JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The maddening inconsistency the Bengals have shown from game to game this season showed itself from quarter to quarter Sunday.

Jacksonville's Keenan McCardell catches a TD pass in front of Bengals safety Cory Hall. (AP photos) | ZOOM |

        The Bengals played one of their best stretches of football in the second quarter, dominating the Jaguars to take a 13-7 lead at halftime.

        But the Bengals were blown out 21-0 in the third quarter and lost 30-13 to a Jacksonville team that had lost five in a row.

        As troubling as the loss, which dropped Cincinnati to 4-4 and into a third-place tie with Cleveland in the AFC Central, was how the Bengals lost their composure in the second half.

        The game changed on a 38-yard pass interference penalty on cornerback Artrell Hawkins that initially appeared to be an offensive interference call on Jacksonville wide receiver Jimmy Smith.

        “I don't think we ever got back in the groove like we should have,” Hawkins said.

QB Jon Kitna and RB Corey Dillon scramble to recover Kitna's fumble fumble before it crosses the goal line for a safety. | ZOOM |

        That penalty was followed by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Takeo Spikes, a 14-yard call that moved the ball half the distance to the goal to the 13-yard line. Jaguars tailback Stacey Mack delivered the knock-out punch three plays later when he ran in from the 2 to give Jacksonville a 21-13 lead.

        “Let's face it. That play didn't make the difference,” Bengals coach Dick LeBeau said. “It was a big gain for them, but we did too many things wrong to win a football game.”

        At the top of the list are penalties.

Takeo Spikes sacks Mark Brunell. | ZOOM |

        The Bengals were penalized 10 times for a season-high 107 yards. An unnecessary roughness penality on Adrian Ross on a Bengals punt set up Jacksonville's first score. After Damon Gibson returned a punt 12 yards to the Bengals 28-yard line, Ross was penalized for a dead-ball foul that gave the Jaguars a first down on the 14. Mack capped that drive with a 1-yard touchdown run.

        The Jaguars gained 152 yards in the third quarter, scoring 21 points, and held the Bengals to 33 yards on no first downs. The Bengals rush offense disappeared in the second half, gaining 17 yards and two first downs the entire game.

        The Jaguars also had some help from the officials in the deciding third quarter. The Bengals were called for five penalties for 73 yards, while the Jaguars were whistled once for five yards.

        “We had some things go against us that we had no control about and that we were told not to speak of,” Bengals defensive tackle Oliver Gibson said. “It wasn't 11 on 11 for part of that third quarter. I don't understand it. It was ridiculous. I hope certain factions of the NFL grade people.”

        While Jacksonville was making its third-quarter run, the Bengals went three-and-out on three consecutive possessions.

        The Jaguars, held to 13 yards rushing in the first half, had 59 yards on the ground in the third quarter. Their effective run game prevented the Bengals from pressuring quarterback Mark Brunell as re lentlessly as they had in the first half.

        Brunell capped the Jaguars' final scoring drive — five plays, 57 yards — by tossing a 20-yard touchdown pass to Keenan McCardell with 46 seconds remaining in the third quarter. It was Brunell's 18th career touchdown pass compared to five interceptions against the Bengals.

        “We didn't have the rah-rah we had in the first half,” Bengals defensive end Vaughn Booker said. “We don't know where we lost it. We just came out flat.”

        The Jaguars added their final two points when defensive end Tony Brackens sacked Jon Kitna in the end zone with 6:05 left in the fourth quarter. Brackens, who came in with one sack, had two against Bengals left tackle Richmond Webb.

        The horrible third quarter was a shock because of how well the Bengals played in the second quarter in scoring 13 consecutive points.

        Kitna, who had the first 300-yard passing game for the Bengals in 26 games, threw for 123 yards in the second quarter, completing a string of third-down passes to wide receivers Peter Warrick and rookie T.J. Houshmandzadeh.

        Kitna had 303 yards on 28-for-48 passing, all without eighth-year wide receiver Darnay Scott, who missed the second half with a concussion.

        Embattled kicker Neil Rackers made two field goals, from 26 and 52 yards. Rackers, whose career best 52-yarder came on the last play of the half, is 9 for 16 on field goals and clearly has held onto his job for another couple of weeks.

        Corey Dillon, who was limited to 58 yards on 17 carries, scored from the 7 on a pretty pitch play in which Warrick and Houshmandzadeh sealed off defenders with blocks. Dillon's touchdown was his seventh of the season, equaling his total from last year.

        But the Bengals were flat after the half.

Jaguars 30, Bengals 13 Bengals Report Card Don't blame the refs Controversial call goes Jaguars' way Young receivers step up Rackers a highlight on bad day Kitna rolls 300 Jaguars end five-game losing streak Bengals-Jaguars statistics

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