By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

PASSING OFFENSE, C: Wide receiver Peter Warrick made a catch-and-carry for a 30-yard touchdown that turned the clock back three years to Florida State. He made three would-be tacklers miss and dragged a fourth into the end zone. Jon Kitna, however, threw two interceptions. His timing with the receivers was off. The offensive line yielded two sacks, by rookie left tackle Levi Jones.

RUSHING OFFENSE, A: The Bengals' 240 rushing yards were their most since Dec.3, 2000 - a span of 33 games. Corey Dillon ran hard for 126, and Brandon Bennett (59 yards) and Nicolas Luchey (58) provided a one-two punch off the bench. Credit the offensive line for winning the neutral zone battle with the Saints' front seven.

PASS DEFENSE, B: The Bengals had a season-high four sacks of a mobile quarterback, Aaron Brooks. The Bengals had eight passes defensed, and cornerback Jeff Burris played his finest game with the Bengals. He had four knocked-down passes. Strong safety JoJuan Armour and linebacker Brian Simmons each had two broken-up passes, including one on a fourth-down play by Simmons.

RUSH DEFENSE, A-plus: The Bengals held the Saints to a season-low 36 rushing yards, 37 fewer than their previous low. Pro Bowl tailback Deuce McAllister was held to 26 yards on 15 carries, only one attempt in the second half.

SPECIAL TEAMS, D: Neil Rackers had an extra point blocked that could have won the game, but Rackers later made a huge hit on kickoff returner Michael Lewis. The punt returns were miserable, and Brandon Bennett was held to a 16.3-yard average on four kickoff returns.

COACHING, A: Dick LeBeau's team has never stopped playing hard through a disappointing season. Offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski's play calling on the winning drive was inspiringly simple - sticking with what worked, Nicolas Luchey running up the middle. Mark Duffner's defense played its best all-around game of the season against the league's second-highest scoring team. (The three-point game at Houston doesn't really count.)

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