Ochocinco tries 'going ham'

CINCINNATI - Chad Ochocinco and Cedric Benson have their cubicles next to each other in the Bengals locker room, which seems like a perfect blend of the City Mouth and the Country Mouse.

But it's Benson who has taught Ochochino a motto he wouldn't seem to need.

Something about "Going Ham."

"It's just a phrase about going hard," Benson said. "Giving your all. Giving it everything you've got. Laying it on the line. Just a Southern phrase."

That Ochochino, as is his wont, took to the extreme on Sunday.

The effusive 31-year-old wideout went whole hog on Bears cornerback Charles Tillman during Sunday's 45-10 win at Paul Brown Stadium.

Ochocinco piled up 10 catches for 118 yards and 2 touchdowns - his finest afternoon since 2007 - almost all at Peanut's expense.

"He did a couple things on a couple of plays that I had never seen," Tillman said. "He made a lot of double moves on his pass routes. He had a good game. I tip my hat to him. He had a good day."

Afterward, Ochochino donned a tight black T-shirt and joked with Benson about how much his muscles had swollen during the course of the game.

"Ced, look how big I done got!" Ochochino said.

"I see you, cuz," Benson replied.

"Like, when I came in, it was baggy," Ochocinco said before changing the topic. "Boy, you went ham. You get 200 (yards)?"

"Almost," Benson said. "189. Close."

"You shouldn't have took no breaks," Ochochino concluded.

Or, perhaps, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer could have stopped throwing to his wide-open receivers.

Benson's early runs keyed a slew of play-action passes that led to big gains - most of them to Ochochino. He caught all but one of the throws Palmer sent his way, including several forays into the heart of the Tampa 2 scheme.

"We're back," Ochochino said. "I've said it before. We're on the same page. We're in synch. That's the way it's going to be."

While the Bears must regroup before Sunday's visit from Cleveland, the Bengals must wait until Nov. 8 for archrival Baltimore to come to town.

"I don't want to rest," Ochochino said. "I don't mean to be jumping the gun, but I want to play Baltimore. Bad. I want 52 (Ray Lewis). I want 20 (Ed Reed). Whoever else they got, while I have this unbelievable confidence right now, I don't want no break."