Time for Portis to pipe down, produce

A skunk can make a great house pet, and anyone who believes that probably expects a week to pass without an NFL star exhibiting bad behavior. This week's clown is Clinton Portis, the Washington Redskins running back who runs his mouth too much.

Portis decided to raise a stink after he was benched during the Redskins' lackluster loss to the Baltimore Ravens last week.

He mocked and ripped his coach, Jim Zorn, on a radio show. And, believe it or not, the comments got back to Zorn and he was not amused.

After a 10-minute meeting Wednesday, Portis and Zorn emerged to declare they had cleared the air.

The Redskins' play is creating a foul smell, as they have lost two in a row and four of five to drop to 7-6. A playoff spot is a long shot.

But maybe something positive can come from Portis' childish antics. Washington needs some sort of wake-up call, and Portis had been playing poorly.

Portis is third in the NFL in rushing with 1,260 yards. He did his best work in the first half of the season, however, averaging 118 yards in the first eight games.

In the past five games, he has averaged 63.2 yards, and he had only 32 yards on 11 carries against the Ravens before being benched.

If he wants to show he deserves more carries, he gets the chance Sunday when the Redskins play the Cincinnati Bengals, who are every bit as bad as their 1-11-1 record.

The Bengals rank 23rd in rush defense, allowing 125.8 yards per game, and their impotent offense has gone 11 consecutive quarters without scoring a touchdown.

Cincinnati has been outscored 69-6 the past two weeks. Inexperienced quarterbacks Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jordan Palmer combined to throw three interceptions in last week's 35-3 loss to Indianapolis.

Go with the Redskins as 7-point road favorites because Portis has something to prove and the Bengals are easy to bet against.

Here are four more plays for Week 15 (home team in CAPS):

• JETS (-7) over Bills: After back-to-back losses, expect the Jets to bounce back. Brett Favre is due for a good game, and he's getting plenty of support from Thomas Jones, fourth in the league with 1,144 yards rushing. The Jets need the win to stay in control of the AFC East. Buffalo is 1-6 against the spread in its past seven games.

• Titans (-3) over TEXANS: There is some motivation for Tennessee, which can clinch home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. The Titans are 11-2 ATS, including 6-0 on the road. Houston is dangerous with Matt Schaub at quarterback, but Schaub has picked on weak defenses the past two weeks. Tennessee's defense ranks third in the league.

• CARDINALS (-3) over Vikings: Arizona's Kurt Warner probably leads the Most Valuable Player race. He has completed 68.7 percent of his passes for 4,020 yards and 25 TDs. The Cardinals can attack Minnesota's suspect pass defense. Arizona's only home loss was to the Giants.

• Giants (+3) over COWBOYS: As everyone knows, this is a must-win game for a dysfunctional Dallas team, and the spotlight is on the Terrell Owens-Tony Romo soap opera. There are reasons not to take the Giants, who will be without running back Brandon Jacobs. But the Giants are on the road, where they have covered 13 of their past 14, and that's one good reason to take them.

Last week: 4-1 against the spread

Season: 39-28-3

Review-Journal sportswriter Matt Youmans can be reached at 387-2907 or myoumans@reviewjournal.com.