Bengals in good position to win at Indianapolis

The Colts are reeling. As a human being, I hate to see a good man like Tony Dungy endure another fading team. He should have received a ring for the Super Bowl victory by his Tampa Bay tea. You can see what has happened to the Buccaneers since Jon Gruden has had control.

All that said, the Colts are terrible against the run. Their tackling was horrible against Jacksonville, and they gave up 375 yards.

If I'm Bengals offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski, I run the ball 40-45 times. I keep the Colts offense off the field. I use Rudi Johnson. I mix in the dependable Kenny Watson, who follows blocking well. I run that quick-hit play with fullback Jeremi Johnson.

The more the Bengals control the ball, the better.

That's my early neutral look at next Monday night.

The Bengals are playing with an edge.

I think linebacker Brian Simmons hit it on the button when he told me this Sunday night: "The situation we're in this year, and the situation we were in last year, with (losses) to Buffalo and Kansas City (to end the season), they're two different situations. This year, we put ourselves in a position where every game is a dogfight just to make the playoffs. That might not be a bad thing. It keeps you playing sharp. It keeps you playing on the edge going into the playoffs. If that's what it's going to take to get into the playoffs and advance, I'm all for it."