CNATI: Cincinnati OH Sports Journalism

Cincinnati Bengals

Notes: Henry breaks forearm

By C. Trent Rosecrans, CNATI.com Posted November 8, 2009 6:37 PM ET

After Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis addressed the media, he walked back into the locker room and in the far corner he found Chris Henry, who was on his way home.

Lewis and Henry spoke for a minute, and Lewis draped his arm around the wide receiver, who will be out for an undisclosed period of time because of a broken left forearm. Lewis didn't discuss in detail Henry's prognosis, but based on the look on his face, Henry won't be back anytime soon.

As Henry left the locker room, fellow receiver Laveranues Coles embraced Henry, whose arm was in a sling and what appeared to be a cast. Henry ducked into the equipment room, talked to a couple more teammates and left the stadium, his season possibly completed.

"I don't know that," Lewis said when asked if Henry's game was season-ending.

The injury occurred on the Bengals' first offensive play of the second quarter, as Carson Palmer connected with Henry for 20 yards and Baltimore's Fabian Washington tackled Henry. As Henry hit the ground, he rolled onto his arm and his forearm appeared to snap.

It was Henry's only catch of the day and just his 12th of the season, but he is the team's best deep threat. He is averaging 19.7 yards per catch with two touchdowns.

"It's going to hurt. He's a big-play guy, a guy we depend on on third down and expect to come through in a number of situations," said Palmer. "We have to roll with the punches and find a guy to make some of those plays he made and stretch the field the way he did. It's tough. Your heart goes out to Chris. He loves the game and was so excited with the way things were going this year. For him to have to go through that is going to be tough. Maurice Purify, Jerome Simpson, Quan Cosby -- whoever it might be -- are going to have to step up and make plays for us now."

The Bengals finished the drive with a field goal and didn't score again in the game.

In addition to Henry, two Bengal starters left the game due to injury: guard Evan Mathis (ankle) and linebacker Keith Rivers (calf). Both said they didn't know if they would be available for Sunday's game at Pittsburgh, but both said they shouldn't be out long.

Rivers said he had strained his calf and then it "went out" on a punt team play. He is scheduled for an MRI on Monday, he said.

"It felt like a pop, but who knows? I'll be in here (Monday) for treatment and get a better diagnosis of it," said Rivers, who left the locker room on crutches. "We're doing aggressive treatment on it. I think I'll be all right."

Mathis injured his left ankle on the opening possession of the game, a 12-play, 73-yard drive, but didn't come out of the game until the third play of the second series.

"I was mad. I knew I hurt it again, and if I wasn't hobbling around, I'm not as good as Nate (Livings)," Mathis said.

BIG GAME FOR COLES - As much noise as Laveranues Coles' four-year, $28 million sigining made in the off-season for the Bengals, his play on the field had been quiet until Sunday, when he caught six passes for 72 yards and ran once for 8 yards.

Even better than the numbers were the plays themselves, which came at crucial times and accounted for multiple first downs.

"He is a guy that really understands how to play the game, how to block and his role within the team," Palmer said. "He really understands the offense for being a first-year guy (here) and he makes big play after big play. He made two nice plays where he broke a tackle and got downfield. We had a broken play where I scrambled around a little bit and he made a really nice move to get open. He is just a veteran, really good football player."

HEALTHY TANK - Defensive tackle Tank Johnson is finally on sound footing.

Johnson missed two games - including the first game against Baltimore - with plantar fasciitis and was still hobbled by the injury in games against Houston and Chicago. Following the bye week, Johnson looked to be back to his old form in Sunday's game against the Ravens.

"I'm not 100 percent, but I'm at a point now where I can push off of it without thinking about it," Johnson said. "Sometimes when you don't have to think about it, it's the difference between making a play and almost making a play."

Johnson finished with three tackles and a quarterback hurry, but he made life tough for Joe Flacco and the Ravens offensive line all day, getting into the backfield with regularity. He also started the game off right, stopping Ravens running back Ray Rice for a loss of two yards on Baltimore's first offensive play.

"It was a big play because it started us off on the right foot and was positive for the defense," Johnson said. "It really balanced the game out because our offense did so well, and when you have that balance, you're tough to beat."

FIRST SACK - Bengals defensive end Robert Geathers expressed a little frustration earlier this week about not having a sack. Not only did he end his sackless streak Sunday, he did it at the most opportune time.

With the Ravens trailing 17-7, Baltimore got the ball back one more time with 3:47 remaining - not a lot of time, but as the 2009 Bengals have proven above all else, the game's never over until the final whistle - and picked up two first downs before the two-minute warning.

After an incompletion, Brandon Johnson and Chinedum Ndukwe got to Flacco for a sack, setting up a third-and-19 from the 35. That's when Geathers sacked Flacco again for a 10-yard loss. On fourth down, Jonathan Fanene and Michael Johnson sacked Flacco again, turning the ball over on downs and effectively killing any realistic shot the Ravens had of a victory.

"The whole D-line did a great job at the end of the game of finishing and fighting," Geathers said. "That's what we dream of, when they only have one option and that's to throw the ball. We live for those days and we got that today and we took advantage of it."

Johnson's half-sack was the first of his career.

OCHOCINCO'S BRIBE - During a video review of a Chad Ochcocinco catch in the third quarter, the receiver offered a dollar to one of the referees. It didn't work - the ref didn't take the money and the call was reversed, nullifying a 15-yard gain and a first down.

"You saw that?" Ochocinco said when asked about it - and everyone watching on CBS saw it. "I was going to give them a dollar just to bribe them - just give me the call, give me the catch. We need this one. I might get fined. Mr. Goodell, I'm sorry. I'm just having fun."

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has taken a grim stance on fun in the past, so expect Ochocinco to get a fine of more than a dollar.

THIS AND THAT - The Bengals had the NFL's most efficient red zone offense coming into the game and didn't hurt that on Sunday, scoring two touchdowns on three red zone possessions. They have now scored 18 touchdowns in 26 red zone opportunities. ... Marvin Lewis had pointed toward this game as the potential unveiling of first-round pick Andre Smtih, but Smith, who practiced all week, was inactive for the game, as was rookie tight end Chase Coffman. Veteran safety Roy Williams missed the game because of a lingering right forearm injury; Chinedum Ndukwe started in his place. ... Punter Kevin Huber had his best game as a pro, punting five times for an average of 46.4 yards and a net of 40 yards a punt, including a 51-yarder. He also was part of the special teams play of the day. At the end of the first quarter, Huber boomed a 51-yard punt that bounced inside the 10-yard line and Kyries Hebert caught the ball in the air and as he was going into the end zone, tossed the ball to Rey Maualuga to down it on the 1.

Categories: Cincinnati Bengals, Featured Stories, News

Tags: Andre Smith, Carson Palmer, Chad Ochocinco, Chinedum Ndukwe, Chris Henry, Evan Mathis, Keith Rivers, Laveranues Coles, Michael Johnson, Ray Rice, Robert Geathers Jr., Tank Johnson