Sunday Night Football: Joe Burrow passes for 348 yards as Bengals beat Bills 24-18

[Arkansas Bengal]

• By
• Charean Williams

  

Published November 5, 2023 11:38 PM

 

Here come the Bengals.

 

Just like last season, Joe Burrow and the Bengals have shrugged off a slow start to the season. They remained on a roll on Sunday Night Football, beating the Bills yet again. The 24-18 win was the Bengals’ fourth victory in a row after a 1-3 start.

 

The Bengals started 2-3 last season but finished 12-4.

 

The Bills fell to 5-3.

 

Buffalo scored with 3:32 remaining on a 17-yard pass from Josh Allen to Stefon Diggs and then the same combination converted the 2-point conversion. The Bills never saw the ball again, though.

 

Joe Mixon sidestepped Von Miller on third-and-three for a 5-yard gain with two minutes remaining, allowing the Bengals to finish the game in victory formation. They ran out the final 3:32 with a seven-play, 41-yard drive.

 

Burrow, who lost his fingernail on his right index finger early in the game, completed 31 of 44 passes for 348 yards and two touchdowns. Tee Higgins caught eight passes for 110 yards. Ja’Mar Chase caught four passes for 41 yards and injured his back when he landed hard on the turf, but he remained in the game.

Joe Mixon ran for 37 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries and caught five passes for 31 yards.

 

The Bengals, who ousted the Bills from the postseason in 2022, outgained Buffalo 397 to 317 and were plus-2 in turnover ratio.

 

Allen went 26-of-38 for 258 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Diggs caught six passes for 86 yards. Dalton Kincaid had 10 receptions for 81 yards but lost a fumble at the Cincinnati 22 with 13:18 remaining.

 

Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who returned to Cincinnati for the first time since he went into cardiac arrest on the field in January, was a healthy scratch. He watched from the bench.

 

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/sunday-night-football-joe-burrow-passes-for-348-yards-as-bengals-beat-bills-24-18

[Arkansas Bengal]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sea Ray]

Quote

 

The Bengals started 2-3 last season but finished 12-4.

 

The Bills fell to 5-3.

 

Poorly written article by NBC. Bills are now 5-4

[Shebengal]

Just now, Sea Ray said:

Poorly written article by NBC. Bills are now 5-4

That was my thought also.

 

[|BlackJesus|]

[|BlackJesus|]

I thought this was a nice tribute ...

 

[|BlackJesus|]

[|BlackJesus|]

He's won 100% of his games this year with 2 legs ...

 

[Arkansas Bengal]

Joe Burrow on finger: Little cut, nothing bad

• By
• Josh Alper

  

Published November 6, 2023 06:29 AM

 

A calf injury hindered Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow early in the 2023 season, but a bloody index finger didn’t slow him down on Sunday night.

 

Burrow could be seen working on his right index finger during the first half of the game and he got some attention on the sideline as well. None of the machinations got in the way of Burrow throwing a 22-yard touchdown to tight end Drew Sample before halftime and Burrow go 31-of-44 for 348 yards and two touchdowns over the course of the 24-18 win over the Bills.

 

After the game, Burrow said he wasn’t sure exactly when he got nicked but that it wasn’t a big deal.

 

“Little cut, nothing bad,” Burrow said in his postgame press conference.

 

The win was the fourth straight for the Bengals and Burrow said that the team is in a “great spot” after their 1-3 start to the season. He also said the team has to keep pushing.

 

“We’re really happy with how we’ve played the last couple of weeks,” Burrow said. “We have to keep it going. We’re 1-0 this week. We have to be 1-0 next week, too. This week means nothing. We’ll come in tomorrow, watch the tape, lift, go about our business and we’ll go from there.”

 

The Bengals went from 0-2 to the AFC Championship Game last year. The last few weeks have provided a lot of reasons to believe in another long run in Cincinnati.

 

 

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk

[Arkansas Bengal]

Cincinnati 24-18 over Buffalo

 

 

C+	Bills
Bills fans probably had some déjà vu watching this game and that's because it started a lot like last year's playoff game between these two teams. The Bills dug themselves into a deep hole and then they weren't able to get out of it. The defense just couldn't stop Joe Burrow during a first half where the Bengals piled up 214 yards and 21 points. The Bills nearly clawed their way back into the game early in the fourth quarter, but Dalton Kincaid lost a fumble after catching a pass inside Cincinnati's 15-yard line. Besides the lost fumble, there there was also a questionable challenge by Sean McDermott that cost Buffalo a pivotal timeout. The Bills are now 1-4 this season when playing outside of Buffalo and if they don't get that figured out, it's hard to see them winning the AFC East, especially with road games against the Eagles and Chiefs still on the horizon.
B+	Bengals
The offense came out on fire on Sunday night and then the Bengals sat back and let their defense do the rest. Joe Burrow was nearly unstoppable early in the game, throwing for a total of 116 yards on Cincinnati's first two drives, which both ended in touchdowns. Burrow got everyone involved on offense with six different receivers catching at least three passes over the course of the game. Although the offense did struggle some in the second half, the defense made up for it by making big plays, including a fumble recovery in the fourth quarter that came after Buffalo had driven deep into Bengals territory. After an 0-2 start, the Bengals are now 5-1 in their past six games and they're currently looking like one of the best teams in the AFC.

Bills-Bengals grades by John Breech

 

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfl-week-9-grades-c-j-stroud-leads-texans-to-an-a-bengals-earn-a-b-for-beating-bills-on-sunday-night/

[Arkansas Bengal]

Bengals vs. Bills score, takeaways: Cincinnati sneaks past Buffalo behind Joe Burrow's two touchdown passes

The Bengals are 5-3 after a 1-3 start

By Bryan DeArdo

 & Jared Dubin

43 mins ago

 

After a 1-3 start, the Cincinnati Bengals look very much like the team that has appeared in the last two AFC title games. The Bengals won their fourth straight game after recording a 24-18 win over the visiting Buffalo Bills on Sunday night. 

 

Per usual, Joe Burrow had a big role in a Bengals win. The Pro Bowl quarterback threw two first-half touchdowns while helping Cincinnati take a 21-7 lead at intermission. Burrow completed 11 of his first 14 passes while directing the Bengals offense to touchdowns on its first two drives. 

Cincinnati only added three points to its tally in the second half, but it was enough to pull out a win over Buffalo, which fell to 5-4. Down 24-10, the Bills made it a six-point game when Stefon Diggs scored on a 17-yard catch, then caught Buffalo's two-point conversion attempt. But a 32-yard completion from Burrow to Tyler Boyd and a 5-yard run by Joe Mixon on Cincinnati's ensuing possession put the game on ice. 

 

Here's a closer look at went down in the Queen City. 

 

Why the Bengals won 

 

Cincinnati never trailed and made plays on both sides of the ball. Burrow spread the ball around while mostly staying one step ahead of Buffalo's defense. Speaking of Burrow, he continues to look more and more like himself after a calf injury limited him during the season's first month. He moved around in the pocket, extended plays and even picked up a key first down with his legs on a third down in the second half.

 

Burrow had a field day throwing to Tee Higgins, who led both teams with 110 yards on eight receptions. Burrow also had success throwing to his tight ends that included first-half touchdown passes to Irv Smith Jr. and Drew Sample. Smith, Sample, and fellow tight end Tanner Hudson caught a combined 10 passes for 101 yards and the two touchdowns. 

 

On the board first 👏#BUFatCIN | 📺 NBC pic.twitter.com/vB9KlW8pfL

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) November 6, 2023

While often overlooked, the Bengals defense deserves a lot of credit for holding the Bills to just 18 points and 317 total yards. 

 

Why the Bills lost 

 

When the Bills lose, it's usually for the same reasons. That was again the case on Sunday night, as turnovers and a lack of a running game were two big reasons why Buffalo is just a game over .500.

 

The Bills' lack of a running game contributed to them having the ball for less than nine minutes in the first half. Of the Bills' 68 rushing yards, 44 of those were courtesy of Allen, who scored Buffalo's first touchdown on a 2-yard touchdown run on the Bills' first possession. James Cook had just 20 yards on the ground, while Latavius Murray had only 4 yards on two carries. 

 

Allen's pick didn't directly lead to any points, but rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid's fumble early in the fourth quarter set up Evan McPherson's 20-yard field goal that made it a 14-point game with 8:08 left. Kincaid's fumble largely overshadowed his 10-catch, 81-yard performance. 

The sixth-best red zone defense entering the game, Buffalo gave up a pair of touchdowns inside its own 20-yard line in the first half. The unit also gave up touchdown late in the first half and was unable to get off the field after Diggs' heroics late in the game. 

 

2-point conversion is good!

📺: @SNFonNBC pic.twitter.com/aMYJcgJa90

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 6, 2023

Allen made quite a bit of history on Sunday night, albeit in a losing effort. He scored his 44th career rushing touchdown to pass Steve Young for the second-most all time by a quarterback. Allen's 200th total touchdown passed Dan Marino for the second-most in a player's first six seasons. His 31st game with a touchdown pass and run tied Young and Aaron Rodgers for the second-most all time, courtesy of CBS Sports Research. 

17+14=6‼️

📺: @SNFonNBC pic.twitter.com/1t4TtjsYPb

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 6, 2023

Turning points 

 

Two plays immediately come to mind. While he had a relatively quiet, night, Ja'Marr Chase's 11-yard grab on a fourth-and-1 play helped set up Burrow's 22-yard touchdown pass to Sample with 1:37 left until halftime. 

 

Spike that ball, @drewcal‼️#BUFatCIN | 📺 NBC pic.twitter.com/RAVx8A7GEO

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) November 6, 2023

The Bengals were protecting a 21-10 lead early in the fourth quarter when Germaine Pratt knocked the ball out of Kincaid's grasp with the Bills threatening to score. The turnover not only prevented a score by the Bills, it helped set up a 12-play, 85-yard drive that was capped off by Evan McPherson's field goal. 

 

Play of the game 

 

The award goes to Pratt's heads-up forced fumble that was scooped up by Nick Scott, a free agent acquisition this past offseason. 

Recovered by Nick Scott 👏#BUFatCIN | 📺 NBC pic.twitter.com/xMQyQM76qD

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) November 6, 2023

Quotables 

 

"I told him before the game I was going to feed him. He told me he was feeling good, I told him it was coming his way all day. Stepped up big time." -- Burrow to NBC Sports when asked about Higgins, who recorded his first 100-yard receiving performance since Cincinnati's win over New England in Week 16 of the 2022 season 

"Just a little scratch. Thats' football, baby." -- Burrow when asked about his nicked up pointer finger on his non-throwing hand 

What's next 

 

Cincinnati will play host to a Houston Texans team next Sunday that is coming off a 39-37 win over the Buccaneers. In that game, C.J. Stroud — who played just up the road from Cincinnati in college at Ohio State — threw for a rookie single-game record 470 yards and added five TD passes. 

 

Buffalo will play host to the Broncos next Monday night. After a 1-5 start, Denver won consecutive games going into their Week 9 bye, defeating the Packers and Chiefs. 

 

 

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/bengals-vs-bills-score-takeaways-cincinnati-sneaks-past-buffalo-behind-joe-burrows-two-touchdown-passes/live/

[Arkansas Bengal]

Cincinnati 24, Buffalo 18

Bengals

 

Does Joe Burrow belong in the MVP conversation? It may seem early, but the answer is a resounding yes. Now that he's back to full strength following his right calf injury, Burrow has steered the offense to two quality performances and helped the Bengals beat two division winners in back-to-back weeks (San Francisco and Buffalo). Burrow was 31-of-44 for 348 yards and two touchdowns against the Bills. Burrow and the Bengals have now won four straight and are building momentum as they enter the back half of the regular season. If the success continues, he'll continue to garner MVP buzz.

 

Stock up after the win: Bengals tight ends. After being criticized for a lack of production this season, Irv Smith Jr., Drew Sample and Tanner Hudson combined for 10 catches for 101 yards and two touchdowns.

 

Stock down after the win: Joe Mixon. After a great week in San Francisco, Mixon gained 28 yards on his first 10 carries and had minus-25 rush yards over expectation, per NFL Next Gen Stats. He finished with 37 yards on 14 carries and a TD. -- Ben Baby

 

Next game: vs. Texans (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

 

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/38788528/nfl-week-9-2023-questions-risers-fallers-takeaways-lessons-stats

[Arkansas Bengal]

Bobby Kownack's takeaways:

 

1. Joe Burrow continues to prove he’s back. Cincinnati’s franchise quarterback has now stacked back-to-back weeks of exemplary play, further assuaging any concerns over the calf injury that plagued him early in the season. A bloodied index finger on his throwing hand couldn’t slow him, either. Like in last week’s win over the 49ers, Burrow frequently showed the shiftiness to escape the Bills’ oncoming rushers. In between eluding them, the Pro Bowler put on a clinical performance, throwing for 348 yards, two touchdowns and a 108.9 passer rating on 31-of-44 passing. His accuracy was routinely picture perfect -- both Ja'Marr Chase and Tyler Boyd could have had first-half touchdowns on throws placed into tight windows had they not dropped them. He instead did the scoring through his tight ends, Irv Smith and Drew Sample , who had a nifty, tackle-dodging reception to reach the end zone on just his fifth target of the season. Although Burrow found only three points in the second half, he remained clutch, as evidenced by his 32-yard pass to Boyd to kick off Cincinnati’s final drive and begin the process of running out the clock on Buffalo.
2.  
3. Bills can’t overcome slow start. We seemed to be heading for a high-scoring affair after the game’s first three possessions resulted in touchdowns. Then, the Bills fell into one of the lulls that have frequently dogged them this season, amassing just 37 more yards the rest of the first half after traveling 85 on their opening drive. Like they have in most of their four losses, they did turn things around. But once again, it wasn’t enough. Aside from one three-and-out, Buffalo went 10-plus plays and 50-plus yards on every drive in the second half, allowing it to pull within six points with 3:32 remaining after trailing by two possessions for the previous 28 minutes. The Bills couldn’t stop the Bengals on the ensuing drive, though; thus the time ran out on their comeback bid. Josh Allen was spectacular in spurts but inconsistent with some wayward throws and an underthrown pick. He kept Buffalo alive, picking up multiple first downs on the ground, while James Cook and Latavius Murray contributed only 24 combined rushing yards. He also showed budding chemistry with rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid, who brought in 10 catches for 81 yards but had a killer fumble in the fourth quarter that almost certainly cost the Bills points. It’s impossible to overcome mistakes like that when the offense goes silent for quarters at a time.
4.  
5. Bengals D is also heating up. This defense has taken some lumps in 2023. It entered Week 9 somewhat of a sieve, ranked 27^th in yards allowed. Luckily, it tightened tonight. Cincinnati consistently forced Buffalo into unsuccessful drives. At one point, the Bills went four straight possessions without running more than five plays, with the first three of those drives combining for no yards. It wasn’t a perfect night -- the Bengals gave up ground late and also hovered under a 20% pressure rate until deep in the fourth quarter -- but the lack of pass rush might make the successes even more impressive. Cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt and linebacker Germaine Pratt were the standouts. Taylor-Britt had sticky coverage on to pick off Allen and now has three interceptions in the last four games, while Pratt led the team with 11 tackles and forced a fourth-quarter Dalton Kincaid fumble with Buffalo threatening outside the end zone. The offense is back looking dangerous, the defense hasn’t allowed a 20-plus point game in over a month and Cincy is now the owner of a four-game win streak.
6.  

 

Next Gen stat of the game: The Bengals defense blitzed on just 7.0% of Josh Allen’s dropbacks, the team’s second-lowest rate in a game over the last six seasons.

 

 

NFL Research: Joe Burrow leads the NFL since Week 5 with a 4-0 record, 75.8 completion percentage, 10 passing touchdowns and an 111.2 passer rating (minimum three starts).

 

 

https://www.nfl.com/news/2023-nfl-season-week-9-what-we-learned-from-sunday-s-games

[Sea Ray]

8 hours ago, Arkansas Bengal said:

Cincinnati 24, Buffalo 18

Bengals

 

Does Joe Burrow belong in the MVP conversation? It may seem early, but the answer is a resounding yes. Now that he's back to full strength following his right calf injury, Burrow has steered the offense to two quality performances and helped the Bengals beat two division winners in back-to-back weeks (San Francisco and Buffalo). Burrow was 31-of-44 for 348 yards and two touchdowns against the Bills. Burrow and the Bengals have now won four straight and are building momentum as they enter the back half of the regular season. If the success continues, he'll continue to garner MVP buzz.

 

Stock up after the win: Bengals tight ends. After being criticized for a lack of production this season, Irv Smith Jr., Drew Sample and Tanner Hudson combined for 10 catches for 101 yards and two touchdowns.

 

Stock down after the win: Joe Mixon. After a great week in San Francisco, Mixon gained 28 yards on his first 10 carries and had minus-25 rush yards over expectation, per NFL Next Gen Stats. He finished with 37 yards on 14 carries and a TD. -- Ben Baby

 

Next game: vs. Texans (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

 

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/38788528/nfl-week-9-2023-questions-risers-fallers-takeaways-lessons-stats

Why pick on Joe Mixon? He put the game away for us. He gained more yards than Buffalo's RBs did