Joe Burrow found backup receiver Trenton Irwin wide open on a 45-yard flea flicker that broke open the game in the third quarter, and the Bengals went on to beat the Browns 23-10 on Sunday at Paycor Stadium. Cincinnati (9-4) hadn’t beaten its in-state rival since 2019, including a blowout loss in the first meeting this season. The Bengals have now won five straight games since that game on Halloween night.
On Sunday, Burrow got it done without tight end Hayden Hurst and wide receivers Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins, who both were injured on a three-and-out opening possession. Hurst had been ruled out Friday with a calf injury, Boyd exited with a finger injury on his right hand on a third-down target, and Higgins played just one snap before apparently re-aggravating a hamstring injury that limited him in practices Thursday and Friday. He hadn’t been listed as a concern on the game status report.
“This team just kept finding a way, and I’ve got confidence these players are going to step up,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said. “And, we really lost Tee (Higgins) in warmups, we lost TB (Boyd) on the second play of the game offensively and guys just stepped up in what to do. There had to be a lot of modifications but we settled in and found a way to move the ball and that’s really because our defense allowed us to. They gave us the time by taking points off the board, to let our offense find a way to take that lead there. So really just good a team effort of finding a way to win in December a divisional game.”
Burrow finished with 239 yards passing and two touchdowns, while Ja’Marr Chase accounted for 119 yards and a touchdown on 10 catches in his second game back from a fractured hip. The defense held one of the league’s best rushing offenses to its second lowest production this season. Nick Chubb managed only 34 yards on 14 carries as part of the team’s 71 yards on 25 attempts.
Cleveland (5-8) found success in the passing game with quarterback Deshaun Watson connecting with Donovan Peoples-Jones and tight end David Njoku, but a fourth-down incompletion to Peoples-Jones from the 6-yard line sealed the game for Cincinnati with about 5:30 left. The Browns had another turnover on downs after that as well before the Bengals offense finished off the game.
The Browns’ 10 points were the second fewest allowed by the Bengals since Zac Taylor and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo arrived in 2019. Logan Wilson finished with 17 tackles, and Reader was a big difference maker plugging gaps after missing the last matchup in Cleveland when the Browns rushed for 172 yards.
“They’ve got a good O-line that gets respect from a lot of people around the league and sometimes I feel like I don’t get that same respect, so it felt good to go out there with my guys and get one of those,” Reader said. “I’ve got a good group that I play with, and I get excited about playing with those guys so it just felt good to be in there and everybody be committed to it. You saw that look in everybody’s eyes that last game he kind of ran all over us and we weren’t going for that again.”
The Bengals were slow coming out of the gate on both sides of the ball, though. After the quick end to the opening drive for the offense, the defense was caught flat-footed as the Browns needed just two plays to cross midfield. Cleveland nearly scored on a deep ball from backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett to Donovan Peoples-Jones on fourth-and-1, but the pass fell incomplete.
When Cincinnati finally got on the board with 9:43 left in the second quarter, it came with the help of three penalties for 53 yards, including a roughing the kicker penalty that negated a punt and put the offense back on the field. Burrow found Chase through a tight window, launching a 15-yard pass between two defenders to put the ball right in Chase’s hands for the opening touchdown.
Cleveland answered with a scoring drive but the Bengals held them to a field goal after the Browns reached the 8-yard line. Reader and Wilson stopped Kareem Hunt for no gain on a second-down carry, and Reader broke up a pass on third down to force the Browns to settle for Cade York’s 26-yard field goal.
The Bengals managed to extend their lead to 13-3 before halftime with the help of Trent Taylor’s 34-yard reception on third down after his catch on the right sideline was reversed. Samaje Perine finished off the drive with a 6-yard touchdown run when he bounced out to the right side after the Browns seemed to have him stopped going up the middle. Evan McPherson missed the PAT wide left.
Cincinnati’s defense forced the Browns into a pair of three-and-outs to open the second half, and the Bengals needed just two plays to extend their lead to 20-3 on Irwin’s second career touchdown. He scored his first touchdown in a win over Pittsburgh in Week 11 as a practice squad callup, and Cincinnati signed him to the 53-man roster the following week.
Cleveland, which hosts Baltimore at 4:25 p.m. on Saturday, marched 81 yards on 10 plays to cut the deficit back to 10 points on Watson’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Njoku, but the Bengals responded with a 30-yard field goal from McPherson and that ended the scoring.
“Anytime it’s a divisional game and you come out with a win, you know how much this win matters, not just us in this locker room but to people around the state of Ohio,” said Jessie Bates, who recorded his third interception of the season. “We’ll say that we took over Ohio for the year, but yeah, it’s a great feeling. It’s another week, another win, another opportunity next week against the Bucs.
SUNDAY’S GAME
Bengals at Buccaneers, 4:25 p.m., Ch. 7, 12; 700, 1530, 102.7, 104.7
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