Cincinnati's defense allowed a season-high 415 yards to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, but it enjoyed, in many ways, its best game of the season.
Cincinnati recorded one of its biggest stops of the year early in the second quarter, halting the Jaguars at their 2-yard line. Jacksonville quarterback Mark Brunell fired a fourth-down pass into linebacker James Francis' chest. That was the first of five occasions in which the Bengals prevented a touchdown inside their 20-yard line.
Asked why he didn't try a field goal with a 21-7 deficit and more than two quarters remaining, Jacksonville coach Tom Coughlin said, ''I would do it again, but the result wasn't good. I thought we had some wind in our sail.''
The Jaguars entered the game with the AFC's third-best touchdown ratio from inside the opponent's 20-yard line - 61.4 percent, from 27 touchdowns in 44 drives.
But they went only 1-for-6 against Cincinnati.
Cincinnati's defense sealed the outcome in the fourth quarter, recording a pair of turnovers after the Jaguars had reached Bengals' territory.
Safety Bo Orlando notched his first interception of the season, at the Bengals' 3 with 14:42 to go.
Later, Brentson Buckner forced a fumble that Tito Paul recovered with 3:04 remaining.
''Our guys did a great job of staying in there and finding a way to win,'' Bengals defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau said.
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