Steve Silverman

They were the hot team in 2005, but the Bengals look like they are running on fumes just two years later.

Put under the microscope as the dominant New England Patriots came to town on Monday Night, head coach Marvin Lewis and his team were fired up to show everyone exactly where they stood in the AFC’s hierarchy.

A win over New England wouldn’t change the standings very much, but it would have sent their confidence skyrocketing higher than the Dow Jones.

But that was not about to happen. The Patriots pounded out a routine 34-13 victory and it was one of those rare NFL games that went exactly as expected.

The Bengals were 8 1/2 point underdogs despite playing at Paul Brown Stadium. While Cincinnati has a dominant quarterback in Carson Palmer and one of the top 1-2 punches at wide receiver with T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Chad Johnson, the Bengals just don’t compare with the Patriots in overall talent.

So Lewis knew his team had a difficult fight ahead, one that only got harder as the game got started. The Bengals’ undermanned defense was not really in a position to cope with the Patriots’ offense, and it wasn’t just Tom Brady (25-of-32 for 231 yards with 3 TDs and 1 interception) and Randy Moss (9-102-2).

Instead, it was New England’s running game that just beat the stuffing out of the Bengals. Cincinnati played most of the game with just two linebackers and one of them -- Dhani Jones -- had arrived in Cincinnati just 12 days before the game and is still learning the system.

As a result of a myriad of injuries to a defense that has never done exceptionally well at stuffing the run, the Pats just ran the ball down their throat. New England did not have its stud back Laurence Maroney (strained groin) available and Belichick was content to let Kevin Faulk and Sammy Morris (117 yards and a touchdown) take care of business.

Those two could just as easily have been Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier galloping through significant creases in the Cincinnati defense. Injuries will do that to a team and when the opponent is as savvy and capable as the Patriots, the Bengals were not going to figure out a way to stop them from rushing for 173 yards and 5.1 yards per carry.

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That’s just the problem. Good teams are resourceful and they find ways to overcome their obstacles. For example, the Patriots have been playing without defensive end Richard Seymour (Physically Unable to Play), who is arguably the best defensive player they have. Is Belichick complaining? Was Tedy Bruschi crying in the locker room? Of course not. Backup Jarvis Green has stepped in and played like a stud in Seymour’s place.

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They have one of the best linebacking crews in recent memory with Adalius Thomas, Mike Vrabel, Rosevelt Colvin and Bruschi, and those pros just go about their business. They are not waiting for Brady to make a big throw or Moss to make a circus catch either. They just want to make their own big plays and know they can control any game and any situation.

The Bengals have no identity and that is somewhat surprising since Lewis is their head coach. He built the game’s most intimidating defense since the 1985 Bears when he drew up plays and formations for the 2000 Ravens. No doubt that such a group had dynamic talent led by Ray Lewis and Chris McAlister, but Lewis’s scheme played a key role in the development of this unit.

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