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Bengals need to rev up offense against Bills

Nov 4, 2007 - 11:55 AM Cincinnati (2-5) at Buffalo (3-4) Sunday 1:00 pm EDT

ORCHARD PARK, New York (Ticker) -- The defense cannot stop anyone and the offense cannot score. No wonder the Cincinnati Bengals are almost out of playoff contention before the season's midway point.

Desperate for a win, the Bengals hit the road Sunday to take on the surprising Buffalo Bills, a team that has beaten them eight in a row.

Losers of five of its last six games, including last weekend's 24-13 home defeat to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cincinnati cannot afford to fall much farther back in the top-heavy AFC.

The Bengals still have one of the more favorable late-season schedules in the league, but if they can't revive a potent offense to take the pressure off their withering defense, it won't matter.

Cincinnati's defense has been shredded for 211 points in seven games; only the league's two winless teams, the St. Louis Rams and Miami Dolphins, have yielded more.

But the more puzzling question has been the consistent lack of scoring punch from an offense that features the wide receiver tandem T.J. Houshmandzadeh, who had a league-high 58 receptions, and Chad Johnson, who leads the league with an average of 104 yards receiving per game.

Coach Marvin Lewis drew criticism - as well as the ire of some of his players - when he opted to kick a field goal against the Steelers with the Bengals trailing, 14-3, and 2:16 left in the first half.

Pittsburgh then drove down the field and pushed in a touchdown with four seconds left in the half for a 21-6 lead. Game over.

"In hindsight, we should have gone for it," Lewis said.

The Bengals' task may be more arduous as running back Rudi Johnson (hamstring) has sat out three of the past four games and replacement Kenny Watson suffered a concussion against the Steelers. Watson's status remains iffy for Sunday.

The resurgent Bills have won two straight games and three of four to overcome an 0-3 start despite numerous injuries on both sides of the ball.

Rookie quarterback Trent Edwards sprained his wrist in last week's 13-3 win over the New York Jets and was replaced by J.P. Losman, who led the Bills to two scoring drives to seal the victory.

Losman, who missed three games with an ankle injury that opened the door for Edwards, will reclaim his starting role for Sunday's game.

Rookie Marshawn Lynch has provided a steady complement in the backfield, rushing for at least 60 yards in every game, including 80 on 21 carries vs. the Jets.

Buffalo's emerging defense had allowed 14 points or fewer in three of the past four games, and if not for allowing nine points to the Dallas Cowboys in the final 20 seconds, the Bills would be riding a four-game winning streak.