More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

12 days ago: Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Benson (32) flexes his muscles after scoring a touchdown against the Chicago Bears in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009, in Cincinnati. Kyle Cook, left, and Anthony Collins, top, join in. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Browse more photos »

When I woke up Sunday morning, I had an unexplained urge to change my Sunday morning routine. Instead of making coffee, taking a shower and cracking my knuckles anticipating the day's challenges, I left the house as soon as I hooked the sleepy crud out of my radish-shaded eyes. I stopped at a gas station and picked up a cappuccino. I love French Vanilla. It was fat free, meeting the requirement for my new healthy regiment that was burdened on me by something other than self preservation. But I decided to gamble. I was ready to take the bumps. My bruises always heal quickly. I picked up some Krispy Kreme donuts and it made -- almost -- everyone happy. I don't care for Krispy Kreme, but I did throw a chocolate glaze into the microwave for 15 seconds. I'm still rubbing my arm.

It was all in part to change my Sunday morning routine. I didn't think that way at the time, of course. It's occurring to me now, while the October cold forced a violent closure of our over-sized sliding glass window. Come to think of it, I've been involved in football for a long time. As coaches say, if you're going to foul someone, foul 'em big. I should have went all-out and bought a buffet-style order at McDonalds. But hindsight is a meaningless human act, and thus I moved on.

However, in my world, this doesn't equate to some acquisition of superstitious behavior, like Wade Boggs and his fried chicken, just because one action led to another. Admittedly, the day turned out completely different. I was allowed to watch several early football games. My ass imprint on the couch went un-fluffed for nearly seven hours. I ate a salad with French and bacon dressing. I had Sloppy Joe's in a bowl, with sour cream and shredded cheese. Crazy. Right? That's a damn fine meal. If I were any crazier, I would have went out and bought my Merit Fitness 725T Treadmill. Then there's the Bengals, who were obviously affected by my changed Sunday morning routine. I'm not superstitious; nor narcissistic for that matter.

Some called it a must-win. Others weren't so urgent. Here's the thinking. If the Bengals lose, they'll go into the bye week with a two-game losing streak, no momentum (at least positive momentum) and two tough division games against the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers afterward. If the Bengals win, they'll go 5-2 heading into back-to-back series finales against the two powerhouses of the division after the bye week. Even if they lose both games, they'll still have a winning record and the Bengals hit the easiest stretch on their 2009 schedule to rebound. After losing to the Houston Texans last week, the question this week was: can the Bengals find their focus? We've been saying for weeks that we're still waiting for the perfect game. Perhaps saying the game least flawed would be more realistic. So, why not lower the expectation and just hope that the Bengals get their kind of unimpressive through three quarters to pull out the win in the fourth quarter mojo back?

And the irony of many complex questions in life, it takes time for a complete answer to materialize. The Bengals have always played that way. The original question: who are these guys? The follow-up question: can they sustain this? The current question: will they put together the complete game? They wait, wait, and wait until it's time for them to strike. They have yet to take a game into their own hands, not playing down, or up, to their competition. They have yet to play to their capabilities. We've felt that way all season. We know this offense can, and will, explode. But when? In classic Jack Bauer, "we're running out of time."

So how do you angle a story that accurately describes how the Bengals played against the Bears on Sunday?

Maybe the word is owning, or pwning. An example of that would be the Bengals 45-10 win over the Chicago Bears Sunday. In the first half, the Bengals offense accumulated 292 yards of total offense. Cedric Benson hit the 100-yard rushing marker before half time -- then he lost three yards bringing his total down to 98 yards. Chad Ochocinco, with five minutes left in the first half, caught eight passes for 103 yards receiving. Carson Palmer completed 15 of 17 passes for 183 yards passing and four touchdowns -- all to different receivers. Psst. You and I know the truth. Everything today changed after I bought a cappuccino as soon as I woke up this morning. I still don't believe in superstitions though.

Yet, it wasn't just the offense. The defense held the Bears to 71 yards of total offense before Chicago recorded a field goal on a nine-play, 70-yard drive to close the first half. Leon Hall picked off two passes. Chris Crocker tipped a few passes and intercepted the team's third interception. Morgan Trent is a hitter. Michael Johnson is everywhere, from defensive line to outside linebacker in coverage. Dhani Jones and Rey Maualuga were as amped as I've seen them all season. Tank Johnson was noticeable inside. Then there was Frostee Rucker, who sacked Jay Cutler and recorded another stuff on the quarterback that wasn't officially a sack.

No, I have a better way of describing Sunday's win.

The Cincinnati Bengals beat the holy shit out of the Chicago Bears. There. Simple. Descriptive. Easy to remember.

Continue reading this post »

Because we need some good news around here, and because it's getting close to the holiday season (look at your calendars ladies [Do we have any here?] and gents), I figured now would be a good time to share the good news: The Ben-Gals have released their yearly calendar and the results are perhaps more than we could've hoped for.

I've always been a fan of being true to your team and I think those lead images qualify.

You know, this might be a bit sexist of me, but I have no idea what the names of the four ladies gracing this post, and honestly, after yesterday's disaster, I haven't been bothered to learn.  I will say, however, in light of the Antwan Odom news, the calendar preview has been a much-needed distraction.  There are 25 images in total, and while I doubt the calendar itself will be much use for annotating appointments and events -- due to the lack of writing space, of course -- the visuals will be make the months have a little more pop to them.

Sorry this post isn't recap-related, but I just don't have it in me to relive that offensive mess. 

H/t to my man Scrap for the find. Viva La Ben-Gals!!!!

More photos » by David Kohl - AP

20 days ago: Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Benson (32) runs past Houston Texans linebacker Zac Diles (54) on his way to a 10-yard touchdown run in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/David Kohl)

Browse more photos »

Okay everyone, I'm not going to tell you that the sky is falling but I may have reached for my umbrella once or twice yesterday.  There is much bad and precious little good to talk about from yesterday's game, so let's get right into it.  

I sat down to watch yesterday's game excited.  I was anticipating a fight from the Texans, but judging by the mental fortitude shown by our Bengals over the past four weeks I expected the men in stripes to prevail in what I hoped to be the fifth consecutive victory from the Bengals.  I was hoping to see a team come out swinigng at home for their fans, for their pride and for a continued sense of respectability in the national media.  That wasn't what I saw yesterday. 

Continue reading this post »

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

20 days ago: Houston Texans tight end Owen Daniels (81) is pursued by Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Leon Hall (29) in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009, in Cincinnati. Daniels caught two touchdown passes. Houston won 28-17. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Browse more photos »

In every story there's a protagonist. And while on some quest, the protagonist hits a point in which everything falls apart. In Lord of the Rings, Frodo was finally consumed by the ring. In Star Wars, Luke Skywalker lost his hand, learned that the galaxy's terror was his own father and Han Solo had just been frozen in carbonite. Apply your favorite story. The protagonist always loses hope at some point. Whatever could go wrong, goes wrong. Most of the time it's unexpectedly. Perhaps it was when they weren't focused on the bigger objective. Maybe that's what happened with the Bengals. Maybe they lost focus. Maybe the picture was bright with the grand prize that was deceptively within reach. "We got caught up in whether we were going to challenge or not challenge and a lot of other things that didn’t really matter, instead of just playing football," head coach Marvin Lewis said after the game. "Not focusing got us out of the game, particularly in the second half. We had guys running onto the field looking over their shoulder at me instead of playing football."

So maybe the Bengals lost focus. Were they looking forward? Were they thinking of what they accomplished, believing that they'd beat Houston no matter what? The Texans played a great game. The Bengals were soundly beaten. When Matt Schaub threw the football, he threw good passes to wide open receivers. When the Texans offensive line fired off the football, they were driving the front seven. Instead of playing like boulders, the Bengals defense stood like feathers, catching blockers, rushers and receivers. The offense? Please. They drove a little bit. Mother would be proud. But they were \ shut out in three of the four quarters. In the third quarter, the Bengals offense ran nine plays and averaged 2/3rds of a single yard per play. We had receivers dropping passes. We had tight ends dropping passes and fumbling the football. We have veteran leaders on the offensive line committing drive killing penalties.

How can you not say the Bengals loss was a matter of just losing focus?

Is that an excuse? No. Of course not. You lose, you lose. Find a reason for it other than not repeating your mistakes is a fools way of making an excuse. Holding. Tripping. Fumble. Fumble. Drops. Incomplete passes. Missing that one block. Whatever it was, the Bengals committed it. You're more than welcome to say the problem is play calling. But until I actually get past the point of saying the Bengals players aren't shooting themselves in their own foot, I can't go there yet. You could have the God of Football calling plays. He's only as good as his players. When they fumble, trip, hold, drop then exactly what could the God of Football do? Bob Bratkowski is hardly the God of Football. But he's dealing with the same smelly crap.

Another indirect consequence is that the Bengals nearly didn't sell out. And perhaps they technically didn't. It wasn't just the fans that bought the remaining tickets. It was Chad Ochocinco and Motorola. So what do the people think that paid the money they were hesitant to pay? Additionally, what about those that received a free ticket through the promotional efforts, think about the Bengals after this. Think if they didn't want to pay before would pay for tickets now?

In an effort to not underscore the Texans win, Houston does match up well against the Bengals. The only way to defend Andre Johnson is hoping he loses focus. Their receivers so wide open, that it was almost like they knew our coverages. Our zone coverages tends to back pedal so much that running backs like Steve Slaton records 100 yards receiving.

Should the Bengals have beaten the Texans? Do the Bengals look better than the Texans on paper? Does even bothering to answer those questions really matter?

Here's what we do know. The Bengals share first place now with the Pittsburgh Steelers. They have the Chicago Bears, the Baltimore Ravens and Steelers on tap. The season could very well be lost as it could be won in the next month.

Bengals defense put good defense description on lay-away. It didn't take long for the Houston Texans to fire out against the Bengals defense. On the first offensive play for the Texans, Matt Schaub looked to the right on a play-action wide receiver screen. Andre Johnson caught the football and completed a 59-yard pass play to the Bengals 29-yard line. Four plays later, the Houston Texans attempted to kick a field goal when Antwan Odom penetrated Houston's line and blocked the attempt. Dodged a bullet there. Right? Problem with guns is that there's more bullets.

On the Texans first two drives, Houston ran 17 plays for 145 yards total. Matt Schaub completed seven of his first 10 passes of the game for 119 yards passing, including a touchdown pass to Owen Daniels to finalize Houston's second drive that went 11 plays and 68 yards. The Texans passing game found several opportunities for big plays, wide open receivers and a tight end that killed the Bengals -- especially when the defense blitzed. Steve Slaton caught a bubble screen to the left on the Texans third drive of the game. Following several blocks, the running back ran 38 yards untouched into the endzone to give the Texans a 14-7 lead midway through the second quarter. Through the first three drives, the Texans ran 24 plays for 220 yards total.

On third down, Michael Johnson, playing defensive tackle, penetrated the middle to knock down a pass intended for Andre Johnson with 4:51 left in the second quarter, forcing a three-and-out. On the ensuing possession, pressure forced Schaub to throw the football away with 2:30 left in the first half on third-and-two.

After the first three drives of the game, the Texans went three-and-out twice and Matt Schaub threw an interception. In the second half, the Texans scored a touchdown on their first three possessions, with three punts and a fumble during the rest of the half.

Houston Texans in the first half.
First Three Drives: 24 plays, 220 yards total and two touchdowns (and a blocked field goal)
Last Three Drives: 10 plays, 18 yards, two punts and an interception

When we learn that penalties are bad, mmmkay? The Bengals offense was cursed, plagued or whatever you want to call it, by a series of penalties on their first two drives which killed several big plays. More importantly, penalties killed drives in which the offense was moving the football. It was Andrew Whitworth's holding that stalled the Bengals first drive that negated a 15-yard bubble screen to Laveranues Coles as the Bengals threatened at mid-field to start the game. It was the Bobbie Williams (tripping) and J.P. Foschi (holding) that put the Bengals in second-and-21. The Bengals were unable to overcome the yardage deficit. Before the penalties, the Bengals offense was approaching or at mid-field. In both instances, the Bengals were forced to punt.

Thanks to Chad Ochocinco, Cedric Benson, and the absence of drive killing penalties, the Bengals offense completed a drive with a 10-yard touchdown by Cedric Benson. The offensive line buried the cutback lane and Benson, being patient, cutback behind the offensive line where a gapping tunnel led to daylight and a tie ball game.

What is it with the two-minute offenses? When there's less than two minutes left in a half, we can be certain of one thing. The Bengals offense will move the football. After an eight-yard and one-yard run by Benson, Carson Palmer picked up the first down on a quarterback sneak. With 1:35 left in the half, Chad Ochocinco runs down the left hash mark and Palmer throws a deep pass, hitting Chad in stride for a big 50-yard pass to the eight-yard line. After an incomplete pass to Chris Henry, Laveranues Coles runs down the back of the endzone to the right. Carson Palmer rolls out to the left, finds Coles redirecting to the left, tip toeing the back of the endzone, catching Carson Palmer's pass giving the Bengals a 14-14 tie with 0:48 left in the first half.

What is it with the two-minute defense? The Texans worked to pick up chunks of yards with less than a minute left in the half to record points at half time to take the lead. With :18 left in the half, Matt Schaub throws a tall pass to intended for Kevin Walter. The problem is, Walter is short and the pass fell into the stomach of Chris Crocker, who returned the football to the Houston 41-yard line. With nine seconds left in the half, Carson Palmer completed a nine-yard pass to Daniel Coats. With three seconds left in the first half, Shayne Graham connected on a 50-yard field goal to take 17-14 lead into half time.

Other than that, the offense simply didn't perform. The Bengals punted on four of their first five possessions in the first half. The Bengals offense did explode for ten points with 2:19 left in the first half. However, that was, as we say, all she wrote for the offense.

When a clever defensive play turns into a embarrassing defensive play. Steve Slaton ran off the left edge with 14:19 left in the third quarter. Leon Hall wrapped Slaton, twisted him around so the running back fell on Hall. Of course, this was planned. Because the football was stripped and Hall recovered the fumble. Hall planned it this way, that tricky cornerback. However, Houston challenged the play and Slaton's right knee hit the ground before the football came out. Texans keep the football.

Later on the drive, with 11:31 left in the third quarter, Matt Schaub play-fakes right, rolls out left and finds Jacoby Jones wide open in the endzone. Chris Crocker, who was trailing the wide receiver by a good seven yards, became a suspect in the question, "who the hell's fault was that?" It appeared that Johnathan Joseph handed Jones over to Crocker and Crocker never bothered to follow Jones until he realized that Joseph was sitting in a zone. It was already over.

Coats' mistake scorecard.
Drops: 1
Fumble: 1

While the Bengals are driving in the second quarter, at Houston's 22-yard line with 12:27 left in the second quarter, Palmer tosses the football to Daniel Coats crossing the field. A sure-catch typically means an embarrassing miss for Coats. The football rattled in Coats' hands momentarily before falling incomplete. Early in the third quarter, Palmer finds Coats who picks up five yards on the pass. As he's falling down, the football comes lose and the Texans have the football at mid-field. Is Coats a liability at this point?

Thankfully, in both situations, Coats mistakes didn't cost the football team. After his dropped pass, the Bengals eventually scored on Cedric Benson's 10-yard touchdown run. After his fumble and a 13-yard pass to Kevin Walter, the Texans didn't pick up another first down and punted. However, it didn't worked out for the Bengals offensively on the ensuing drive. Conner Barwin sped-rush off the edge, beating Dennis Roland and sacking Carson Palmer for a nine-yard loss, forcing the Bengals to punt after going three-and-out.

A story about a screen pass that led to an 11-point deficit. Steve Slaton caught six passes for 102 yards receiving, most of them on screen passes. With 3:51 left in the third quarter, Matt Schaub throws over the middle to running back Steve Slaton on a called screen pass on third-and-nine. Slaton picked up 27 yards and a first down. After Chris Browns' four-yard run, Schaub completes a seven-yard touchdown pass to Owen Daniels giving the Texans an 11-point lead, 28-17.

Laveranues Coles drops the pass and team's chances. With 13:34 left in the fourth quarter, down by eleven points, needing to put together a drive that, at the very least, lowers the deficit to within a possession, the Bengals lined up at the Cincinnati 25-yard line with four yards to go on third down. Palmer, for some misguided reason, throws to Laveranues Coles, on the right running a slant. Coles drops it. The Bengals punt and time is running out.

The Bengals six drives of the second half: Three three-and-outs, two fumbles and an interception.

When tired turns to anxiety to anger. With 13:18 left in the game, the Houston Texans started a drive that consumed nearly seven minutes off the clock. Tick, tock. I laid on the couch, started feeling sleepy. Should I take a nap? If the Texans score a touchdown on this drive, they take an 18-point lead. If the Bengals hold the Texans to a field goal, Cincinnati will still need to score two touchdowns and hold the Texans to a quick three-and-out. Either way, I'm not feeling it. I'm tired. I was up all night and I woke up early.

Tick, tock. Sleepy. Steve Slaton takes the hand off on second-and-18, has the football stripped by Robert Geathers and after the football bounces around for a bit, Brandon Johnson recovers. Bengals football. There's a chance. A touchdown, two point conversion and a field goal. Tie ball game. Not necessarily in that order. After a quick six-yard pass to Cedric Benson, J.P. Foschi catches a second-down pass, gets turned around and tackled. When the pile didn't break immediately, you knew there was trouble. Foschi fumbled the football and the Houston Texans recovered. Three emotions within a minute, and all that changed is that I'm laying on the couch again... pissed.

Whatever we think, all that matters is that must Bengals march on. What usually happens when we, you and I in our daily lives, are kicked to the ground, refuse to stand up and pout about it? Absolutely nothing. The Bengals were punched in the mouth Sunday. Now we'll now how "mature" the Bengals are. Will they rebound, fight twice as hard? Or will they bitch and moan about how they were beaten by a 2-3 team after beating the Packers, Steelers and Ravens? Now, we'll see what this team is made of. Now we'll see if this team can find their focus again.

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

20 days ago: Houston Texans running back Steve Slaton (20) runs a 38-yard pass reception for a touchdown as Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Dhani Jones (57) chases the play in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Browse more photos »

Cincinnati's offense and defense simply died at half time. Neither unit came out in the second half with any mind to win this football game. Receivers dropped passes. Fumbles and three-and-outs killed the Bengals while the defense, playing a majority of the entire half, allowed chunks of yards to the Texans offense. Matt Schaub threw for 392 yards and four touchdowns. Steve Slaton recorded 147 yards total, including 102 yards receiving.

The Bengals made an effort for a comeback but with it far too late. With so little time remaining, there was just too much of a need to throw risky passes. And Palmer threw a risky pass on the first play after the two minute warning, throwing the football over the middle with two defenders underneath. The rookie Brian Cushing intercepted the football ending the football game and the Bengals four-game winning streak. As a team, the Texans recorded over 470 yards total while the Bengals broke the 250 total yards barrier with the closing minutes in the fourth quarter.

Was this a let-down game? Was it that the Texans were simply a better team?

This, folks, is the price you pay for going across the middle against a Ray Lewis-led defense. No, I'm not talking about posing with Jennifer Lopez (who still looks good, BTW) and Marc Anthony. What I'm talking about is the bruised area under Ochocinco's eye, courtesy of Ray Lewis' attempted decapitation. 

As is his way, Chad revealed his eye damage via Twitter, where he also told us how he got his shiner:

when my helmet flew off the face mask hit my eye

I notice Lewis, after last week's Tom Brady-inspired meltdown, hasn't said anything about the Bengals game.  Good thing, too.  Surely, he isn't disputing the personal foul penalty.  The defenseless receiver rule is probably more in the lines of good sportsmanship than the "You can only hit the quarterback in the chest" Tom Brady rule.

More photos » by Rob Carr - AP

27 days ago: Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Andre Caldwell crosses the goal line for the game-winning touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2009, in Baltimore. The Bengals won 17-14. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

Browse more photos »

The Ravens and the Steelers. Two teams that played in last year's AFC Championship game. Two teams that we knew we had to beat this year if we were going to make things happen. If the Bengals were to make a playoff run, a scenario in which many Bengals fans didn't feel confident heading into the season, they'd have to go through Pittsburgh and Baltimore. And through the first five games this year, the Bengals beat Pittsburgh and Baltimore. And if you really wanted to cake on that grand feeling of supporting a team that starts the season 4-1, as opposed to 0-5 last year, then know this. It took a fluke play to put a blemish on our record. How does that feel?

A couple of big-picture notes after the Bengals win over the Ravens Sunday.

• Even though the Bengals only have a one game lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, until both teams face and beat the Bengals again, Cincinnati will hold the head-to-head tie-breaker, essentially giving them a two game division lead.
• The Bengals have won seven of their past eight games.
• The Bengals have won four of their past six games at Baltimore.
• The Bengals have won four straight division games dating back to last year.
• Johnathan Joseph has three interceptions in three straight games.
• Marvin Lewis is 8-5 against the Baltimore Ravens.
• Carson Palmer is 7-3 when starting against the Baltimore Ravens.

GAME BALL: First things first. Our game ball. We haven't instituted our player of the game awards this year because we got tired of doing it for a team that started last season with an eight-game losing streak. After that, it was forgotten. And I can't promise we won't forget it about again this year. S thus our first game ball award will be given. Marvin Lewis gave Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer the game ball after Sunday's win. I thought it was appropriate that we do the same. While going through a loss that most of us would have no idea how to deal with, Zimmer and his defense took it to a top-five ranked offense. We compare the Ravens averages coming into Sunday's game and the Ravens numbers on Sunday.

Continue reading this post »

More photos » by Gail Burton - AP

27 days ago: Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer hugs his daughter Corri before the start of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2009, in Baltimore. Vikki Zimmer died Thursday night in Cincinnati. The Zimmers were married for 27 years. (AP Photo/Gail Burton)

Browse more photos »

They did it for Zimmer. The Bengals defense held when it counted and gave Carson Palmer a chance with just over 2 minutes left in the game. After a series of penalties and catches and runs, including a 4th-down scramble by Palmer, the Bengals found pay dirt as Palmer hit Andre Caldwell for the game winning touchdown. There would be no Flacco heroics this week, as a last-ditch Hail Mary fell into Leon Hall's breadbasket for the game-ending interception.

This win has to go out to defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer. After losing his wife this week, the man dove into work and coached the Bengals defense to victory. Here are some numbers that are very telling about the game this week:

• Time of possession - Bengals: 34:19, Ravens: 25:41.
  
• Rushing yards - Bengals: 142 yards, Ravens: 82 yards.
• Passing yards - Bengals: 261 yards, Ravens: 175 yards.
• Total yards - Bengals: 403 yards, Ravens: 257 yards.

What does that say about the Bengals defense and offense against a top-ranked defense and top ranked offense? Cedric Benson and the offensive line made plays all day, keeping Carson Palmer on his feet and opening holes. Benson, though, may have had the play of the game when he spun out of a tackle in the backfield and out-sprinted the Ravens secondary for over 20 yards into the end zone.

Chad Johnson had 7 catches for 94 yards, and Chris Henry is finally getting some chances, making 3 catches for 92 yards, including a 73 yard bomb, good for the Bengals' longest play for scrimmage this year. Daniel Coats dropped 2 touchdown passes - but let's stay on positives. Benson had multiple 10+ yard runs, averagin 4.4 yards on 27 carries. Guys, I know we love the pass and hate seeing bad runs, but when our running backs get 21+ carries in a game, we simply win.

And we won today. Joe Flacco's longest play from scrimmage was a result of bad tackling and Ray Rice making a great play happen. But Flacco hit no one down field. Ravens backs had only 18 carries for 4.6 yards per carry. The Bengals defense allowed only 8 points, and had 2 key take aways to end the game and keep points off the board. Our cornerbacks have certainly made a case for themselves as one of the best in the league.

One update: Cedric Benson now leads ALL NFL rushers in yards since last December. Wow.

Feel free to discuss other key points here, and look for a full recap later tonight.