Desperate Bengals Welcome Bolts to Queen City

Football Betting Lines

11/10/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Bengals will try to battle their way back into the AFC playoff picture when they host the San Diego Chargers this Sunday at Paul Brown Stadium.

The Bengals have dropped back-to-back games and have a 4-4 record at the midway point of the season. Cincinnati is currently eighth in the conference standings, and is two games behind Baltimore for first place in the AFC North division.

The Bengals were in Baltimore last week and were handed a 26-20 setback by the Ravens. Baltimore scored its only two touchdowns in jumping out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead, and was able to hold on for the win.

Cincinnati has suffered setbacks in three of its last four games, and the losses in that span have come by a combined nine points.

Meanwhile, the Chargers have won two straight and are in good shape in the AFC playoff standings. At 6-2, San Diego is locked into a four-way tie for second place in the conference, and is also even with Denver in the AFC West.

The Chargers' latest victory came last Sunday against the visiting Cleveland Browns. LaDainian Tomlinson had a huge game for San Diego and ended with three touchdowns.

It was also the first of four contests for San Diego without Pro Bowl linebacker Shawne Merriman, who is serving a suspension for violating the league's steroid policy.

SERIES HISTORY

The Chargers lead the all-time regular season series with the Bengals, 17-10, but were 34-27 home losers when the teams last met, in 2003. San Diego had won the previous matchup, taking a 34-6 decision in the Queen City in 2002. The Bolts are 2-0 in Cincinnati since last losing there in 1997.

In addition to the regular season series, the teams played a memorable playoff contest, with Cincinnati earning a 27-7 home victory in the 1981 AFC Championship. The recorded temperature for that game was nine degrees below zero with a -59 wind chill, making it the second-coldest NFL game on record behind the fabled "Ice Bowl," between the Packers and Cowboys in 1967.

San Diego head coach Marty Schottenheimer is 7-6 against the Bengals all-time, including 3-2 in Cincinnati. The Bengals' Marvin Lewis is 1-0 against both the Chargers and Schottenheimer.

CHARGERS OFFENSE VS. BENGALS DEFENSE

Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson has been prolific since entering the league, and he's been at the top of his game in recent weeks. The last four games have been an absolute scoring party for LT, as he busted into the end zone on 11 occasions in that span, including nine times on the ground. Last week against the Browns, Tomlinson (828 yards, 12 TD) rushed for 172 yards and three TDs on 18 carries. He is second in the NFL and first in the AFC with 828 rushing yards and is first in the NFL with 14 total touchdowns (12 rushing, 2 receiving). As a team, the Chargers are second in the NFL with 161.8 rushing yards per game.

The Bengals run defense has struggled all season long and is 24th in the NFL with 129.2 rushing yards per contest. They hit that average on the nose last week when they surrendered 129 yards on 38 carries to the Ravens. The Bengals did hold Jamal Lewis to 72 yards on 24 carries, but Musa Smith made up for that with 46 yards on only three attempts. Defensive end Justin Smith (50 tackles, 6 1/2 sacks) had a very busy day with 10 tackles, and outside linebacker Landon Johnson (54 tackles, 1 INT) made nine stops. The Bengals were without middle linebacker Brian Simmons (29 tackles, 1 INT), who missed the game with a neck injury. He is listed as doubtful for this week's game.

While prolific is a good word to describe Tomlinson, steady would be the proper way to sum up quarterback Philip Rivers. The former first-round pick in the 2004 draft is in his first year as a starter and is third in the AFC with a 96.7 passer rating. However, Rivers (1,747 yards, 10 TD, 3 INT) has thrown for 250 yards or more just twice in eight games this season. Last week against Cleveland, Rivers completed 19-of-28 passes for 211 yards with no TDs and no interceptions. Eric Parker (29 catches, 434 yards) had five catches for 65 yards and Keenan McCardell (27 catches, 315 yards) turned in an almost identical performance with five receptions for 64 yards. The Chargers are 14th in the NFL with 209.9 passing yards per contest.

Cincinnati has done a decent job against the pass this year, allowing 214.5 yards per game through the air. Last week Steve McNair threw for 245 yards, but was kept out of the end zone. Free safety Madieu Williams (55 tackles, 2 INT) led the team with 11 tackles, while cornerback Deltha O'Neal (31 tackles, 1 sack) added five stops. The Bengals have had trouble getting pressure on the quarterback this season and failed to sack McNair last Sunday. Cincy has just 17 sacks all year and 12 1/2 have come from Smith (6 1/2) and fellow defensive end Robert Geathers (6).

BENGALS OFFENSE VS. CHARGERS DEFENSE

Carson Palmer had a difficult game against the Ravens last week, throwing for 195 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Palmer (1,879 yards, 12 TD, 6 INT) also completed just 12-of-26 passes and ended with a season-low quarterback rating of 52.6. It ended a stretch of four straight games with 240 passing yards or more for the former Heisman Trophy winner. T.J. Houshmandzadeh (39 catches, 488 yards, 5 TD) caught the touchdown pass and finished with three receptions for 66 yards. Fellow wide receiver Chad Johnson (40 catches, 483 yards, 2 TD) led the team with four catches, but had just 32 yards. The Bengals had one of the top passing offenses in the league last season, but have fallen to the 11th this year with 216.4 yards per game.

The Chargers were supposed to struggle in the pass rush department last week, since the club was forced to play Cleveland without Merriman (32 tackles, 8 1/2 sacks) and his fellow outside linebacker and the team's second-leading sacker Shaun Phillips (25 tackles, 6 sacks). However, San Diego did a solid job of creating pressure and finished the game with five sacks. Phillips is questionable for this week's game with a calf injury. Defensive end Jacques Cesaire (16 tackles, 2 sacks) led the way with a pair of sacks, and Merriman's replacement, Marques Harris (12 tackles, 2 sacks), dropped Charlie Frye once. Frye threw for 236 yards and a touchdown, but was also intercepted by middle linebacker Donnie Edwards (56 tackles, 1 sack, 2 INT). Cornerback Quentin Jammer (36 tackles, 2 INT) led the secondary with seven tackles. San Diego is allowing 183.8 passing yards per game and is eighth in the league in that category.

Rudi Johnson found rushing yards hard to come by last week against the Ravens, and could be in the same situation this Sunday against a tough Chargers defense. Johnson (629 yards, 6 TD) wound up with 77 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. It was the fifth time in the last six games that Johnson was held to under 100 yards on the ground. A great deal of Cincy's struggles on offense this season can be attributed to injuries on their offensive line. Center Rich Braham has been out since late September with a fractured tibia, and tackle Levi Jones has missed the last three games while recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery. Both players are listed as out for this Sunday's game.

San Diego's run defense has been very stingy this season, allowing just 85.2 yards on the ground per game (4th in the NFL). The Browns found that out last week when they were able to gain just 89 yards on 28 rushing attempts (3.2 yards per carry). Defensive tackle Jamal Williams (32 tackles, 2 sacks) did an excellent job clogging up the middle and wound up with six tackles. Edwards posted a team-high nine stops, while fellow middle linebacker Randall Godfrey added eight tackles. The Chargers have allowed just one 100-yard rusher this season. That performance came on October 22 against Larry Johnson of the Chiefs.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

Few teams have been able to slow down Tomlinson and the Chargers rushing attack this season, and Cincinnati has given little reason to believe it will be the defense to do so. San Diego's defense has also encountered few offenses that can run the ball against it this year and the Bengals' makeshift offensive line isn't equipped to win the battles in the trenches. Palmer will also be under a great deal of pressure from San Diego's pass-rushers (even without Merriman), and that should lead to some turnovers for the Chargers defense.

Sportsbook Betting Lines Predicted Outcome: Chargers 24, Bengals 17