News / Sports
NFL Thursday Night: Cincinnati Bengals 13, Baltimore Ravens 7
Carson Palmer passed for 234 yards and a touchdown while T.J. Houshmandzadeh had 10 receptions for 106 yards and a touchdown as the Cincinnati Bengals (7-5) beat the Baltimore Ravens (9-3) 13-7.
In a game dominated by defensive stops the Bengals managed to get two field goals from Shayne Graham to take a 6-0 lead at halftime.
In the Bengals first possession of the second half they used a trick play to cap off a 76-yrad drive resulting in a touchdown. Palmer handed off to running back Rudi Johnson who then flicked the ball back to Palmer. The Raven s defense bit on the fake and Houshmandzadeh was wide open for a 40-yard touchdown pass and a 13-0 lead.
The Bengals defense, ranked last in the NFL going into the game, held the Ravens scoreless up until their final possession of the fourth quarter. Steve McNair was able to find Derrick Mason on a 36-yard touchdown pass to cut the Bengals lead to 13-7.
Chad Johnson pulled down 8 receptions for 91 yards giving him 695 receiving yards in the month of November. The second highest total receiving yards in a calander month in the history of the NFL.
Both teams struggled in the running game. Of the Bengals 294 total yards, 67 came on the ground. The Ravens managed 316 total yards with 89 coming via the ground.
Baltimore had an opportunity to capture the AFC North title and lock up a playoff birth but fell short. The Bengals victory pushed them back into the playoff hunt.
