I still don’t believe this, but Cedric Benson leads the NFL with 487 rushing yards. The ENTIRE NFL. Not just the AFC North or just the AFC. Everyone. Exactly one year ago Cedric Benson was sitting on a couch watching Sunday football. After accusations of illegal behavior on a boat that eventually were dismissed, the Chicago Bears dropped Benson faster than my IQ after watching an episode of Paris Hilton’s The Simple Life. The Bengals picked him up 5 or 6 weeks into the 2008 season. He eventually became the starter and now he leads the NFL. Cedric-freakin’ Benson. Seriously! No one expected it. Not even the most eternally optimistic Bengals fan (there are a few out there… locked away in an insane asylum). I doubt that Benson will be the leader at the end of the season, but the fact that he has a chance to finish in the top 5 is an amazing story.

Nevertheless, Benson’s situation seems to be the theme for the 2009 Bengals: We take players that no one else wanted. Let’s bring out the list: safety Chris Crocker – he was on the street at the beginning of the last season and now he’s become a force for the defense. Chris Henry – after a string of arrests, who actually wanted him? The Bengals, of course, and he had 92 receiving yards on 3 catches Sunday. Rey Maualuga: he dropped from a first-round prospect to the middle of the second round; he led the Bengals in tackles last game AND he has an injured knee. That dude is tough and scary lookin’. Tank Johnson and Roy Williams: both Dallas castoffs, and both making a huge impact on our defense.

And there are others too. But the good thing about all these “castoffs” is that they all have a big chip on their shoulder. Sometimes people need to get smacked around a little bit and told that they aren’t wanted before they come back strong and prove everyone wrong. These guys aren’t going to back down from anyone. I love the way this team has gelled and are playing for each other. They might not win the rest of the games for this season, but the last thing they’re going to do is give up. Not after the mettle they’ve shown the past five weeks. A weaker team would’ve been crushed after the fluke play against Denver cost them the win. They fought back and won four straight games against all quality opponents (okay, the Browns are a stretch, but a rivalry game like that means you have to throw out records).

The Bengals could very well lose the next game against Houston, but I wouldn’t be too worried. They have proven time and time again that they will only fight back harder when they’re down.

Speaking of the Texans game, the Bengals are in danger of not selling out the game so the NFL might black out the game in local markets. That would suck, especially after such a thrilling victory with the Bengals on a roll. I think that the economy, the mediocrity of the opponent, and general procrastination of fans are all contributing to the situation. I hope they can sell it out. I think it would be stupid if we can’t get fans out there even to watch a “lesser” opponent. Even though I called them mediocre, they’ve got a lot of talent just any other NFL roster and can easily beat us.

Let’s hope the fans can come out and support the current AFC North leaders. Everybody loves an underdog and we have a team full of them.