Bengals No Longer Flying under the Radar

As I sat down at my desk this morning and pointed my Web browser to NFL.com, a smile developed on my face while looking over the home page. There were headlines about the Cincinnati Bengals, none of which were laced with sarcasm or ridicule.

The Bengals are being taken seriously by the rest of the NFL as a formidable opponent. Their resiliency and team first approach has resulted in a 3-1 record. If it were not for Brandon Stokley's immaculate deflection in the season opener, the Bengals would be undefeated.

Critics will argue that the Bengals could just as easily be 0-4. I agree. However, the main reason for the winning record is their ability to overcome adversity and perform under pressure. That is something that Bengals fans are not used to seeing.

NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger considers Marvin Lewis to be one of the league's best coaches.  

Carson Palmer is not receiving accolades for racking up passing yards. In the tense moments at the end of games, Palmer more resembles "The Fonz" than a player trying to come back from an elbow injury.  

His cool demeanor has impressed his teammates as well.

"He tells us to shut up, and he says we're going to go down here and score," Chad Ochocinco said.  "The only thing keeping us going us going is No. 9, man."

Ochocinco likes to have fun during the week with his Twitter updates, but is completely focused once the game starts. The days of him being upset about not getting the ball or arguing with Palmer about a route seem to be a thing of the past.

An improved running game and strong defense has become replaced the dominating passing attack that was once the Bengals' main method of operation. That does not mean that the passing game is not still a big part of the offense. The difference is the balance between running and passing, and who those passes are being thrown to.

The selflessness of the team is also being noticed. Lewis has adopted the idea of wearing jerseys during practice with no name on the back to reinforce the idea that they are a team.

Sunday will present another tough challenge as the Bengals travel to Baltimore to battle the Ravens for first place in the AFC North.