When Carson Palmer returned during a perfect pre-season, the Cincinnati Bengals were convinced that they could pick up where they left off and make a run at the Super Bowl.
Instead, they've run into a few unexpected problems.
Palmer looks rusty. The defence looks bad. And all of those arrests _ the ones that coach Marvin Lewis insisted would not affect the team _ are beginning to take their toll on the lineup as well as the image.
The trends are troubling.
``Maybe we're not as good as we think we are,'' running back Rudi Johnson said after a 38-13 drubbing by New England.
Yes, the Bengals are 3-1 heading into their bye, in good position to make a run at a second straight AFC North title. But there's been no sign of the ``scary'' offence that receiver Chad Johnson practically guaranteed. And the run defence, the main focus of off-season moves, is weak again.
It's been a week for soul searching.
``We haven't played as good as we can, because we know we can be a great football team,'' linebacker Brian Simmons said. ``At the same time, we're 3-1 and you have to feel good about that.''
They'd feel a lot better if the offence got rolling.
Palmer led the league in touchdowns (32) and completion percentage (67.8 per cent) last season, the main reason the Bengals had their first winning record in 15 years. His passer rating topped 100 in each of the first six games, when the Bengals went 5-1 and built momentum that carried them through the season.
He tore up his left knee during a playoff loss to Pittsburgh, but made a remarkably fast recovery. Palmer returned during the first unbeaten pre-season in franchise history and looked as good as ever.
It's been a different story since the season started.
Palmer's numbers have taken a tumble: six touchdowns, four interceptions, 62.5 per cent of his throws completed. In the most telling statistic, Palmer has been sacked 15 times, only four shy of his total for last season.
With the offensive line hobbled by injuries, teams have pressured Palmer like never before. He has fumbled five times in the last two games and rushed throws while getting hit.
``The fact that he's getting hit more and the pressure has an effect on any quarterback,'' offensive co-ordinator Bob Bratkowski said. ``What we've got to do is do a better job of protecting him to allow him to do it. I think his knee is fine. I don't think that is even an issue.''
Opponents have blanketed Chad Johnson _ only 201 yards and one touchdown in four games _ and given Palmer little time to find an alternative. The result is three games with less than 300 yards on offence, matching their total for all of last season.
It's enough to make them grumpy.
``A lot of anger,'' Chad Johnson said. ``It makes us angry enough to want to get out there and fix those things.''
The defence needs a lot of fixing. Pittsburgh and New England ran for a combined 406 yards in the last two games, averaging 5.1 yards per carry.
Stopping the run has been a long-standing problem in Cincinnati. The Bengals thought they'd finally solved the problem when they signed 360-pound tackle Sam Adams and safety Dexter Jackson in the off-season.
Jackson has been sidelined by a sprained ankle, an out-of-shape Adams hasn't made a tackle in the last two games, and a defence that relies on turnovers has turned into a liability.
``It's disappointing,'' Lewis said. ``You know how I feel about that. That hurts you and doesn't make you feel good at all.''
Their behaviour is bringing them down, as well.
Five players were arrested during a three-month span before the season, a remarkable run of misconduct that has taken a toll on the team's reputation and its roster _ something the head coach is loathe to admit.
While the arrests piled up, Lewis adamantly defended his players and tried to cut off all discussion of their misbehaviour.
``I'm going to protect my guys, as I've said many times,'' Lewis said recently. ``It's part of my job to protect them as long as they're mine.''
The more he coddled them, the more they ignored him.
Lewis finally erupted when linebacker Odell Thurman, already suspended four games for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy, was arrested on a charge of drunken driving on Sept. 25. Receiver Chris Henry, who has four arrests on his rap sheet, was a passenger in the vehicle.
The league suspended Thurman for the rest of the season, costing the Bengals their leading tackler from 2005. Lewis, who drafted Thurman despite questions about his character, took away his locker.
``We've told him he's not to be around here,'' Lewis said.
Henry was benched for the game against New England, a disciplinary move that clearly hurt the team on the field. With teams covering Chad Johnson so closely, Henry had emerged as a big-play threat.
Henry has two cases pending in court, including one on a drunken driving charge, and could also be disciplined by the league, putting the Bengals at a disadvantage again.
The self-inflicted problems aren't going away.
