Bengals, Redskins need to win to stay alive

A loss or two could just about eliminate them from the playoffs
LANDOVER, Md. (AP) -- Eleven of the 30 teams in the NFL are 3-5, all sitting on the cusp of joining the postseason push rather than sliding into the dreaded reality of playing out the string.
That's where the Cincinnati Bengals and Washington Redskins find themselves, facing each other knowing another loss or two in November essentially guarantees another year of watching playoffs on TV.
"These games over the next month become huge games," Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis said. "They really put the stamp on how your season is going to be, what you do in November and December. You'd like to get off to a fast start. We didn't do that. So now it's time to get down and play football."
The Bengals and Redskins have combined for exactly one playoff appearance in the last 12 years, when Washington won the NFC East in 1999. If neither succeeds this year, the coaches will likely hear a reversal of blames: Washington's Joe Gibbs stuck with the veteran quarterback when he perhaps should have tried the younger one, while Lewis went young while benching a veteran who played well a year ago.
Brunell will start
Gibbs continues to support Mark Brunell, who is last in the league in competition percentage and has thrown for fewer than 100 yards in three of his last four games. Gibbs let Brunell throw the ball just twice in the second half at Detroit a week ago, relying on the Redskins' top-ranked defense to hold on for a 17-10 victory.
This week, the coach added a 10-minute period at the beginning of practices to work specifically on passing plays. Fans chanted for backup Patrick Ramsey at the last home game two weeks ago, and they will surely do so again if Brunell continues to misfire.
Cincinnati's Carson Palmer found success in last week's 26-3 victory over Dallas, completing 21 of 32 passes, and he didn't get sacked for first time this season. Lewis says he doesn't have any regrets about playing Palmer ahead of 2003 Comeback Player of the Year Jon Kitna, but the coach also says it's time for his second-year quarterback to demonstrate more leadership.
"We keep growing as a football team as he grows. He has to command a bigger presence," Lewis said. "I want him to be as demanding on everybody else as he is on himself."
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