The Bengals are the AFC's #2 Seed!...Wait What?

Bengals defeat Lions at the buzzer 27-24:

It seems that Marvin Lewis and Co. are trying their best to make Cincinnati fans forget about the messy demise of their beloved Reds. At this rate, it might actually work.

Throughout Sunday's game, the Bengals battled with a team that many pundits called a "mirror image" of their own makeup: a young team built through the draft; a strong, violent defensive line; a rising QB-WR duo; and two tormented teams trying to rise to the top against their traditionally successful rivals (for the Lions, the Packers and the Bears; for the Bengals, the Steelers and Ravens).

What followed was truly a great football game that featured a bit of everything, and showed why each of these fanbases should be excited for the future. The Bengals struck first on an 82-yard play action touchdown pass from Andy Dalton to AJ Green. They would eventually take a 21-10 lead in the third quarter following two more beautiful Dalton touchdowns to Marvin Jones and Tyler Eifert.

But, as every Bengals fan knows, no win comes easy. Detroit responded with two touchdown passes to superstar Calvin Johnson, including a 50-yard bomb that Johnson caught over three Cincinnati defenders. Just like that, it was tied up 24-24 with 12:00 to go in the final quarter.

Sweep the leg Mikey 

After each team traded possessions, Andy Dalton and the offense got the ball at their own 49-yard line with 26 seconds left and one timeout left (because God forbid the Bengals ever save their timeouts for the end of the game). Dalton made two quick passes to Dane Sanzenbacher and Gio Bernard (GIO!!) and set up Mike Nugent's game-winning 54-yard field goal as time expired. It was Nugent's second game-winning kick in as many weeks.

Things of Note: 

1. Andy Dalton: 24-of-34, 372 yards, 3 touchdowns, 0 interceptions, 92.8 QBR
To be quite honest, my opinion of this guy wavers almost every week. When he looks good, the Bengals can beat any team in the NFL, but when he looks bad it really is a struggle to find ways to score. Dalton was divine this week, and his willingness to throw into tight windows and to trust his receivers has allowed for a suddenly diverse offensive array to develop. His toss to Marvin Jones was of the highest caliber, and the offensive line gave him enough time to read through his progressions, resulting in only one sack against Detroit's tough line. If there was anything to pick apart, it would be that he threw short of AJ Green on a few routes that could have resulted in big gains.

Marvin's beautiful catch on Andy's second TD pass

Regardless, by the end of Sunday, Andy had defeated Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Matt Stafford en route to leading the Bengals to a 5-2 record. Dalton connected with seven different Bengals receivers on the day.

2. The Tragedy of Leon Hall/ The NFL:
Although the term is often bandied around, Leon Hall has been the consummate professional in his seven NFL seasons. Following the departure of former CB Jonathan Joseph, Hall has mentored an absurdly young array of NFL castoffs, busts, and rookies in the secondary. In 2011, Hall injured his left Achilles tendon and missed most of the season. On Sunday, Hall seemed to be keeping step for step with Calvin Johnson until he fell while defending Johnson on an endzone fade route. He immediately grabbed his ankle, and it didn't take long for fans and teammates to assume the worst. As confirmed today, Hall will miss the rest of the 2013 season with a tear to his right Achilles. It will now be up for Adam Jones, Terrance Newman, Dre Kirkpatrick, and Taylor Mays to somehow make up for his absence. The secondary will need to step up after allowing Detroit to convert on 13 of 19 third downs. 

No Caption Needed

Newman said after the game, "It's just tough. He's one of the best in the league, you know? So to have one of the best corners in the league go down? It's tough. Especially when he's your brother. We all spend a lot of time together. It just sucks." 

Hall was not the only sad story of the NFL this week. Several teams may be missing key players for the rest of the season including Reggie Wayne, Brian Cushing, Doug Martin, Sam Bradford, Jay Cutler, and Jermichael Finley, among others. 

3. Super Special Teams: 
Typically the history of the Bungles have left Cincinnati fans to expect a different type of "special" out of their kicking and punting teams (sorry, I had to). However, Nugent's kick wasn't the only highlight of the week. Late in the second quarter, Carlos Dunlap leaped to block a David Akers field goal attempt and gave the ball back to Cincinnati. Those three points would obviously prove to be key to the win. Kevin Huber also made some great punts to help the Bengals win the late battle for field position.

4. Other things
--Jermaine Gresham had a really rough day out there, with a few offensive penalties and some really dumb decisions on the field.

Yo dude, you're pretty good...You too dude..

--The defense kept quick RB Reggie Bush from finding huge holes in the field and making any big plays. Bush still managed 94 yards of total offense but he was far from being the explosive playmaker that he had been leading into Sunday.

--Matt Stafford also missed a few open receivers throughout the game, but unlike Dalton, Stafford overthrew his. Lesson: Just throw the ball to Megatron

--With losses by Baltimore (3-4) and Cleveland (3-4), the Bengals (5-2) currently lead the AFC North by two games. Because of their tiebreakers against New England (5-2) and Indianapolis (5-2), Cincinnati would be the #2 Seed in the AFC Playoffs if the season ended today...so there's that.

--Green finished with 6 receptions for 155 yards and one touchdown while Johnson caught 9 balls for 155 yards and two touchdowns. Pretty outstanding performances by the two best receivers in football.

Coming Up Next: 
The Bengals now come home to face the New York Jets (4-3). The Jets have had Cincinnati's number in the past, but hopefully the defense feasts on rookie QB Geno Smith.

Lets put baseball season behind us (I heard the World Series was being cancelled this year, right?) and put some hope behind the Bengals. Fear the tiger.

WhoDey,

Albert