Bengals Bytes (11/7): Sashi Brown says he didn’t ‘sabotage’ AJ McCarron trade

Bengals lucky to have escaped with no suspension for A.J. Green
A.J. Green's squeaky clean history might have saved him from a suspension. The Cincinnati Bengals are lucky that Green will face only a potential fine for his role in a fight with Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey that escalated into a bench-clearing brawl on Sunday. Had it been linebacker Vontaze Burfict, who already received a three-game suspension for a preseason hit the NFL deemed unnecessary, the outcome might have been different.

Bengals' dreadful first-half offense has them below .500 at midseason
The Bengals came into this season with hopes of turning it around from a 6-9-1 campaign last season, especially after getting younger at linebacker and drafting some talented rookies. However, the offense sputtered to dismal levels, forcing the Bengals to fire offensive coordinator Ken Zampese after two games. While the defense has played well this season, the Bengals look no better overall than they did last season.

TDBH: Leah Still the one
The range of emotions cascade through Paul Brown Stadium tonight like no Bengals’ home game in history. During a stunning 24-3 loss to the arch-rival Browns in which the defending AFC North champions’ offense freezes up, the roaring crowd of 65,871 salutes the child queen of Bengaldom in an unforgettable ceremony at the end of the first quarter. Leah Still, four-year-old daughter of Bengals defensive tackle Devon Still, has been battling a Stage 4 cancer diagnosis since the spring and the courage of the inspiring father-daughter team has captured the country. Devon Still has kept playing, in large part, to help shine a light on childhood cancer, and Leah Still has simply kept living with a contagious smile and huge heart.

Green set free as Ross paces own return
It looks like Bengals rookie wide receiver John Ross won’t be rushed into the lineup to replace A.J. Green after various publications reported Monday that Green won’t be suspended following Sunday’s ejection stemming from a fight with Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey. And the way Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis is handling Ross, even if Green couldn’t make it Sunday in Tennessee (1 p.m.-Cincinnati’s Channel 19) as the NFL’s last-ranked offense slides into a pace for historic club lows, Lewis may not have activated Ross even though he’s been practicing for three weeks.

TDBH:Bengals Cowboy up behind ‘Big Play’ Schobel
A week after the Boston Red Sox win their first World Series in 86 years using the motto “Cowboy up,” to invoke toughness and grit, the Bengals do the same to head coach Bill Parcells’ Cowboys in a 26-3 roundup before the second-largest Bengals crowd ever at 65,721 at Paul Brown Stadium. The Bengals serve themselves to a helping of Tuna today in taking a page from the colorfully nicknamed Parcells' playbook. A stingy run defense generates five turnovers, a big play from a tight end jump-starts the offense, and a push-the-pile running game sits on a fourth-quarter lead in a win that gives them the same 3-5 record they had at the half-way point last season in a year Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis and Parcells take over their respective teams. It also lifts Lewis' home record to 8-4.

Marvin Lewis news conference transcript
Going back to yesterday, we failed to do a very good job. On offense, (we struggled with) making first downs. I felt that after the football game yesterday. When you look at it, we had some positive plays, but we didn’t convert the two early third downs. We lost those opportunities. We had field position in the first half, which was good, but we were unable to maintain it and sustain it. Defensively, we were putting them on long fields even when we had to punt. We put them on long fields, but we weren’t able to hold-serve back there. ... You couple (those things) with the breakdowns we had — both on third down defensively, and some of the things on offense — it wasn’t a very good day.

Report: Green not suspended; Dunlap hopes Bengals catch Green's fire
Published reports say Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green has avoided a suspension stemming from his fight with Jags cornerback Jalen Ramsey that got them both ejected late in the first half of Sunday’s game in Jacksonville.

AFC North Bytes

Josh Gordon on Addiction, His NFL Comeback, and Using Before Games
In a candid new interview, the Cleveland Browns wide receiver talks about rehab, details past struggles with substance abuse, and admits he had something in his system "probably every game of his career."

John Harbaugh has “no doubt” offense can be very successful
The Ravens have made in-season changes at offensive coordinator a couple of times under head coach John Harbaugh and some have wondered if Marty Mornhinweg might get dispatched as the team looks for an offensive approach that leads to consistent success.

Sashi Brown: I didn't sabotage AJ McCarron trade for Cleveland Browns
Any report or idea that the Cleveland Browns' front office intentionally sabotaged a trade for Bengals quarterback AJ McCarron is "wholly untrue," vice president of football operations Sashi Brown said Monday. "I am not worried about that internally," Brown said. "Externally, I can just put it to bed; that is just not the case."

Random Bytes

NFL Power Rankings: Where Does Every Team Stand Heading into Week 10?
As we enter the second half of the NFL season, we're seeing the top-tier teams beginning to pull away. One thing all of these top teams have in common is at least one facet of the game that is elite. While the NFL is a matchup league, having a piece of your team that is elite gives you something to lean on when games get messy or don't go as planned.

With Best Healthy QB in NFC North, Lions Look Poised for Legitimate Playoff Push
The 2017 NFL season will likely be remembered as one filled with parity and confusion. If the first half of the year is any indication, those looking back on it will think no number of crushing losses strung together kept a team from convincing itself the playoffs were still within reach.

Where Did Human Joystick and Bears Difference-Maker Tarik Cohen Come From?
See Tarik Cohen in practice; understand the concept of kinetic energy. He darts and dashes, a rabbit on Red Bull. During warm-ups, a backflip, just to stretch the back. His mouth is running, rapping, roasting. Give him the ball, his legs move faster than the eye. The play ends, he sprints to the end zone. On the sideline, he dances.

Mike Evans Suspended 1 Game for Cheap Shot on Marshon Lattimore
The NFL gave Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans a one-game suspension Monday for shoving New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore in Sunday's 30-10 defeat. Michael Signora, the NFL's vice president of football communications, shared the league's press release