By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Coach Marvin Lewis remains upbeat despite his team's 1-4 record at the bye week but promises players will work even harder.

The Bengals resume their schedule on Oct. 19 at home against Baltimore, and four of their next five games are in Cincinnati.

"We have a chance to shape our own destiny. We've played some good teams, so they say," Lewis said Monday. "I think other than the Chiefs, everybody else is about where we are right now."

Kansas City is 5-0.

The Bengals have lost their last three games by a total of 16 points, and Lewis discounted the theory that the Bengals are two plays away from being 3-2. The two plays are the interception return for a touchdown by Oakland's Phillip Buchanon in Game 2, and the fourth-down completion to Buffalo's Eric Moulds on the Bills' game-tying drive Sunday. The Bengals lost 22-16 in overtime.

"There is something to be said in Cleveland, when they are saying that we were two plays away from being 0-5," Lewis said.

Still, the Bengals are a game and a half out of first place in the AFC North. Baltimore leads at 2-2, and Cleveland and Pittsburgh are 2-3. The AFC North is the only division in the NFL without a team with a winning record.

"The good thing is that we haven't lost much ground in the division," Lewis said, "and that is the No. 1 priority."

Lewis also is pleased with his team's pass protection and kick coverage, but wants to see improvement against the run and on rushing offense. He also said his team is too fragile to commit turnovers.

"There are a lot of good things we do, but it is still not enough to get us over the hump," he said. "Our margin for error is not great, so everything we do is magnified."

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E-mail mcurnutte@enquirer.com

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