The Bengals have shut down a veritable who's who of top receivers this season. Packers WR Greg Jennings, ex-Browns WR Braylon Edwards and Ravens WR Derrick Mason were all held without a catch by the Cincinnati secondary. However, the Bengals had some trouble containing Andre Johnson and the Texans' passing attack in Week Six, as Houston racked up 392 yards through the air. Johnson caught eight passes for 135 yards.

So what's the Bengals' secret to success against elite receivers? On the most basic level, it starts with defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer and the defensive staff finding the opposition's top threat and scheming to stop him.

"We don't want their best guys to beat us, plain and simple," Bengals DBs coach Kevin Coyle told PFW. "Now, that's easier said than done. But Coach Zimmer has done a good job earlier in the week (saying) these are the guys that we can't let get loose."

Then it's up to the Bengals' secondary to carry out its assignments. And, by and large, CBs Leon Hall and Johnathan Joseph and safeties Chris Crocker, Roy Williams and Chinedum Ndukwe have done just that.

Cincinnati's success against top competition has been a team effort. The Bengals don't flip their corners — Hall plays on the right side and Joseph plays on the left — and neither Hall nor Joseph covers the slot receiver when opponents use three-WR sets; those duties usually have fallen to Crocker or rookie CB Morgan Trent. In other words, the Bengals are not assigning any one particular corner to any one particular receiver.

But Joseph, who's in his fourth NFL season, has stood out in coverage. Known for his ability to knock passes away but not intercept them earlier in his career, Joseph has intercepted three passes in 2009, returning one for a touchdown. Moreover, Coyle and Zimmer have challenged him to be more physical, and he has responded.

Joseph and Hall, who's tough and instinctive, complement each other well, as do the safeties, with Crocker the most athletic of the group, Williams' physicality a major asset and Ndukwe a very dependable option off the bench.

"We've got a solid nucleus of guys at each of the positions," Coyle said. "We're growing as a group."

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