The Cincinnati Bengals moved to 8-3 and took a firm grip on the AFC North by defeating the Cleveland Browns 16-7 on Sunday at Paul Brown Stadium. The win puts them at 6-0 inside the division, marking the first time in franchise history that the team finished divisional play with a perfect record.

THE GOOD
Running Attack – Playing without their top rusher, Cedric Benson, for the second straight week, the Bengals got solid efforts from their backup running backs. Newcomer Larry Johnson led all rushers with 107 yards on 22 carries. Rookie Bernard Scott added 87 yards on 18 attempts.

Rush Defense – For the game, the Bengals outgained Cleveland on the ground 210 yards to 58 yards. It marked the seventh straight game (franchise best) that the team ceded less than 100 rushing yards.

Special Teams – The Bengals took Cleveland’s best weapon, return man Joshua Cribbs, out of the game. Rookie punter Kevin Huber did a good job keeping the ball away from him. How about the crushing blow delivered by Maurice Purify. Kicker Shayne Graham hit three field goals, including a huge 53-yarder with no time left on the clock at the end of the first half.

Steelers Lose – With Pittsburgh losing to Baltimore on Sunday night, the Bengals now have a two-game lead over both of their division foes and have a tiebreaker advantage over both teams.

THE BAD
Pass Protection – The offensive line struggled to keep Cleveland’s pass rushers off of quarterback Carson Palmer all day long.  The Browns’ no-name defense provided consistent pressure and had Palmer out of whack all day long.

Penalties – If the Bengals are going to make some noise during the playoffs they’ll need to clean up their penalties. The yellow flags came out early and often as the team was penalized 10 times for 75 yards. Against good teams, that’s enough to beat you.

THE UGLY
Scoring Offense – The team is still struggling to put opponents away.  If you allow teams to stick around late in games, anything can happen. Since scoring 45 points against Chicago on October 25, the offense has fizzled. They have scored less than 20 points in six of their last seven games and eight times this season.

QUOTE TO NOTE
“Well, I wish it would give us something, but it doesn’t give us anything. It’s one of our goals, to always win the games in the division, and this football team has a great understanding of that. It’s a good accomplishment. I thank you, and we should take the praise because it is an accomplishment, but it just moves us on to another opportunity next week. We’ve got to move on and get ready for the Detroit Lions.” – head coach Marvin Lewis on sweeping the division

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