Colts @ Bengals 11/20/05

5 Keys To a Bengal Victory
1. Who's Got the Edge--The Bengals run defense has been mediocre at best this season. They are allowing 124 yards/game and a terrible 4.7 yards/carry. This is not a good sign going against Edgerrin James this week. James is second in the NFL in rushing yards, and he is averaging 4.6 yards per carry. The Bengals will not be able to stop him, but if they can contain him and hold him to no more than 4.2 yards/carry and around 100 yards, they will be in good shape.

2. TO's Kill--This game presents a great matchup of the league's best team at forcing turnovers against one of the league's best at protecting the ball. The Bengals have struggled on defense when they can't force turnovers. If they can find a way to turn the Colts over in some key spots, they will have a chance to win.

3. Who Covers 85?--The Colts secondary may be the only weak part of the team. This makes the status of free safety Bob Sanders even more important. Sanders is listed as questionable with a knee injury. Even with Sanders, the Colts' corners of 5'8" Jason David and 5'10" Nick Harper have struggled this year. If the Bengals can get Chad Johnson one on one against their corners, there will be big plays available over the top.

4. Hold That Line--The Colts feature two of the league's best pass rushers in Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis. Mathis has 9 sacks already and Freeney has 7. Their 16 sacks are 2 more than the entire Bengals team. Look for Freeney to be matched up on Bengals' left tackle Levi Jones most of the day. This will leave Willie Anderson to handle Mathis and could be the key to the Bengals' offensive success. Jones should be able to contain Freeney with his athleticism, and if Anderson can handle Mathis, the Bengals should have success against an undersized front 7.

5. Welcome To The Jungle--The Bengals have played well at home in big games under Marvin Lewis. They knocked off the 9-0 Chiefs two years ago, and they beat the Dolphins and Broncos in primetime last season. The Colts have struggled in recent years when they get outside and the weather isn't in their favor. The weather report for Sunday is a high of 43 degrees with a chance of rain and flurries. If that forecast holds up, the weather and the crowd could be the determining factor.
Prediction--I hope the Bengals pull it off, but the Colts are just too good. IND 31 CIN 21