Chad Johnson, who hasn't been a Cincinnati Bengal very long, got all technical talking about the play. He caught an 82-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter Sunday, after the ball bounced off Baltimore safety Ed Reed's shoulder pad. Chad said he caught the tip because he knew where the ball would go after it hit Reed.

"The angle,'' he explained, "was going to bring it right to me. He wasn't going to catch it. That was something only a receiver could do When he tipped it, all I had to do was stay in stride. It was easy.''

You can believe the Bengals burgeoning Pro Bowl receiver has all the angles covered. Not me. That was a whoop-whoop-whoop moment all the way. It was the kind of goofy interlude the Bengals have dominated since the first Gulf War. And not in a good way.

In a normal year, Reed makes the interception . . . after the ball bounces off Johnson's head.

Oh, the Bengals did some good work Sunday. With the vultures circling, Jon Kitna threw for three TDs and no interceptions. Before the game, the Bengals promoted Carson Palmer to second string. Kitna's game kept the rookie a rumor.

The defense shell-shocked Ravens rookie QB Kyle Boller into two lost fumbles and an interception in the first half, and held Jamal Lewis to 101 yards, none meaningful, all cosmetic. Brian Simmons set the early mood, ripping the ball from a fallen Boller like Simmons was taking his gold accessories back from a cat burglar. New punter Kyle Richardson should have been old punter Kyle Richardson. He averaged 46 yards a kick.

But the decided shift in the fates was what mattered. You just have to trust me on this. Or trust Kitna, who said about the Johnson TD, "The last couple years, any ball that got bounced up, the other team got it.''

What the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs couldn't do against evil karma, the Bengals did Sunday. In the remaining 10 weeks, the Bengals still might manage to keep hope at arm's length. The 12-year 5 o'clock shadow isn't totally gone.

But they are making strides.

Sunday's game was huge. So huge, the coaching staff tightened up late in the week while preparing for it. "They scared me. They got real tight,'' Johnson said. "I know they're loosened up now, though.''

In the AFC North, a 2-4 record is good enough to contend. A 1-5 record isn't. A loss meant making vacation plans and bringing Palmer in from the bullpen. As it is, Cincinnati is 2-1 in the North.

Lewis wanted the win badly, against his mentor Brian Billick. Marvin low-keyed it afterward. So did Billick: "Forgive me if I'm not popping champagne bottles for him,'' the Ravens coach said.

Regardless, the Bengals put a solid hurt on the team that came in with the best record in the division. They even won a challenge. When you're leading the run-addicted Ravens by 24 with a quarter to play, it's like playing with somebody else's money.

There is another big game next Sunday. When you're playing for something beyond draft position, they're all big. We haven't had many big games here lately.

"I'm going to bounce back,'' vowed Johnson. Bounce back? He had 130 receiving yards. He averaged 26 yards a catch. Grandmaster Quote is on a Pro Bowl course. "Seattle is going to be a big day. I'll let y'all know now.''

That's funny. What's even funnier is, we're starting to believe him.

E-mail pdaugherty@enquirer.com