The Cincinnati Bengals continue to roll, taking down their AFC rival Buffalo Bills, 24-18, on Sunday night at Paycor Stadium.
The last time these two teams met was a tragic Monday night in January when Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest. As one would expect, it was an emotional return for No. 3, who was inactive in this game.
When the ball was kicked off and reflection turned into focus for everyone on the field, the Bengals quickly got to work.
Joe Burrow was ice cold on the team’s first drive of the game, going 6-for-6 through the air and eventually finding Irv Smith Jr. for a seven-yard touchdown.
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Bengals QB Joe Burrow celebrates a touchdown pass against the Buffalo Bills during the second quarter at Paycor Stadium on Nov. 5 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Jeff Dean/Getty Images)
The game quickly became a shootout when the Bills took over on their first drive.
Josh Allen found the end zone with his feet after driving 85 yards to match the Bengals, but Burrow was quick to find the end zone again, this time using Joe Mixon – his trusty running back – on third-and-goal to retake the lead.
That’s when both offenses began to stall a bit. Four total punts with an Allen interception mixed in led to no points for either team until Burrow had prime field position at Buffalo’s 45-yard line after the Bills were forced to punt from deep inside their zone.
What looked to be a broken play on third-and-7 from Buffalo’s 22-yard line led to a Drew Sample 22-yard catch-and-run to put the home team up 14-7 before the end of the half.
The second half wasn’t as eventful for either squad, as defense kicked on both ways. The Bengals got a key stop in their own zone to force a field goal to begin the third quarter, making it a 21-10 game.
Then, after turning the ball over on downs, the Bengals’ defense picked up the offense by forcing a fumble on Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid. He went airborne on first-and-10 from the Cincinnati 22-yard line, and before landing, the ball was knocked out of his arms and recovered by the Bengals. That eventually led to an Evan McPherson field goal to push the lead to 24-10.
Stefon Diggs of the Buffalo Bills scores on a two-point conversion against the Bengals during the fourth quarter at Paycor Stadium on Nov. 5 in Ohio. (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
But for Buffalo, they’re not going to give up when Allen has the ball and there’s time on the clock. The Bills used up 4 minutes and 36 seconds of clock in the fourth quarter to eventually find star receiver Stefon Diggs in the end zone on a 17-yard strike from Allen.
However, the Bills defense couldn’t get the ball back in his hands. Burrow and his crew killed the final three minutes left in the fourth quarter, picking up key first downs to seal the victory and four straight wins in a row to move to 5-3. The Bills now own the same record as well.
Burrow had a fantastic game through the air, collecting 348 yards and two touchdowns on 31 of 44. His top receiver wasn’t Ja’Marr Chase, who had four catches for 41 yards, but rather Tee Higgins, who hauled in eight of his nine targets for 110 yards.
For the Bills, Diggs led the way with 86 yards on six catches while Kincaid finished with 10 catches for 81 yards.
Joe Burrow passes the ball against the Bills during the first quarter at Paycor Stadium on Nov. 5 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Jeff Dean/Getty Images)
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The Bengals will look to push that win streak to five straight games next Sunday when they host the Houston Texans. Meanwhile, the Bills will be in primetime yet again next week at home against the Denver Broncos.
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