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PREVIEW
SEPTEMBER 20, 2009
TIME: 1 p.m., Sunday PLACE: Lambeau Field, GrassMaster (synthetic)
TV: CBS team of play-by-play man Ian Eagle and analyst Rich Gannon live on Channel 12 in Cincinnati, Channel 7 in Dayton, OH, and Channel 27 in Lexington, KY.
RADIO: Play-by-play man Brad Johansen and analyst Dave Lapham on 1530-AM (Homer) and 102.7-FM WEBN on flagships of the 25-station Bengals radio network.
INJURIESCIN: CB David Jones (foot) out; RT Andre Smith (foot) out; LG Nate Livings (knee) out. RB Brian Leonard (chest) got hurt at the end of his 8-yard catch in Sunday's final drive and was limited Wednesday and Thursday and is probable after having a full practice Friday.
GB: S Atari Bigby (knee) out; Backup DT B.J. Raji (ankle) and return man Will Blackmon (quad) went in a full practice on Thursday. No. 1 LG Daryn Colledge (foot), K Mason Crosby (abdomen) and leading WR Greg Jennings (wrist) were limited Thursday. No. 3 RB Brandon Jackson (ankle) didn't work Thursday.
THE SERIES
Tied, 5-5; Packers lead at home, 4-2, 4-0 at Lambeau Field and 0-2 at Milwaukee County Stadium.
NOTEWORTHY
» The game comes 17 years to the day Brett Favre came off the bench to begin his Hall of Fame career on a 35-yard missile to wide receiver Kitrick Taylor with 13 seconds left in The Pack's 24-23 victory over the Bengals at Lambeau Field.
» Only five guys ride in on the bus who rode in on the bus that day with the Bengals: president Mike Brown, running backs coach Jim Anderson, trainer Paul Sparling, radio analyst Dave Lapham, and business manager Bill Connelly.
» All were with the club in its last visit to Green Bay, a 24-10 loss on Dec. 3, 1995, as was offensive line coach Paul Alexander.
» In 1977, Lapham played in one of the club's wins over the Packers in Milwaukee.
» Bengals offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski graduated from high school in Green Bay and has been coaching in the NFL for 17 seasons. But this is the first time he's coached a regular-season game at Lambeau.
» A week after giving up the longest winning touchdown from scrimmage in the last minute (87) the Bengals go to the scene of their longest punt return in history. Rookie wide receiver Carl Pickens went for 95 yards in the '92 game.
» Packers safeties coach Darren Perry coached the Bengals safeties in 2002.
» Packers assistant offensive line coach Jerry Fontenot gave one of the more memorable performances in Bengals history in another Week 2. On Sept. 19, 2004, Fontenot, then 37, started in place of injured center Rich Braham with about a day and a half of practice with his new team. Quarterback Carson Palmer got his first NFL victory, 16-13 over Miami, at Paul Brown Stadium with Fontenot under center.
» Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco is six yards shy of 9,000 yards. He's 42nd on the all-time list.
NFL RANKINGS
CIN: Tied for 29th in scoring, 16th in offense (tied for 15th rushing, 16th passing); 16th in defense (10th rushing, 18th passing), tied for 26th in turnover margin at minus two.
GB: Tied for 14th in scoring, 28th in offense (22nd rushing, 27th passing); 22nd in defense (tied for 15th rushing, 23rd passing), tied for second in turnover margin at plus-4.
COACHESCIN: Marvin Lewis 46-50-1 regular season, 0-1 postseason in his seventh season, 1-0 vs. Packers, 0-0 vs. Mike McCarthy.
GB: Mike McCarthy 29-22 in his fourth season. 0-0 vs. Lewis. 0-0 vs. Bengals.
THE WEATHER
It won't exactly be The Ice Bowl when the Bengals and Packers kick off Sunday at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. The National Weather Service in Wilmington, Ohio is calling for a high temperature of 71 degrees under mostly sunny skies with a light wind from the south at 5-10 miles per hour.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
2-11 - Bengals record under Marvin Lewis on road following home loss
19-29 - Bengals on the road under Lewis
29 - TD passes by Packers QB Aaron Rodgers in first 17 NFL starts
27 - TD passes by Bengals QB Carson Palmer in first 17 NFL starts
19 - TD passes by Palmer in last 17 games
13 - Starting QBs for Bengals since Brett Favre came off the bench to beat them at Lambeau on Sept. 20, 1992
87 - Length of Broncos QB Kyle Orton's pass off Leon Hall's tip to beat Bengals last week for longest game-winning last-minute TD pass in NFL history
94 - Longest pass in Bengals history from QB Ken Anderson to WR Billy Brooks against Minnesota in 1977
4 - Head coaches Bengals have had since last regular-season visit to Green Bay in 1995
442 - Openers played since NFL went to 16-game schedule in 1978
233 - Teams that won opener that went to playoffs
103 - Teams that lost the opener that went to the playoffs
