DaytonDailyNews.com

CINCINNATI — Bengals wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh was in a hurry to bust out of the locker room and hustle to Xavier University, where hip-hop stars Sean "Diddy" Combs, Shawn "Jay Z" Carter and Mary J. Blige were appearing at a rally for Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama on Monday, Nov. 3.

But first things first. "Housh" cast his vote for Andrew Whitworth as the Bengals' newest folk hero.

Whitworth and Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle John Henderson were ejected for fighting in the third quarter of the Bengals' 21-19 victory on Sunday. Game film shows Henderson ripping off Whitworth's helmet and attempting to gouge the eyes of Whitworth, who attempted to defend himself. Both players face fines from the NFL, and both could be subject to suspension.

"The guy (Henderson) was trying to poke his eyes out and you can only restrain yourself so much," Houshmandzadeh said. "If (Whitworth) didn't do something to protect himself, he'd probably be seeing the eye doctor. So what he did was fine.

"When you're playing a game, your emotions run high. I don't say that I agree with what John Henderson did. I just think his emotions got the best of him."

Costly penalties

Facing third-and-11 at the Bengals' 35-yard line, quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick completed a 23-yard pass to Houshmandzadeh for an apparent first down when the Henderson-Whitworth skirmish erupted.

Offsetting penalties negated the pass play; Fitzpatrick got sacked on the "do-over;" and the Bengals were forced to punt.

"You don't want to have that situation occur," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. "I think their player was very frustrated."

Palmer's future

Lewis said quarterback Carson Palmer will not practice on Wednesday. Palmer has missed five games this season — including four straight — with an injured right elbow.

"I said at some point, as we get into November, we'll see (about Palmer practicing)," Lewis said. "But for now it's going to wait."

Fumble!

Glenn Holt didn't get much blocking support on his fumbled kickoff return that led to a Jacksonville TD.

"Well, he had a fumble, and that's a bad deal," Lewis said. "And it put us at risk. We've got to do a better job getting them (Jaguars' kickoff coverage) blocked, so we don't leave a guy free and clean on him. But obviously, the second part is him taking care of the football."

Quick hitters

• The team practices on Wednesday, then players are off Thursday through Sunday.

Lewis' message to players before they leave for the four-day weekend?

"Take care of yourself," he said. "Take care of your body. Be smart. Act like a pro."

• The Bengals have a 1-4 record in games after bye weeks under Lewis.

Next game

Who: Eagles (5-3) at Bengals (1-8)

When: 1 p.m. Nov. 16

TV: WRGT-TV (FOX, Ch. 45)

Radio: WTUE-FM (104.7)