GREEN’S BIG NIGHT LEADS BENGALS TO WIN OVER DOLPHINS
cincinnati» Bengals receiver A.J. Green followed his disappointing game with a dominating one — 173 yards receiving and a touchdown — and the Cincinnati defense that was inspired by linebacker Vontaze Burfict’s return clamped down on the Miami Dolphins for a 22-7 victory Thursday night.
The Bengals (2-2) rebounded from a 29-17 home loss to Denver on Sunday with a solid all-around game against a depleted team.
Green led the way, beating the Dolphins (1-3) on every type of route.
During the first three quarters, Green had 166 yards on catches while Miami had 152 total yards. The Bengals’ season-long problem of stalling out near the goal line forced them to settle for Mike Nugent’s season-high five field goals.
The Dolphins were missing four starting offensive linemen, two linebackers, running back Arian Foster and tight end Jordan Cameron. They had one big play — Ryan Tannehill threw a 74-yard touchdown pass to Kenny Stills.
• Suspended Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon said he’s entering a rehab facility to “gain full control of my life.”
Gordon is serving a four-game suspension for multiple violations of the NFL’s substance abuse policy.
He was eligible to return next week, but the troubled 25-year-old released a statement Thursday saying he decided to “step away from pursuing my return to the Browns and my football career to enter an in-patient rehabilitation facility.”
Gordon has been suspended for 30 of Cleveland’s past 35 games.
• It’s official: Lady Gaga will headline the Super Bowl halftime show on Feb. 5, 2017, at the NRG Stadium in Houston.
• Randy Gregory was suspended 10 games by the NFL on top of the fourgame ban the Dallas defensive end was already serving for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy. Gregory won’t be eligible until Week 16, before Dallas’ Monday night game against Detroit on Dec. 26.
• Panthers coach Ron Rivera said running back Jonathan Stewart will miss his second straight game Sunday with a hamstring injury when Carolina visits the Atlanta Falcons.
• Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (thumb sprain) did not practice.
Families visit White House
B washington» Relatives of Jesse Owens and America’s 17 other black athletes from the 1936 Olympics were welcomed to the White House by President Barack Obama for the acknowledgment they didn’t receive along with their white counterparts 80 years ago.
Along with the relatives of the 1936 African-American Olympians, gloved-fist protesters Tommie Smith and John Carlos and members of the 2016 U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams met the president and first lady Michelle Obama. Obama congratulated the Rio athletes, thanked Smith and Carlos for waking up Americans in 1968 and praised 1936 Olympians who made a statement in front of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany.
After running down a list of accomplishments of U.S. athletes in Rio, Obama singled out some people who “paved the way” for the current diverse Olympic team, including Owens, Smith and Carlos.
Owens winning four gold medals and being snubbed by Hitler is a piece of American history, but Obama made sure to note that the accomplishments at the 1936 Berlin Olympics weren’t just about him.
Footnotes.
Bucks guard Khris Middleton is expected to miss six months after surgery to repair his ruptured left hamstring. Middleton suffered the injury during preseason workouts Sept. 20. … The 20th-ranked Colorado volleyball team will face two ranked opponents this weekend at the Coors Events Center. The Buffs will take on No. 23 Southern California at 8 p.m. Friday and No. 12 UCLA at noon Sunday.