Monday, December 10, 2001
Bengals report card
Jaguars 14 Bengals 10
Rush offense, D: The Bengals, a team whose identity is its running game, failed to rush for 100 yards overall for the fifth consecutive game -- all losses. Corey Dillon had 62 yards and is averaging 59.6 since his season-high 184 yards Oct. 28 at Detroit. Seven of Dillon's carries Sunday were for 0 or negative yards.
Pass offense, F: Jon Kitna threw another interception but no touchdown passes. He now has 14 interceptions and 10 TDs. He overthrew an open Darnay Scott in the end zone in the second quarter. The longest completion was for just 17 yards, and the average completion was just 9.2 yards.
Rush defense, A: The Bengals held the Jaguars in check with 62 yards on 25 attempts, and 21 of those yards came on Mark Brunell scrambles.
Pass defense, C: The bad. Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell had 211 receiving yards and both Jacksonville touchdowns. Fourteen of the Jaguars' 17 first downs were via pass, and they were 8-of-16 on third down. The good. Bengals cornerback Kevin Kaesviharn set up the only touchdown with a 29-yard interception return, and the Bengals tied a single-game franchise record with eight sacks.
Special teams, B: Neil Rackers made a 46-yard field goal to give the Bengals a lead in the third quarter. Long snapper Randy Chevrier made eight solid snaps in his first game. There were no breakdowns in the punt or kickoff coverage, but there were no big plays in the return teams, which averaged just 16.7 yards on kickoffs and 2.0 on punts.
Coaching, C: Coordinator Mark Duffner's defense has allowed just four touchdowns in the past four games and should creep up in the top 10 of league defensive rankings after allowing just 255 net yards.
The Bengals' offense is the NFL's lowest scoring, and coaches have no answers for a slump that has produced 43 points in the five-game losing streak (8.6 average). How much of the blame should fall on first-year coordinator Bob Bratkowski and how much belongs to the five offensive assistants.
-- Mark Curnutte
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Bengals report card
