By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

PASSING OFFENSE, C-plus: Jon Kitna threw just his fifth interception in the past eight games, and he again had to dodge heavy pressure. The line play was weak, especially in the middle, and Kitna was sacked three times. The injury-depleted wide receiver corps played well with 13 receptions and 201 of the 258 receiving yards.

RUSHING OFFENSE, F: The Bengals had just 65 yards on the ground and again failed to run the ball in from the 1-yard line. They had just five rushing first downs. The line gives ground on too many plays instead of attacking and winning the neutral zone.

PASS DEFENSE, F: Jacksonville quarterback Mark Brunell threw a season-high three touchdown passes and no interceptions. Jimmy Smith's 26-yard touchdown reception on a fourth-and-6 play was the backbreaker. Smith beat cornerback Jeff Burris on a fly pattern. Safety Cory Hall had two sacks.

RUSH DEFENSE, C: The Bengals allowed just 109 yards, 26 below their average. But the Jaguars got big yards when they needed them most - on Stacey Mack's fourth-down run in the third quarter, Fred Taylor's two-point conversion and Brunell's scramble for a first down.

SPECIAL TEAMS, F: In spite of Neil Rackers' perfect day on three field goal attempts, the Bengals twice had the wrong number of players on the field. In the first quarter, the Bengals had to burn a timeout when they had just 10 men on the field before Rackers' 51-yard attempt. Guard Mike Goff ran on the field too late to get the play off. And in the third quarter, the Bengals were penalized for having 12 men on the field on a Jacksonville punt. The Jaguars converted the fourth-and-1 play and continued to score the deciding touchdown.

COACHING, D: The Bengals can't get the right number of players on the field for special teams. The play-calling in the red zone isn't effective. And the defense gave up all 29 of Jacksonville's points - no pointing the finger at special teams this week. Dick LeBeau's franchise-worst winning percentage dropped to .256 (11-32).

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