By Kevin Kelly
The Cincinnati Enquirer

SAN DIEGO - At the time, they looked like the final blows to a wobbly opponent.

PHOTO GALLERY

Photos of Sunday's game

A 14-point lead against the Chargers on Sunday had all but vanished when the Bengals took possession with 3:59 remaining in the second quarter.

"We practice that every week," right tackle Willie Anderson said. "We call it our 4-minute offense. We practice getting positive yardage and being alert."

What followed was more clinic than drill, and the efficient results would end up benefiting the Bengals in a 34-27 win at Qualcomm Stadium.

Cincinnati's offense scored two touchdowns while the defense held San Diego on third and fourth down during the first-half stretch.

So instead of going into the locker room with a 14-13 lead, Cincinnati jogged off the field and into halftime leading 28-13.

"That was probably the tale of the tape right there," Bengals cornerback Artrell Hawkins said. "It didn't put the game out of reach, but it took the life out of them."

The Chargers scored 13 unanswered points when the Bengals got the ball at the 40-yard line to start their fifth drive of the game.

Tailback Corey Dillon and rookie fullback Jeremi Johnson gained 22 yards on the first two plays.

A 13-yard pass from QB Jon Kitna to wide receiver Chad Johnson and a 10-yard run by Rudi Johnson then put the Bengals at the 12-yard line with 1:25 left in the half.

Johnson and Kitna connected for their third touchdown of the game on a 12-yard pass.

"It was tough being on the field . . . and not stopping them," Chargers defensive end Marcellus Wiley said. "It's almost like bonus points."

The Bengals defense came on with 1:17 remaining in the half and allowed the Chargers little offensively. Two failed passes on third and fourth down gave the Bengals the ball back with 54 seconds left.

And on the first play of the Bengals' final drive in the half, Kitna completed a 30-yard pass to receiver Kelley Washington. The rookie, facing one-on-one coverage, stole the ball away from San Diego cornerback Quentin Jammer.

Both jumped for the ball, with Jammer getting his hands on it first, but Washington wrestled it away as they tumbled to the ground.

"No one player had possession of the ball," Washington said. "It was just kind of how we landed. I landed and was able to roll and get possession of the ball."

Kitna completed two more passes before finding Washington alone in the right corner of the end zone with 11 seconds remaining in the half.

"I knew I had to make a play if the ball came my way," said Washington, who caught five passes for 61 yards.

"I was able to do that.

Week 12 Snapshot

Looking good

Third down. There's a school of thought that NFL games are won or lost on third down, and the Bengals dominated the decisive down. The Bengals were 13-of-20 offensively in converting third downs and, on defense, held the Chargers to three-of-11. The Bengals defense also held on one-of-two fourth-down plays.

Jon Kitna. Other than a fumble on a sack, he played a perfect game. Kitna had four touchdown passes in the first half alone and now has 19 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Offensive line. The Bengals continue to dominate time of possession and had a 16-minute edge Sunday. The Bengals have 665 rushing yards in the last three games.

Trouble spots

Kickoff coverage. The Chargers had a 6-yard advantage in drive start after kickoffs, and kicker Shayne Graham again had to make a tackle.

Finishing. The Bengals defense gave up two fourth-quarter touchdowns and needed another freeze by the offense to keep San Diego's offense off the field with the game on the line late in the fourth quarter.

Turnovers. The Bengals again failed to force a turnover and have just two takeaways in the last four games. The Bengals did commit one turnover, a Kitna fumble on a sack, which the Chargers converted into a field goal.

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