Bengals keep hope alive

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12/01/2006 - Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carson Palmer threw for 234 yards and a touchdown and the Cincinnati defense stymied the Baltimore offense all night, as the Bengals kept their playoff hopes alive with a 13-7 victory over the Ravens.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh caught 10 passes for 106 yards, including a 40-yard touchdown reception on a flea-flicker for the Bengals (7-5), who have won three in a row to remain in Wild Card contention and move within two games of Baltimore for the lead in the AFC North.

Palmer completed 21-of-32 passes without an interception while Chad Johnson added eight catches for 91 yards for Cincinnati, which came within one minute of notching back-to-back shutouts for the first time in franchise history. The Bengals did manage to make history, pitching seven consecutive shutout quarters for the first time.

Steve McNair completed 26-of-43 passes for 227 yards and a touchdown for the Ravens (9-3), who had won five in a row and were looking to clinch the division title.

Derrick Mason caught seven passes for 90 yards, including a 36-yard TD with just over a minute to play to break up the shutout.

Holding a slim 6-0 lead at the break, the Bengals came out strong to start the second half, forcing the Ravens to go three-and-out before taking a 13-0 lead on Palmer's flea-flicker touchdown pass to Houshmandzadeh.

After a false start penalty coupled with an incompletion and a short Rudi Johnson run, the Bengals appeared ready for a punt. But with a 3rd-and-14, Palmer's shovel pass to Kenny Watson went for 20-yards and a first down.

Rudi Johnson followed with a five-yard run and Jeremi Johnson rushed for 15 yards to set up Houshmandzadeh's TD.

Baltimore was on the move late in the third quarter at midfield, but on a 2nd- and-2, McNair was called for intentional grounding and the Ravens were forced to punt early in the fourth.

Then, after forcing Cincinnati to go three-and-out, the Ravens finally put a drive together, marching deep into Bengals' territory. With a 4th-and-4 on the Cincinnati 45-yard line, McNair hooked up with Mason for a 12-yard gain to move the chains. However, with another fourth down on the 11-yard line, McNair's short pass to Mark Clayton fell incomplete.

After the Bengals failed to capitalize on a muffed punt by the Ravens when Graham's 46-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right, Baltimore finally got on the board with Mason's 36-yard TD reception with just 1:01 left to play.

Cincinnati, though, easily recovered Stover's onside kick and the Bengals were able to run out the clock.

Palmer threw for 160 yards in the first and led the Bengals offense deep into Ravens territory twice. However, each Cincinnati drive stalled and the Bengals led by just 6-0 at the break.

After the teams traded punts to start the game, the Bengals embarked on their first scoring drive of the game. With the ball near midfield, Chad Johnson caught three passes for 46 yards to bring Cincinnati down to the Baltimore six-yard line. On the next play, Palmer then found Chad Johnson in the right corner of the end zone for an apparent touchdown.

However, Chad Johnson was called for offensive pass interference on the catch and the Bengals' drive stalled from there, with Cincinnati settling for a 23- yard Graham kick 11 seconds into the second quarter.

The Bengals then forced Baltimore to punt on its ensuing possession and three straight passes by Palmer quickly brought Cincinnati to the Ravens 37-yard line.

Then, faced with a 3rd-and-6, Palmer hooked up with Houshmandzadeh for a 10- yard gain to move the chains. Chad Johnson followed with catches of eight and six yards and Rudi Johnson followed with a short burst down to the nine-yard line.

Cincinnati, though, was once again unable to cross the goalline after two pass attempts by Palmer fell incomplete, including one to Reggie Kelly in the end zone on third down. Graham's 27-yard boot with 4:56 left before halftime made it 6-0.

Baltimore's specials teams took a major hit on the ensuing kickoff as kick returner B.J. Sams' right foot got caught and twisted awkwardly.. He was fitted with an air-cast before being carted off the field with a broken right fibia.

Thanks to a huge McNair scramble on a third-down play, the Ravens then had an excellent opportunity to get some points on their last possession of the first half. Matt Stover split the uprights on a 29-yard field goal with seven seconds left that seemingly cut Baltimore's deficit in half.

However, the Bengals called a timeout before the kick and Stover pulled his second attempt wide left as the score remained 6-0 going into the locker room. It was Stover's first miss under 40 yards all season.

Game Notes

Rudi Johnson finished with 16 carries for 47 yards with two catches for 17 yards for the Bengals...Clayton and tight end Todd Heap each had four catches for 29 yards for Baltimore.

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Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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