sidelined him in the fourth quarter, but he has said he expects to be ready for the Tennessee game. Through Week 9, Houshmandzadeh led the NFL every week in catches-per-team-game. In total receptions, Houshmandzadeh led the NFL through Week 4, lost the lead for three weeks due to the Bengals early bye, and regained it outright for one week before being tied for one week by Mason. Though no Bengal has claimed an NFL season receptions title, Cincinnati players have copped three AFC receptions crowns Carl Pickens in 1995 and 96, and Chad Johnson in 05. Houshmandzadeh s top game this year has been Sept. 23 at Seattle, when he tied his career high with 12 catches. That is tied for the AFC high on the year. A real shot at history? As the season has hit the 10-game point, the receiving numbers of Cincinnati s T.J. Houshmandzadeh are increasingly impressive. With 76 catches, the former seventh-round draft choice leads the NFL and is on pace for 122 catches. A finish at 122 would rank tied for third in NFL history, and with just a slight upgrade in his catch average in the final six games, Houshmandzadeh could claim the No. 2 all-time spot. Detroit s Herman Moore currently has the No. 2 spot with 123 catches, 20 behind the hard-to-approach record 143 by The head coaches Page 3 Jeff Fisher is in his 14th season as Titans coach. His record is , including 5-4 in postseason play. Over the last eight full seasons, he has led the Titans to four playoff appearances, two AFC Championship games, two division titles and a berth in Super Bowl XXXIV (following the 1999 season). He led Tennessee to a 12-4 record plus a Wild Card playoff win in He also led consecutive 13-3 records in 1999 and Fisher joined the franchise in 1994 as its defensive coordinator, and was elevated to Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator on Nov. 14 of that year, replacing Jack Pardee. He is one of only 11 NFL head coaches to have guided 200 games with the same franchise. Fisher was the NFL s youngest defensive coordinator in 1989, when he was elevated to that position on the Philadelphia Eagles staff under Buddy Ryan. He left the Eagles in 1991 to become defensive coordinator for the Rams. He was defensive backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers in Fisher was born Feb. 28, 1958, in Culver City, Calif. He played DB at Southern California from Lewis vs. Titans: Tied 1-1; Bengals lost at Nashville in 2004 and won there in Lewis vs. Fisher: Tied, 1-1. Bengals information Fisher vs. Bengals: Fisher is 12-5, having gone 2-1 vs. Cincinnati coach Dave Shula, 5-2 vs. Bruce Coslet, 4-1 vs. Dick LeBeau and 1-1 vs. Marvin Lewis. Indianapolis Marvin Harrison. The other three receivers in the top five all had totals of 122. Houshmandzadeh s pace of 122 catches is a round-up from an arithmetical projection of Here s a look at where he would stand at year s end in the league s record book if he were to finish the year at 122: PLAYER, TEAM SEASON REC. Marvin Harrison, Ind Herman Moore, Det Cris Carter, Min Cris Carter, Min Jerry Rice, S.F T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Cin *122 * Projection with six games to play. Pickens mark could fall: T.J. Houshmandzadeh is mounting a major run at Carl Pickens Bengals season record of 100 catches, set in With 76 catches in 10 games, Houshmandzadeh needs just 25 in the last six games to break the record. He has averaged 7.6 catches per game, and would need to average only 4.2 the rest of the way to set the mark. Continued good health will be a key, however. In each of the last two seasons, Houshmandzadeh was forced to miss two games due to injuries. He suffered a back strain that sidelined him in the fourth quarter last week at Arizona, but has said he expects to return to action this week against Tennessee. T.J. s TDs: The Bengals record of 100 catches in a season (see previous item) is not the only Carl Pickens mark that WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh is pursuing this season. Houshmandzadeh is also positioned to chase Pickens team

4 (T.J. s TDs, continued) record of 17 touchdowns, set in He has a team-leading and career-high 11 for the year. That projects to exactly 17.6 TDs over 16 games. Pickens 17 TDs in 95 were all on receptions. But aside from that performance, no Bengal has ever had more than 12 receiving TDs in a campaign. Pickens did that in So Houshmandzadeh, with all his TDs on receptions this year, is already within one of tying the second-place mark, with six games still to play. Houshmandzadeh has scored 42.3 percent of the Bengals TDs on the year 11 of 26. He has more than twice as many as the second-place player, who is HB Kenny Watson with four. Houshmandzadeh ranks third in the NFL in TDs this season. New England s Randy Moss leads with 16, and Dallas Terrell Owens is second with 12. T.J. s TD streak: Bengals WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh scored at least one TD in each of the season s first eight games. He became the first Bengal to find paydirt in each of the first eight games of a campaign, and his streak of eight is the franchise s longest at any point within one season. It s the second-longest TD streak overall for the Bengals, bettered only by a 10-game streak by WR Carl Pickens that overlapped 1994 and 95. TD streaks have not come often in Bengals history. Tied for third in team annals are a pair of six-game streaks, by RB Stan Fritts in 1975, and HB Rudi Johnson in Second in NFL history: In terms strictly of receiving touchdowns, T.J. Houshmandzadeh s season-opening streak of eight straight games with a score tied for second-longest in NFL history at the start of a campaign. With at least one score in Games 1-8 but no scores in Game 9, Houshmandzadeh fell two games short of Hall of Famer Elroy Crazylegs Hirsch of the L.A. Rams, who had TD catch(es) in the first 10 games of Houshmandzadeh tied the second-place mark, set by Pittsburgh s Buddy Dial in the first eight games of Chad s drive-for-five: Last season, Chad Johnson s 1369 receiving yards made him the first Bengal ever to lead the NFL for a full season. But perhaps even more significantly, Johnson won the AFC yards title for an unprecedented fourth year in a row. This year, he s in the hunt to make it five straight AFC crowns, and also perhaps a second straight NFL title, but New England s Randy Moss will not let it come easily. Through Week 11, Johnson is 114 yards off the AFC lead, sitting in third place. Moss is the AFC and NFL yards leader at 1052, while Indianapolis Reggie Wayne ranks second in the AFC and third in the NFL at 945, just seven ahead of Johnson s 938. Johnson is fourth in the NFL, as Dallas Terrell Owens leads the NFC and ranks second in the league at Johnson s 114-yard gap from the AFC lead should not be seen as terribly daunting, however. Last year, through eight games, he was in 10th place in the AFC, 269 yards off the lead. Johnson is already the only player to have led the AFC or NFC four years in a row in receiving yards. Since the conferences formation in 1970, only two other players have led a conference even three straight years. Those two are Tim Brown of Oakland (AFC) and Jerry Rice of San Francisco (NFC), each accomplishing the feat from Prior to the 1970 realignment, one player did win four straight league titles. Hall of Famer Don Hutson of Green Bay won the NFL crown from But even though Hutson s titles are designated as league crowns rather than conference titles, Johnson s four straight AFC titles are arguably a tougher accomplishment. There have been 16 teams in the AFC in each of Johnson s four title seasons, while Hutson copped three of his titles in a 10-team NFL and one crown in an eight-team league. Should Johnson capture another AFC crown in 2007, any debate over dominance should be over. This season, Johnson s 209 yards on Sept. 16 at Cleveland rank as most in the AFC and second-most in the NFL. Chad keeps rising on yards chart: With a flourish, Chad Johnson has charged this season into the Bengals all-time lead in receiving yards. He blew by 23-year leader Isaac Curtis in Week 2 at Cleveland, gaining 209 yards when he needed just 82, and now he leads by 762 yards, with a total of It is easy, at this point, to ponder if any other Bengal will ever wear this crown. Chad s going to shatter this record, said QB Carson Palmer. He s just getting started. Here s the latest look at the Bengals top five: PLAYERS YEARS SEASONS REC. YARDS Chad Johnson * Isaac Curtis Carl Pickens Cris Collinsworth Eddie Brown * Still active in seventh season. Dizzy heights from a numbers game: Carson Palmer exaggerated a bit when he said (previous item) that Chad Johnson is just getting started. Johnson is 29 years old as he plays through 2007, and will turn 30 on Jan. 9. But in the numbers exercise that follows, we ll float the idea of Ocho Cinco becoming only the second NFL player to reach 15,000 career receiving yards. Here goes: Johnson has not missed a game since a rookie shoulder separation in If he keeps playing through 2013, when he ll be 35, he ll have the chance (injury-free) to play in 102 more games. That covers the rest of this 16-game season, plus six more campaigns ( ). That is equal to the 102 games Johnson has played to date, an argument that his career, roughly, could be only half over. And for the sake of discussion, let s say he plays just 95 more games, allowing a few missed to injury. If he were to play those 95 with the 77.1-yard average he has posted through his first 102 contests, he would add 7325 yards to the 7863 he already has. He then would have 15,188 career yards, surely in strong contention for second-most in NFL history, no matter what others may do in the meantime. The all-time NFL leader is Jerry Rice, at a stratospheric 22,895 yards, but the second-place player is currently Tim Brown at 14,934. James Lofton is currently third in all-time receiving yards at 14,004, followed by fourth-place Cris Carter (13,899) and fifthplace Henry Ellard (13,777). Chad s streak hits 86: The first of WR Chad Johnson s eight catches against the Ravens marked his 86th consecutive game with at least one catch. His streak is secondlongest in Bengals annals. The club record is 93 by Carl Pickens. Top WR trio? WR Chris Henry s return to the Bengals lineup the last two weeks gives the Bengals arguably the top trio of WRs in the NFL. T.J. Houshmandzadeh leads the league in catches (76). Chad Johnson ranks fourth in receiving yards (938) and is the defending NFL yards champion. And Henry, the third-year pro from West Virginia, has made an impressive return to the lineup in Games 9 and 10. He has 12 catches in the two contests for 180 yards, including a 37-yard TD catch last week vs. Arizona. He had a 50-yard catch on Nov. 11 at Baltimore. A 6-4, 200-pounder with top-drawer speed, Henry at his best draws comparisons to New England s Randy Moss, but last week he also had a couple of dropped balls. Henry was suspended by the NFL for Games 1-8. Chris still has to prove to everyone that he can act like a pro at all times and be someone you can count on, says QB Carson Palmer But I think he will, and it s great to have him back in the lineup. I don t think you ever have to worry about overthrowing Chris, Palmer said. He s going to go and get the ball. He s fast to begin with, but when he needs it, he s got an extra gear that most guys just don t have. The Bengals receiving statistics against Arizona last week spoke to the presence of a balanced triple threat against opposing Page 4

5 (Top WRs trio, continued) secondaries. Houshmandzadeh caught eight-for-87 with a TD, Johnson was eight-for-86, and Henry was eight-for-81 with a score. Palmer on pace for 400: QB Carson Palmer s career-high 37 completions last week vs. Arizona put him on pace to become the first Bengal with 400 completions in a season. He has 250 completions in 10 games, an average of 25.0 per contest that projects exactly to 400 over 16 games. His 37 last week were the second-most in Bengals history, behind Ken Anderson s 40 on Dec. 20, 1982 at San Diego. Just to set a new Bengals season record, Palmer would need to average only 16 completions over the final six games. He set the existing mark of 345 during the 2005 campaign. Palmer is also on pace to smash his own Bengals record for passing yards in a season. He set the bar at 4035 in 2005, but for 2007, he is averaging yards per game (2793 total), a pace that projects to 4469 over 16 games. Palmer also set the Bengals record for TD passes in 2005, throwing 32. This season, with 18 TDs in 10 games, he is on pace to finish with 29 (rounded up from a projection of 28.8). In league rankings for this year, Palmer s six TDs on Sept. 16 at Cleveland are tied for the NFL high, and his 401 yards at Cleveland are the AFC high. Palmer s rankings: Through Week 11, Bengals QB Carson Palmer ranks tied for third in the NFL in completions (250), fourth in passing yards (2793) and sixth in TDs (18). Palmer is 13th in passer rating, at Comparing the big three: Carson Palmer is already crowding Ken Anderson and Boomer Esiason, the Bengals two Super Bowl QBs, in the team passing records. Palmer dominates the season record category, and although he has played only three full seasons, he holds his own in career records. In game records, he claimed his first in Week 2 by throwing for six TDs at Cleveland. Here s how Anderson, Esiason and Palmer compare, with a chart of team records held by each player: Career (minimum 1000 passes) ANDERSON ESIASON PALMER Attempts (4475) Yds./att. (7.62) Comp. pct (64.2) Completions (2654) 300-yd. games (23) Rating (90.8) Yards (32,838) TD/INT ratio (1.7/1) TD passes (197) Season (minimum 350 passes) ANDERSON ESIASON PALMER Comp. pct. (70.6) 300-yd. games (5) Completions (345) TD/INT ratio (2.9/1) Yards (4035) TD passes (32) Rating (101.1) Game ANDERSON ESIASON PALMER Completions (40) Yards (490) TD passes (6) Comp. pct. (90.9) Longest pass (94) Carson s six sink Boomer: Carson Palmer s six TD passes on Sept. 16 at Cleveland were the most in a game in Bengals history, topping a pair of five-td performances by Boomer Esiason. Esiason held the record for more than 20 years, since tossing five vs. the N.Y. Jets on Dec. 21, Esiason threw five again on Oct. 29, 1989 vs. Tampa Bay. Cleveland s Derek Anderson threw five TD passes on Sept. 16 against Cincinnati, making the game only the third in NFL history in which opposing passers have each tossed five or more. It was the first such game in more than 35 years. On Dec. 22, 1963 at Oakland, the Raiders Tom Flores threw for six TDs and Houston s George Blanda threw for five in a Raiders win. On Nov. 2, 1969 at St. Louis, New Orleans Billy Kilmer and St. Louis Charley Johnson each threw for six TDs in a Saints win. It s no act: As Carson Palmer forges his place among the NFL s elite QBs, he continues to impress people in a much more quiet way as a total team player who shows true grace with fans and media. Carson is so down-to-earth, you used to think it was almost an act, says head coach Marvin Lewis. And he s never changed. He is what he is. That s his makeup, and it probably always has been. He s so unflappable. He can focus in and see right through the eye of that storm, and that may be the greatest quality he has. I think everybody around him feels the confidence that kind of oozes out of him, and it makes them feel good about things. Graham is No. 2 all-time: Bengals K Shayne Graham ranks second all-time in the NFL for field goal accuracy, with a career percentage of (on 142-of-166). He is the percentage leader among active kickers, with the lead held by former Colt and Cowboy Mike Vanderjagt at Graham has been ranked second in all-time NFL field goal accuracy for all but two weeks since Game 2 of 2006, when he qualified for the ratings with his 100th made FG. Here is the all-time NFL top five through last week s play: PLAYER FG FGA PCT. Mike Vanderjagt Shayne Graham Matt Stover Phil Dawson Jeff Wilkins Graham needs 12: With two FGs in two attempts against Arizona last week, Bengals K Shayne Graham extended to 21 his active club-record streak for consecutive FGs made. His only miss this season has been on a 53-yarder, his first try of the year during the Sept. 10 Baltimore game. How far the streak can go is anyone s guess, but here s something that involves no guesswork: If Graham could nail another 12 FG tries in a row, he would supplant Mike Vanderjagt as the NFL s No. 1 all-time performer in FG accuracy. As noted in the previous item, Graham currently stands second all-time at percent. Vanderjagt, the former Colt and Cowboy who is not presently active, is the leader at percent. But 12 more consecutive made field goals would put Graham at 154-for-178 for his NFL career, good for an percent reading that would push him past Vanderjagt. Entering this season, Graham held the Bengals record for consecutive FGs at 17, a streak that began in 2005 and ran though the 06 season opener. No other Bengals kicker has made more than 13 straight FG attempts. Already better than the best? As far as Bengals coaches are concerned, K Shayne Graham is already the true No. 1 in all-time field goal accuracy. Though Graham (85.54) trails Mike Vanderjagt (86.47) in career percentage, Graham s career totals (142-for-166) include a 19-for-26 performance in previous NFL stops at Buffalo and Carolina. As a Bengal, Graham is 123-for-140, an percent accuracy rate which is Cincinnati s all-time best and which also tops Vanderjagt s career mark. Graham holds 07 accuracy lead: Shayne Graham s two-for-two performance on field goals last week keeps him in the 2007 NFL lead for field goal accuracy. Graham is at 95.5 percent for the year, at 21-of-22. He has made a club-record 21 straight since missing a 53-yarder on his first try of the season. Pittsburgh s Jeff Reed is second at 94.4 percent (17-of-18). San Francisco s Joe Nedney is third at 93.3 (14-of-15). Page 5

6 (Bengals information, continued) Hall leads rookie pass thieves: Against Arizona, for the first time in three games, Bengals CB Leon Hall didn t have an interception. But through 10 games, the Bengals top draft pick (Michigan) remains the NFL rookie leader in INTs, with four. Also denied an INT last week was CB Aaron Ross of the N.Y. Giants. The Texas product is in second place among rookies with three INTs. But both Hall and Ross acquired new competition last week, as Jacksonville safety Reggie Nelson (Florida) snagged his third to share second place. Also this week, Hall remains two picks off the overall NFL lead of six, held by San Diego s Antonio Cromartie. Hall is one theft away from tying the Bengals record for INTs by a rookie. That mark of five is shared by S Tommy Casanova (1972), CB Ray Horton (1983) and LB Odell Thurman (2005). Casanova got his five picks in a 14-game season. Thurman was the last Bengal to lead NFL rookies in INTs. Hall s most recent INT, in the Nov. 11 Bengals win at Baltimore, came at a crucial juncture. Late in the first half, with the Ravens at the Bengals two-yard line and threatening to erase a 6-0 Cincinnati lead, Hall snagged a deflected pass intended for Todd Heap in the end zone. Hall has played in every game and made his fourth start in the Arizona game, opening at LCB. Hall tied for second in tackles (seven) and had a pass defensed. He ranks second on the team in passes defensed for the season (nine), ranks seventh in tackles on defense (43) and ranks tied for second in special teams tackles (eight). He also has one forced fumble on the year. More on Hall: It s no secret that despite the exploits listed in the previous item, rookie CB Leon Hall has given up his share of plays as well. Through it all, head coach Marvin Lewis has remained unconcerned with particular ups or downs. He s going through life in the NFL as a corner. There s nothing tougher as a rookie, Lewis says. Just keep doing things the right way. Just keep playing proper technique. Get your eyes where they belong, and keep them there. Believe in what you re supposed to do. Leon will be fine. It s been a tough baptism at times, but he s getting a chance to do it instead of watching someone else. I think it s a great chance to have. First since 89: HB DeDe Dorsey s blocked punt and 19-yard TD return against Arizona last week marked the first Cincinnati TD on a punt block since Nov. 19, 1989, when CB Eric Thomas blocked a punt vs. Detroit that S Barney Bussey recovered in the end zone. Dorsey became only the third Bengal, and the first since 1978, to singlehandedly block a punt and score a TD. CB Scott Perry did it against Kansas City at Riverfront Stadium on Sept. 3 of 78, scoring on a 25-yard return. DE Bob Maddox did it against the Chiefs at Riverfront on Nov. 24, 1974, recovering his own block in the end zone. Dorsey s block against Arizona P Mike Barr was the first blocked punt of any kind by the Bengals since Nov , when S Darryl Williams blocked one out of the end zone for a safety against the Oilers at Houston. The last punt blocked against the Bengals was by Jacksonville s Derrick Wimbush at Jacksonville on Oct. 9, Protection near record pace: The Bengals have given up only 14 sacks this season, including one last week vs. Arizona. They are on pace to allow only 22 on the season, rounded down from a strict projection of Even at 23, the total would be second-best in franchise history, behind the record-low of 21 allowed during the 2005 AFC North Championship season. The Bengals rank tied for seventh in the NFL in 2007 in fewest total sacks allowed, and rank fifth in fewest sacks allowed per passing play. The team s pass blockers have remained cohesive despite numerous personnel shifts caused by injuries. Some lines may play an entire season with few snaps distributed beyond the five starters, but the Bengals have had significant snaps by eight linemen. Andrew Whitworth has started every game (three at LOT, seven at LG) despite being listed as a reserve on the training camp depth chart. Two other reserves, C Alex Stepanovich and G-T Scott Kooistra, have seen considerable action. Among starters on the training camp depth chart, OT s Willie Anderson and Levi Jones have missed significant time, along with C Eric Ghiaciuc. Opening starters Bobbie Williams and Stacy Andrews have played in every game. Williams, at RG, is the only lineman to start every game at the same position. Andrews has started eight games, three at LG and five at ROT. TE Reggie Kelly and FB Jeremi Johnson are also mainstays in the pass protection schemes. Johnson has played in every game, and Kelly has started nine contests, missing one with an injury. At the HB spot, Kenny Watson and Rudi Johnson have shared pass protection duties. A stat that matters: The Bengals are 27-3 under head coach Marvin Lewis with a plus-differential in turnovers. That s a.900 winning percentage. The Bengals are.467 (7-8) under Lewis when the differential has been even, and are.138 (4-25) with a minus. More extensive league-wide numbers also bear out the Bengals experience. Since the start of the 2000 season, here are the aggregate records of NFL teams with varying turnover differentials. (Minus differentials are not included because they are the exact reverse of the plus figure for the same numbers): DIFFERENTIAL W-L PCT. Plus Plus Plus Plus Plus-5 or more In last week s NFL play, teams with a plus-differential in turnovers went Turnover tables are turned: Last week s minusfive reading against Arizona dropped the Bengals back to the break-even mark in turnover differential for the season. But the tenure of head coach Marvin Lewis has seen the Bengals sharply reverse past bad fortune in this crucial category. For the span of five seasons encompassing Lewis tenure ( ), Cincinnati ranks third in the NFL at plus-37. Here are the top five teams in differential since 2003: TEAM TAKEAWAYS GIVEAWAYS DIFFERENTIAL Indianapolis New England Cincinnati Kansas City Minnesota Prior to Lewis tenure, the Bengals had posted a minus differential for five straight years ( ). You see turnovers as a huge factor in just about every NFL game for every season, Lewis says. You have to make a lot of plays to overcome a lot of turnovers, and it doesn t happen very often. When you re on the plus side, first and foremost, you re getting yourself off the field defensively, limiting your exposure to bad things happening to you. And, you give your offense more opportunities to make bad things happen to the opposing team. You want to play defense on the sidelines. That s the best way to play defense. Holt climbs to 10th: Bengals WR Glenn Holt averaged 30.5 yards on two kickoff returns vs. Arizona and raised his season average from 25.4 to He rose from 12th to 10th place in the NFL KOR rankings. The NFL leader is Cleveland s Joshua Cribbs at Holt s 25.6 average, if maintained through season s end, would rank third in Bengals history. The team record is 27.1 by Tremain Mack in Holt would need to better his average only Page 6

7 (Holt climbs to 10th, continued) slightly, however, to log the second-best season average in club history. Mack posted the No 2 mark of 25.9 in 98. Holt had a 100-yard KO return for a TD on Nov. 4 at Buffalo. It was the second-longest kickoff return in Bengals history and the fourth-longest play in Bengals history. It ranks behind a 102-yard KO return by Eric Bieniemy and a pair of 102-yard INT returns, one by Artrell Hawkins and one by Louis Breeden. Holt s KOR totals: Glenn Holt is on pace to set a Bengals records for total kickoff return yards in a season. With 999 yards, Holt is on pace to finish with 1598 yards. The team record is 1562, set by Tab Perry in Through nine games, Holt was also on pace to set a team mark for total kickoff returns in a season. But he had only two last week, leaving him at 39 for the season and on pace to finish with 62. The record is 64 by Perry in 05. Watson keeps producing: Sixth-year NFL veteran Kenny Watson is on pace for a personal season high in yards from scrimmage, including personal highs in both rushing and receiving yards. With 481 rushing yards, he s on pace for 770. His previous high was 534 with Washington in Watson also has 242 receiving yards this season, ranked third on the team. That gives him 723 scrimmage yards, on pace to finish with His previous scrimmage yards high was 787 in In the last five weeks, he has had three games of more than 100 scrimmage yards and one of 95. Watson is just 12 yards away from setting a new personal receiving yards high. His top mark was 253 in 02. Watson has a 4.50-yard average per rush on 107 carries. The last Bengal to average more than 4.50 yards with 107 or more carries was Corey Dillon in 2000 (4.56 avg. on 315 rushes). Everybody s happy: HB Kenny Watson s good work this season (see previous item) has met with considerable praise from his teammates. Watson is known in the locker room as one of the team s hardest and most unassuming workers. I m not surprised at all; Kenny s a great back, said QB Carson Palmer. But it s so great to see him do what he s doing, because it seems like things have always been kind of against Kenny. He was a free agent coming out of college, he had to scrap by to make a team, and he had to scrap by to be here. We signed Rudi (Johnson) to a big deal. We drafted a first-round tailback (Chris Perry, currently injured), then we drafted a secondround tailback (Kenny Irons, also presently injured). He s never really been given his opportunity. He s had to fight for it and now he s finally getting it. Now it s 19: With his 130-yard rushing game on Oct. 21 against the Jets, Kenny Watson became the 19th Bengal to rush for 100 or more yards in a game. Earlier this season, Rudi Johnson posted the 19th 100-yarder of his Bengals career, gaining 118 at Cleveland. Johnson ranks second to Corey Dillon in the category. Here s a full listing of the 19 Bengals players to rush for 100 yards in a game, with their number of 100-yarders in parentheses: Ten or more games Corey Dillon (28), Rudi Johnson (19), James Brooks (17), Pete Johnson (14). Five-to-nine games Harold Green (eight), Paul Robinson (six), Essex Johnson (five), Ickey Woods (five). One-to-four games Larry Kinnebrew (four), Boobie Clark (three), Archie Griffin (three), Jess Phillips (three), Ki-Jana Carter (one), Virgil Carter (one), Doug Dressler (one), Marc Logan (one), Deacon Turner (one), Kenny Watson (one), Stanley Wilson (one). The club record for 100-yard rushing games in a season is five. That record has been achieved eight times previously by five different players. Dillon did it three times, and Rudi Johnson has done it twice, including Rudi passes Pete: Though he has been limited to 267 rushing yards this season, slowed in part by a hamstring strain, Bengals HB Rudi Johnson has passed Pete Johnson into third place on the franchise s all-time rushing yards list. Rudi passed Pete by one yard on his final carry Sept. 23 at Seattle. Rudi now has 5512 yards, 91 ahead of Pete. Rudi has played in only four of the last seven games, due to the hamstring strain. Here s a look at the latest top five: PLAYER SEASONS YARDS Corey Dillon... 7 ( ) 8061 James Brooks... 8 ( ) 6447 Rudi Johnson...*7 ( ) 5512 Pete Johnson... 7 ( ) 5421 Harold Green... 6 ( ) 3727 * Still active in seventh season. That s quick work: Last season, over 16 games combined, no Bengal was able to make a mark in every column of the defensive stat sheet (that covers tackles, sacks interceptions, passes defensed, forced fumbles and fumble recoveries). For the previous five years, only one player each year had accomplished it by season s end. But in this year s Sept. 10 season opener vs. Baltimore, DE Robert Geathers did it in one game. He had eight tackles, an eight-yard sack, an INT with a 30-yard return, a pass defensed, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Since Geathers feat, free safety Madieu Williams has also logged entries in every defensive category. He s way out front: S Herana-Daze Jones led the Bengals in 2006 with 19 special teams tackles, and this year he s in the lead again by a wide margin. Jones has 17 stops, and though he has missed one game with a knee bruise, his total is more than twice as many as the second-place players (Leon Hall and Corey Mays with eight). I would just say that he s playing very aggressively and has a nose for the ball, special teams coach Darrin Simmons said of Jones. He knows where to be, he s in the right place to make a play, and when he gets the opportunity, he s making it. That sounds pretty simple, but that s really the story. The last Bengal to win two undisputed special teams tackling crowns for a season was WR Ron Dugans, in CB Reggie Myles led the team in 2004 after tying for the club lead in Smith at 101: Bengals DE Justin Smith started his 101st consecutive game (all with the Bengals) last week vs. Arizona. When OT Willie Anderson s streak of 116 consecutive Bengals starts came to an end due to injuries on Oct. 14 at Kansas City, Smith took over as the current Bengal with the longest starting streak. Smith was the Bengals top draft pick in 2001 (fourth overall), his streak began with Game 6 of the 01 season. He did not play in the 01 season opener because he signed his contract only the day before, ending protracted negotiations, and he saw action in a reserve role in Games 2-5 of 01. Smith s streak is the team s longest current run for games played, as well as starts. Anderson s now-ended streak of 116 straight starts stands as the sixth-most in Bengals history. The record is 169 straight by P Lee Johnson, and the record for non-kickers is 137 by LB Reggie Williams. Anderson still leads the current roster in total NFL games played (179) and most total NFL starts (173). Willie at 179: OT Willie Anderson played in his 179th Bengals game on Oct. 21 against the Jets. He ranks seventh in club history in games played, but he has missed the last four games due to knee and foot injuries. He has an early-week listing Page 7

8 (Willie at 179, continued) of questionable for Tennessee. The totals include regular-season games only. If Anderson were to play in every game the rest of the season, he end the year tied with Anthony Munoz on the franchise s all-time game service chart. Here s a look at the top 10 on the all-time Bengals list: PLAYER YEARS GAMES 1. CB Ken Riley ( ) LB Reggie Williams ( ) QB Ken Anderson ( ) NT Tim Krumrie ( ) OT Anthony Munoz ( ) K Jim Breech ( ) OT Willie Anderson* ( ) OL Bruce Kozerski ( ) DE Eddie Edwards ( ) P Lee Johnson ( ) 169 * Still active. Jones joins captains ranks: LB Dhani Jones has been named the Bengals full-season special teams captain, head coach Marvin Lewis announced. Dhani is a veteran player with excellent leadership skills and will do a fine job in this role, Lewis said. He has been a valuable addition for us both on and off the field. An eighth-year NFL player, Jones signed with Cincinnati as a free agent on Sept. 19. He played his first game with the NFL s new captain s patch on his jersey in last week s contest against the Jets. Jones joins offensive captain Carson Palmer and defensive captain John Thornton. Lewis continues to also name weekly team captains from the offense, defense and special teams, based on player performance and on other factors regarding the upcoming opponent. Magnificent seven: There are only seven players on the Bengals roster who were on the 53-player roster at the conclusion of the 2002 season, just before Marvin Lewis was hired as head coach. The seven survivors, including only one on defense, are: Offense: OT Willie Anderson, WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh, WR Chad Johnson, HB Rudi Johnson, OT Levi Jones, LS-TE Brad St. Louis. Defense: DE Justin Smith. LB situation stabilizing: After finishing the Oct. 1 New England game with only two healthy LBs, the Bengals have seen manpower at the position gradually improve. The MLB spot now belongs to team tackling leader Landon Johnson, who has played there the last two games, after eight games at WLB. Ahmad Brooks, pegged in preseason as the starting MLB, played only two games before suffering a groin strain that proved to be season-ending. Veteran Dhani Jones, who has played in all seven games since signing as a free agent on Sept. 19, has replaced Johnson as the starting WLB. At SLB, Rashad Jeanty, the projected starter in preseason, has started the last two games. Jeanty missed Games 1-5 with a lower leg injury, and played as a reserve in Games 6-8 while working back into shape. The only two backups on the roster are MLB Anthony Schlegel and OLB Corey Mays. Caleb Miller, who had 100 tackles last season, played in only three games this season before suffering a back injury that proved to be season-ending. After six games on inactive status, Miller was placed Nov. 13 on the Reserve/Injured list. Veteran Lemar Marshall was lost for the season with an Achilles injury in the Patriots game, and an earlier 2007 loss was the training camp wrist injury that ended the season for Eric Henderson. David Pollack, Cincinnati s first-round draft choice in 2005, is on the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list, due to a neck injury suffered last season. There s more to Landon: Bengals LB Landon Johnson was such a lean individual coming out of Purdue, he was briefly considered as a strong safety prospect in the NFL. And though he had a highly successful first three seasons at LB with Cincinnati, twice leading the team in tackles, he suffered a physical toll while playing in the pound range. Though he has not missed a game in three previous years, he played more than a few while hampered with shoulder soreness. But for 2007, Johnson has beefed up a good 10 pounds, and not around the belly. He s noticeably more formidable in the upper body, and arguably is having his best year yet. He leads the team in tackles (89) through 10 games. Johnson also leads the team in fumble recoveries (two) and is third in passes defensed (five), leading the LB corps in PDs. I noticed it all offseason, head coach Marvin Lewis says of Johnson s thicker profile. When you d see him standing in the hall, you would wonder, Who is that guy? So this is a tough guy who has played with a lot of pain, and this was the first time he went into the offseason program with his shoulders not bothering him. He s been able to really concentrate on lifting weights and staying strong, and we are seeing the results of that this year. Johnson led the Bengals last season with 132 tackles, finishing 22 ahead of the second-place player. He also led the team as a rookie in 2004, and in 05, he finished third. Sellout streak at 33: Last week s Arizona game drew attendance of 65,403 and was the 33rd straight Bengals sellout at Paul Brown Stadium. The streak includes regularseason and postseason play. The last Bengals home game not to sell out was Nov. 9, 2003 vs. Houston. The streak began the next week, with attendance of 64,923 on Nov. 16 vs. Kansas City. The club record for consecutive sellouts is 43, set at Riverfront Stadium from The current streak will reach 36 at the end of this sold-out regular season, and if the Bengals sell out every regular-season game in 2008, a new record streak of 44 straight sellouts will be set at the 08 season finale. The Bengals Oct. 28 game vs. Pittsburgh this season drew attendance of 66,188, breaking the franchise mark of 66,113 which had been set earlier this season against New England. TV streak hits 46: For 46 consecutive TV ratings weeks that have included a Bengals regular-season or postseason game, the Bengals have been the top-rated show among all programming in the Cincinnati market. And usually by a wide margin. The streak began in 2004 and now runs though this year s Nov. 11 game at Baltimore. That game drew a local rating of The second-rated program in Cincinnati, was 60 Minutes at 21.0, and that program, perhaps not coincidentally, ran directly after the Bengals on CBS. The rating number indicates the percentage of market households that were tuned to the game including households not watching television at the time. Cincinnati rankings for the week of Nov , including the Bengals-Cardinals game on Nov. 18, were not available at press time for this release. But there s a good chance the streak will go to 47, as the Cardinals game drew a strong overnight rating score of Bengals games averaged a 33.6 local rating last season. In most weeks, the second-most watched show in Cincinnati was either CSI or Desperate Housewives, usually at least 10 points behind the Bengals, with a rating in the low 20s. The highest-rated program of the season, other than a Bengals game, was also a football game. On Nov. 18, the Ohio State-Michigan game finished second to the Bengals for the week with a 28.8 rating. The highest-rated Bengals game during the streak has been 45.5 for the Pittsburgh playoff game on Jan. 8, The consistent high rating of Bengals games has occurred despite the fact that most games are played in the afternoon, when overall TV viewership is not as high as it is during the evening. Page 8