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Biggest tests ahead for Bengals' secondary
For all the defense's impressive statistics and rankings, before proclaiming this group healed from the sting of Hall's Achilles, skeptics suggest waiting another week. One huge test arrives on their desk Sunday.
San Diego has been kind to Bengals' Andy Dalton
Andy Dalton has played inside Qualcomm Stadium four times in his football-playing career. Four times, he has left Qualcomm Stadium victorious. When the Cincinnati Bengals quarterback enters San Diego's biggest football facility for a fifth time this weekend, he will be looking to expand upon the fond memories he has already established there.
Bengals need receiver to complement A.J. Green
As the Bengals get set to begin their stretch run, there are many familiar themes - notably, which receiver after A.J. Green will break through.
West no longer brings out worst in Bengals
Traveling to the West Coast used to make for long return flights for Marvin Lewis and the Bengals. Cincinnati recorded one win in six trips during Lewis' first eight seasons with the team.
Third-and-longs an unwelcome norm for Bengals
A common thread appeared in the analysis of all those closely connected with providing an answer to the offensive woes of November: Stay out of third-and-long.
Notes: Rivers rolling to another Bengals showdown
Bengals safety Chris Crocker knows exactly how important New England refugee Danny Woodhead is to the MVP-type season of Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers.
Fantasy Insider: Week 13
Week 13 marks the end of the regular fantasy season for most, and the final week to secure playoff seeding for some.
Matchup of the Game: Practice makes Burfict as Tez lines up Woodhead
If the following sounds like a case for Vontaze Burfict as the Bengals MVP heading into December, so be it.
Notes: Tough place to Coast; Jones vs. Allen; Riley tapped
The Bengals head to San Diego Friday, a day earlier than usual as they try to cobble together a rarity in Sunday's game (4:25 p.m.-Cincinnati's Channel 12) with a third straight win on the West Coast. In games played in California and Seattle, the Bengals are 14-34 in their lifetime, but the Green-Dalton crew is 2-0 after last year's 20-13 win in San Diego and the 2011 victory in Seattle.
Season Ruiners: The 2013 All-Turkey Team
From Yahoo Sports: Turkey is a nebulous word, dependent on context. A baked and stuffed bird will be the centerpiece of many Thanksgiving meals come Thursday, but in a different environment, turkey is a flat-out insult. Stick with that latter definition for the balance of this post.
Bengals' offense has problems getting started
Everybody knows what has to change when the AFC North leaders play at San Diego (5-6) on Sunday.
Chargers reworking secondary prior to hosting Bengals
Rookie coach Mike McCoy and defensive coordinator John Pagano say there's a competition among the defensive backs after the Chargers allowed Alex Smith to throw for 294 yards and three touchdowns in San Diego's 41-38 win Sunday.
Black NFL players arrested nearly 10 times as often as whites
A police officer in Cincinnati watched a large black man get into his car and turn on the engine after being told it was illegally parked. The officer thought the man was trying to avoid a parking ticket and told him to stop. So the man — Matthias Askew, at the time an NFL player — stopped his Cadillac Escalade, got out and was arrested in a scuffle with several officers. Police used a stun gun on Askew four times, alleging he resisted arrest.
Darnell Dockett, Kenny Britt among players using phones to record police
To protect themselves in dealing with the police, some NFL players have taken aim at officers during traffic stops — with smartphones. After getting pulled over, they activated their phone's video function
Elite quarterbacks remain elusive in NFL
It doesn't surprise former NFL executive Vinny Cerrato that Peyton Manning remains an elite quarterback in his 16th season. It wouldn't have surprised Cerrato on that Monday night in 1995 when he made a campus visit and saw Manning, a University of Tennessee sophomore, aligning the scout team and explaining precisely how the defense was going to play the following Saturday. Quarterbacks who gain that edge don't lose it. They're the ones every NFL scout craves. They're also extremely hard to find.
USA TODAY Sports' Week 13 NFL predictions
With possible NFC Championship Game preview on docket, do USA TODAY Sports' experts like Seahawks or Saints? Most like the Chargers over the Bengals.
Sheldon Richardson takes over top spot in NFL rookie rankings
The race for both defensive and offensive NFL rookie of the year is tightening. Jets' DE Sheldon Richardson has taken over the top spot overall, while the Buccaneers' Mike Glennon is making a late surge to win the offensive award.