The Bengals have lost three games in a row as they are in quite a tailspin.  The Dolphins lost a game because of the refs last week against the Steelers.  The Bengals are going to need the Jungle to be jumping this weekend because the Fins are road warriors.  The Dolphins are 3-0 on the road so far this year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Bengals have the ball:  The Bengals want to force the Dolphins into a shootout.  That means that Carson Palmer is going to come out of the tunnel at Paul Brown Stadium throwing the football.  The O-Line will have to keep Dolphins’ OLB Cameron Wake (6 sacks this year) out of Carson Palmer’s face.  If Palmer has time to throw the ball he’s going to spread the ball around to Chad Ocho Cinco, Terrell Owens, Jordan Shipley and Jermaine Gresham.  The Bengals will also get the rock to Cedric Benson 20-25 times on Sunday to keep the Fins’ D honest.

When the Dolphins have the ball:  The Bengals are giving up 118.0 yards rushing and 4.5 yards per carry so I see Ronnie Brown & Ricky Williams getting a lot of work on Sunday.  Chad Henne should have all day to throw the ball as the Bengals only have six sacks this year.  That means that Brandon Marshall, Davone Bess and Brian Hartline could have big games this Sunday.

PREDICTION:  BENGALS 24, DOLPHINS 20

26-year old RB Bernard Scott is Cedric Benson’s caddy.  But it seems like almost every time he touches the ball…..good things happen.  Scott has played in 6 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has carried the ball 18 times for 92 yards (5.1 ypc) and he also caught the ball 8 times for 58 yards (7.3 avg).  Scott has also returned 13 kickoffs for 262 yards (20.2 avg) so far this year.  Scott has now touched the ball 39 times for 412 yards (10.6 avg) so far this year.  The Bengals need to throw Scott a bone once in a while and give him a few more touches.

The Bengals have signed 28-year old TE J.P. Foschi.  Foschi played in 15 games for the Bengals last season and he caught 27 passes for 260 yards (9.6 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He has now played in 25 games in his first two years in the NFL and he has caught 33 passes for 297 yards (9.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Foschi will back up Jermaine Gresham for the rest of the year and he will likely play in 2 TE sets if the Bengals ever decide to use one.

UPDATE:  (11/9/2010) – The Bengals have waived J.P. Foschi.  Foschi played in 2 games for the Bengals but he didn’t catch any passes.  The Bengals have signed Chase Coffman off the practice squad to replace Foschi on the active roster.  Coffman was a 3rd round pick of the Bengals in 2009 but he has yet to play in a regular season game.

The Bengals have released 26-year old TE Daniel Coats.  Coats played in six games for the Bengals this year and he didn’t catch any passes.  Coats played in 53 games in his 4 years with the Bengals and he caught 30 passes for 291 yards (9.7 avg).  Coats wasn’t much of a weapon in the passing game and that’s likely what cost him his job.

The Bengals have lost 27-year old cornerback Adam “Pac Man” Jones for the rest of the year due to a neck injury.  Jones played in 5 games for the Bengals this year and he had 14 tackles, 3 passes defensed, a forced fumble that he returned for a 59-yard TD and 1 interception.  Jones also returned 5 punts for 33 yards (6.6 avg) and he also returned 7 kickoffs for 134 yards (19.1 avg).  This a a shame for both the Bengals & Jones because he appeared to have his act together.

The Bengals got into an old fashioned shootout in Atlanta today but they fell short because the defense played pretty awful.  Carson Palmer was outstanding today as he completed 36 of 50 passes for 412 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Cedric Benson was so-so with 20 carries for 70 yards (3.5 ypc) today.  Bernard Scott only carried the ball 1 time for 14 yards but he also caught 5 passes for 43 yards (8.6 avg) in this game.  Jordan Shipley (6 rec, 131 yards, TD), Chad Ocho Cinco (10 rec, 108 yards, TD) and Terrell Owens (9 rec, 88 yards, TD) all had outstanding games for the Bengals in today’s game.  The Bengals finished up with 84 yards rushing on 21 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 36 of 50 passes for 385 yards today.

Dhani Jones (8 tackles) and Keith Rivers (7 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 QB hit) led the way for the Bengals’ “D” today.  Pac Man Jones made some big plays for the Bengals today with 6 tackles and a forced fumble that he recovered and returned 59 yards for a TD.  CB Leon Hall pitched in with a pickoff today.  The Falcons finished up with 153 yards rushing on 30 carries (5.1 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 33 passes for 299 yards.  The Bengals are now 2-4 on the season.

The Bengals lost two games in a row before the bye week so hopefully they got rested, healthy and more motivated & focused.  The Falcons are coming off a beatdown at the hands of the Eagles in Philly last weekend.  The Falcons are 2-0 at home, outscoring opponents 57-21!  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Bengals have the ball:  This is the game the Bengals should consider getting back to the running game.  Cedric Benson will likely be able to get his fair share of yards against a Falcons’ D that is allowing 97.8 yards rushing and 4.2 yards per carry.  But don’t think for a minute that the Bengals aren’t going to pass the ball a lot in this game.  The Falcons are allowing 239.5 yards passing per game and top corner Dunta Robinson (concussion) is out for this game.  For some reason I have a feeling that Chad Ocho Cinco is going to get more targets than Terrell Owens this weekend.

When the Falcons have the ball:  The Falcons are going to come out trying to run the ball with Michael Turner against the soft run D of the Bengals which is giving up 111.0 yards rushing and 4.4 yards per carry so far this year.  The Bengals do have an excellent set of corners but they only have six sacks this year so Matt Ryan will likely have plenty of time to choose who to throw to.  With Michael Jenkins back, the Falcons have a lot of options in the passing game with Tony Gonzalez and Roddy White likely to get a lot of work. 

PREDICTION:  FALCONS 27, BENGALS 23

Starting RB Cedric Benson isn’t happy with the Bengals’ offense right now.  Benson has played in 5 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has carried the ball 103 times for 406 yards (3.9 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He has also caught 5 passes for 39 yards (7.8 avg) with 1 TD grab so far this year.  Last season Benson played in 13 games in which he carried the ball 301 times for 1,251 yards (4.2 ypc) with 6 TD runs.  He also caught 17 passes for 111 yards (6.5 avg) last season.  Benson has averaged 21.6 touches per game this year (running & receiving) and last year he averaged 24.5 touches.  I just don’t see why Benson is crying.  He just needs to play better, period.

The Bengals gave 28-year old Mike Nugent (from Ohio State) a shot to win the kicking job in training camp and that’s exactly what he has done.  Until this year, Nugent has been a pretty poor kicker.  He has played in 5 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has connected on 12 of 13 field goals (92.3%) and he has made 8 of 8 extra points as he has 44 points on the year.  The Bengals need him to keep up the good work because they can’t afford to leave points on the field.

Sure, 32-year old WR Chad Ocho Cinco continues to smile and say the right things to the media.  But you have to wonder if he’s happy behind closed doors right now.  He has caught 26 passes for 316 yards (12.2 avg) with 1 TD grab in the Bengals first five games this year.  Ochco Cinco has led the Bengals in receiving in 7 of his first 9 years with them as he has been the team’s go-to man since his second year in the NFL.  36-year old Terrell Owens has been the Bengals’ top wideout this year with 31 grabs for 476 yards (15.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  One has to wonder if Ocho Cinco really meant it when he said he doesn’t mind being Robin to T.O.’s Batman.