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Cincinnati Bengals place kicker Shayne Graham (middle) gets a pat on the back - Source: Reuters -
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Bernard Scott raced 96 yards with a kickoff return as the
surprising Cincinnati Bengals took control of the AFC North
Division with an 18-12 victory over the NFL champion Pittsburgh
Steelers on Monday.
Scott's run was the game's only touchdown in Cincinnati's (7-2)
second win over Pittsburgh (6-3) this season.
"That's a big win," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis told reporters.
"It's a grinding football game, probably the most physical,
grinding football game I've ever been on the sideline to
experience.
"It says that we've got guys that can make plays down the
stretch."
The key, he said, was being able to contain and corral Steelers
quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who was sacked four times and held
to 174 yards passing.
Scott, a rookie, also drew high praise.
"The kickoff return was amazing; the moves he made, the cuts he
made, and just to come in against a defence that he's never played
against," said Bengals' quarterback Carson Palmer, who completed 18
of 30 passes for 178 yards.
Scott was pressed into duty as the Bengals' running back after
starter Cedric Benson was injured in the second quarter, and he
wound up the team's leading rusher, gaining 33 yards on 13
carries.
Winners of only four games in a 4-11-1 season a year ago, the
Bengals surged to their seventh victory in eight games
Cincinnati's Shayne Graham kicked four field goals, two in the
fourth quarter, after Pittsburgh's Jeff Reed had levelled the score
at 12-12 with a field goal with 11:20 to play.
Graham sealed the win with a 43-yarder with 1:56 remaining.
Pittsburgh had won five in a row following its September loss to
the Bengals, but the Steelers could not find the end zone, relying
on Reed's four field goals for their only points.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, who lost safety Troy Polamalu with a
knee injury in the first quarter, called his team's performance
ineffective, which Roethlisberger agreed with.
"We did things we don't normally do and we didn't do things that we
normally do," Roethlisberger said. "Just from the get-go, we
weren't on. ...we weren't good in the run, we weren't good in the
pass.
"And, yes, it's a big loss. It hurts."
