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| ATL at NO | CIN at IND | CLE at TEN | DAL at PIT | HOU at GB | JAX at CHI | KC at DEN | MIA at BUF |
| MIN at DET | NE at SEA | NYJ at SF | OAK at SD | PHI at NYG | STL at ARI | TB at CAR | WAS at BAL |
Week 14 Game Recap: Cincinnati Bengals 3, Indianapolis Colts 35
What you need to know
| Cincinnati Bengals |
This was a classic case of the Bengals beating themselves. Every time they got a drive going, without fail, they would turn the ball over before they were able to score. Most of the blame can be put squarely on QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, who was effective at times, but also threw two interceptions and gave up a costly fumble.
Since they never had a lead, the running game never had a chance to find its legs, but in limited duty, Cedric Benson showed a powerful burst through the line and came up with a few impressive runs for first down yardage.
The receiving corps was efficient but none were game breakers. The Bengals took what the Colts gave them in the passing game, which meant a lot of short gains with little yardage after the catch.
| Indianapolis Colts |
Peyton Manning played as if he hasn't lost a step. He picked apart the Bengals defense to the tune of an 81% completion percentage, en route to 277 yards and three TDs.
Joseph Addai went down briefly, but the injury appeared to be minor and he did return to the game before long. He looked otherwise healthy and may have been more productive in a closer game. As the Colts ran away with this one, Dominic Rhodes got most of the playing time in the second half.
As usual, the WR carousel kept on turning, with each of Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, and Anthony Gonzalez having their moments. Manning spread the ball around a lot, and as a result no one receiver had a monster day. Both tight ends, Dallas Clark and Gijon Robinson, were also heavily involved in the passing attack.
What you ought to know
| QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, Pass: 18 - 26 - 170 - 0 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 3 - 17 - 0 |
Fitzpatrick fought hard, but made three huge errors that essentially cost the Bengals the game. On the opening drive, they were actually moving the ball well, when Fitzpatrick took off on a scramble -- down the middle of the field, in heavy traffic -- and lost the ball while diving for the first down. His two interceptions both resulted in Indy touchdowns, and more importantly erased any progress the offense had been making. He did look very capable at times, but the bottom line is that his mistakes overshadowed everything else.
| QB Jordan Palmer, Pass: 4 - 6 - 30 - 0 TD / 1 INT, Rush: 1 - 4 - 0 |
Carson Palmer's younger brother entered the game after Fitzpatrick's second pick was returned for a touchdown. He went four for six for 30 yards and an interception, against the Colts prevent defense.
| RB Cedric Benson, Rush: 16 - 57 - 0, Rec: 2 - 1 - 0 (1 targets) |
Benson had a respectable yardage total, and exploded through the line when he handled the ball. Unfortunately for him, being down 21-3 meant that the running game as a whole was more or less abandoned in the second half.
| RB Chris Perry, Rush: 1 - 0 - 0, Rec: 1 - 12 - 0 (1 targets) |
Perry only had one carry and gained no yards on the play.
| RB Jeremi Johnson |
Johnson made his NFL debut, carrying the ball three times in the waning minutes of a game that was hugely out of reach.
| WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Rec: 8 - 75 - 0 (9 targets) |
Houshmandzadeh was a very reliable target, hauling in every ball thrown his way (minus one that was actually tipped at the line of scrimmage). Unfortunately, nearly all of those passes were for short gains.
| WR Chad Johnson, Rec: 5 - 79 - 0 (5 targets) |
Johnson quietly had a respectable game, though he was never a threat to score. He was only targeted five times, but caught all five.
| WR Chris Henry, Rec: 2 - 20 - 0 (5 targets) |
Henry did nothing to distinguish himself, playing as the third WR behind two guys who generally see a lot of targets.
| WR Andre Caldwell, Rec: 1 - 6 - 0 (1 targets) |
Caldwell saw limited action as a receiver, and also returned kicks.
| TE Reggie Kelly, Rec: 3 - 7 - 0 (4 targets) |
Kelly was only used as a last option in the passing game.
| PK Shayne Graham 1 - 1 FG, 0 - 0 XP, 3 points |
Graham successfully made his only FG attempt, a 19 yard chip shot.
| CIN Rush Defense |
The Bengals stopped the Colts for a loss of yards a number of times, but also let Dominic Rhodes get loose for a 17 yard touchdown run. It was an up and down day for the unit.
| CIN Pass Defense |
At first, it appeared they were having some success, as they blanketed Manning's wideouts. But once Manning proved that it didn't matter, by throwing to whomever was open (namely the second tight end), and then they had their work cut out for them. It was not a good day.
| QB Peyton Manning, Pass: 26 - 32 - 277 - 3 TD / 0 INT |
Manning looked like he was tuning up for some playoff football. The opponent may have been a weaker one, but he just dominated, throwing at will to the open receiver on any given pass play. It was one of those days that one suspects he could have doubled his total numbers if he had wanted to.
| RB Dominic Rhodes, Rush: 10 - 31 - 1, Rec: 3 - 12 - 0 (3 targets) |
Rhodes scored early on while briefly spelling Addai. It was a 17 yard scamper and proved to be his longest of the day. Near the end of the game, he got the bulk of his carries while Addai was rested.
| RB Joseph Addai, Rush: 10 - 26 - 0, Rec: 2 - 14 - 0 (3 targets) |
Addai was used primarily in the first half. Later in the game he was rested. He had one 16 yard run called back, and saw the ball inside the five, once.
| WR Reggie Wayne, Rec: 5 - 48 - 0 (7 targets) |
If first down conversions meant anything in fantasy, Wayne would be the man to have on your team. All five of his receptions were for first downs, and he narrowly missed a sixth on a spectacular fingertip grab that just slipped out of hands as he went to the turf in a diving catch.
| WR Marvin Harrison, Rec: 3 - 78 - 1 (4 targets) |
Harrison had a quietly productive day, with a single short touchdown and a 67 yard gain among his three catches. He was targeted one other time, in the red zone.
| WR Anthony Gonzalez, Rec: 3 - 27 - 1 (3 targets) |
Gonzalez was not even targeted in the first half, but found the end zone in the second half. He caught all three passes thrown his way.
| TE Gijon Robinson, Rec: 6 - 69 - 0 (7 targets) |
Robinson was often open on swing routes and got a good chunk of yardage as a dump-off option.
| TE Dallas Clark, Rec: 4 - 29 - 1 (5 targets) |
Clark made up for an earlier fumble with a late touchdown catch.
| PK Adam Vinatieri 0 - 0 FG, 5 - 5 XP, 5 points |
Vinatieri was limited to extra point duty this week. He was 5-for-5 in PAT attempts.
| IND Rush Defense |
The Colts actually did not look that great against the run, despite the low yardage total. They let no big plays through, but did appear to be getting beat a little too often at the line.
| IND Pass Defense |
Kelvin Hayden accounted for one touchdown on an INT return, and another INT that resulted in a score once the offense got the ball. The rest of the Colts were pretty good, too, limiting the Bengals to a lot of short passes. The longest pass they gave up was 26 yards.