124 Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Bengals maturing into championship-caliber team By John Clayton ESPN.com PITTSBURGH -- Marvin Lewis keeps preaching to his Bengals that football is a 60-minute game. But Sunday's stunning, 28-20 victory over the Steelers at Heinz Field came down to two plays taking a total of 10 seconds. The Bengals appeared destined for defeat. Their offense was on life support. Carson Palmer couldn't escape the Steelers' pass-rush. The running game had blown away in the gusting, 22-mph winds swirling around the Ohio River. After Palmer's sixth sack from a relentless Blitzburg rush, the Bengals, trailing 17-14 with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, found life when Steelers returner Ricardo Colclough couldn't judge a punt in the wind and the Bengals' Tony Stewart recovered the ball at the Steelers' 9-yard line. Palmer took three seconds to draw Steelers safety Troy Polamalu to the line of scrimmage on a play-action pass and hit T.J. Houshmandzadeh for an easy 9-yard touchdown pass. Two plays later, Steelers halfback Verron Haynes fumbled and linebacker Brian Simmons recovered at the Steelers' 30. The next touchdown took seven seconds. Palmer lobbed a pass to Houshmandzadeh at the goal line. It wasn't Palmer's best pass, but Houshmandzadeh managed to make a spectacular, juggling catch. The touchdown gave the Bengals a 28-17 lead with 7:05 left. Two plays. Two touchdowns. The plays took a total of 10 seconds. The elapsed time on the game clock was only 54 seconds -- 54 seconds that will burn in the Bengals' memory for years. Twice in two years the Bengals have come into Heinz Field and escaped with a victory. Last year, it enabled them to win the AFC North. Sunday's win gives the Bengals a 3-0 record and a two-game lead over the Steelers. But for Cincinnati, this game was about much more than just 10 seconds of Bengals explosiveness. The Bengals grew up Sunday, and they admit they learned a valuable lesson from the Steelers last year in the playoffs. The emotional, volatile Bengals matured into a team with patience Sunday. They looked and acted like a playoff team. "The Steelers showed us, as a football team, how you do it," Marvin Lewis said of the Steelers' playoff victory in Cincinnati last January. "When your backs are against the wall, you go play football. You don't talk about it, you go play. That's what they did. They were a great example for us." Right tackle Willie Anderson has been a Bengal for 11 years. He's seen a lot of bad football, but he's watching a champion finally starting to emerge. He and Marvin Lewis both know the Bengals are volatile. Once Palmer blew out his knee in the first possession of the Steelers' playoff win, the Bengals lost their composure and watched the Steelers grab the lead. Looking back, Anderson identified the problem. "Last year, the playoff game may have gotten too big for us," Anderson said. "You have to learn not to make a game bigger than it is. Six or seven years ago if we would have fallen behind 17-14 like we did today, we probably would have given up. Before Marvin got here, we didn't have the mental toughness to handle these type of games." Winning teams learn to handle adversity. Look at the Steelers. After they lost to the Bengals last season, they had to win their last four to make the playoffs. Veteran leadership prevailed, and the Steelers gutted out three playoff road wins, then won the Super Bowl despite being dominated by the Seahawks in the first half. By all rights, the Bengals should have lost Sunday. The Steelers ran 80 plays to the Bengals' 57. The Steelers controlled the ball for 33 minutes, 51 seconds compared to 26:09 for the Bengals. Willie Parker rushed for 133 yards on 31 carries for the Steelers. Palmer was sacked six times, had three fumbles and was responsible for three turnovers. "It shows how good your team is when you are playing against a good team and your quarterback doesn't play very well and you still get a win," said Palmer, who threw for only 193 yards. Palmer didn't panic. He took his shots when he could. Every time he dropped back, he noticed his favorite target, Chad Johnson, was covered. Johnson ended up with only one catch for 11 yards. Instead, Palmer got the ball to Chris Henry and Houshmandzadeh. Twice, Henry was matched up in one-on-one coverage inside the red zone. Henry is 6-foot-4, 200 pounds and runs a 4.4. He beat Deshea Townsend and Ike Taylor for touchdowns in the red zone on what turned out to be a four-touchdown day for Palmer. "I don't know if you're ever going to control them," Steelers coach Bill Cowher said of the Bengals. "We were trying to contain them. It's a good offense. You start the game and feel good about it, then they put together two good drives at the end of the first half. Defensively, in the second half, we did a very good job outside of the two plays they hit after the turnovers." While the Bengals rallied in the face of adversity, the Steelers made major blunders when things were working in their favor. For example: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madmike1 Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 i will enjoy it when they destroy the patsys next week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
124 Posted September 25, 2006 Author Share Posted September 25, 2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetCane Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 i will enjoy it when they destroy the patsys next week. is there a line out on the game yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doggystyle Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 first of all, i don't think mature is really a great adjective for the bengals. And while Cincy looks outstanding, why do you have to post an article that John Clayton wrote? Does he have credibility in your eyes? Isn't that the same Clayton that said the Jets are the worst team in the NFL? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 http://www.vegasinsider.com/nfl/odds/las-vegas/ BTW what are we favored by?...oh yea we never are that's right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 first of all, i don't think mature is really a great adjective for the bengals. And while Cincy looks outstanding, why do you have to post an article that John Clayton wrote? Does he have credibility in your eyes? Isn't that the same Clayton that said the Jets are the worst team in the NFL? woof woof to dat homes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faba Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 first of all, i don't think mature is really a great adjective for the bengals. And while Cincy looks outstanding, why do you have to post an article that John Clayton wrote? Does he have credibility in your eyes? Isn't that the same Clayton that said the Jets are the worst team in the NFL? Articles that are football related is what this site is supposed to be for to discuss.= even if you or me might not like the author or what they say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetCane Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 http://www.vegasinsider.com/nfl/odds/las-vegas/ BTW what are we favored by?...oh yea we never are that's right Jets getting 9 1/2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Jets getting 9 1/2 take the points we're winning outright Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spjets Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 if drinking and driving is maturing..then they must be proud.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Preston Howley III Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Marvin Lewis is a great coach. He took over a garbage team, and has made them a legitimate contender. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madmike1 Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Marvin Lewis is a great coach. He took over a garbage team, and has made them a legitimate contender. getting a franchise QB will do that for you lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Preston Howley III Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 getting a franchise QB will do that for you lol Parcells drafted one for us in 2000. Hermy destroyed him, but Chad is a Phoenix rising from the ashes! ALL HAIL MANGINI! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madmike1 Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Parcells drafted one for us in 2000. Hermy destroyed him, but Chad is a Phoenix rising from the ashes! ALL HAIL MANGINI! i'm a big fan of chad and i think he can win alot of games but he's not carson palmer... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Preston Howley III Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 i'm a big fan of chad and i think he can win alot of games but he's not carson palmer... He doesn't have to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nj meadowlands Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Anyone else find it ironic to call the Bengals mature? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Troll Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Bengals will lose in the playoffs. They are close, but not this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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