A solid defensive effort pushed the Bengals over the top, as they secured a 17-16 win Sunday in the “Battle of Ohio.” Cincinnati’s offense struggled after taking a 14-10 lead into halftime.
Cleveland provided a little help down the stretch, missing an extra point on its touchdown drive to open the second half, as well as a 36-yard field goal with less than three minutes left. The Bengals got two turnovers, and receivers also dropped back-to-back easy conversions on third and fourth down early in the fourth quarter.
The dagger came when D.J. Turner picked off a Joe Flacco pass with less than two minutes left, as the Browns were driving for a chance to win the game. Cleveland got the ball back with 19 seconds left, but Ryan Rehkow put a 49-yard punt to the 1-yard line and PJ Jules was there to down the ball.
Cincinnati’s offense, which looked poised for a fast start after a productive preseason, was gifted plenty of chances to put the game away sooner and didn’t take advantage. The defense had faced many questions about how ready it would be after struggling in 2024 and not showing progress in the preseason, but the Bengals got stops on the last six drives in the second half.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Cincinnati managed just three points over the final two quarters, despite that.
The first stop of the second half came when Jordan Battle picked off Flacco, grabbing a ball that went off Jerry Jeudy’s hands. That put the Bengals on the Browns’ 34-yard line, and they ended up settling for a 35-yard field goal from Evan McPherson.
The Browns had taken their only lead on the first drive of the half, but Andre Szmyt missed the PAT to keep it at 16-14, and that proved the difference in the game after McPherson’s field goal put Cincinnati ahead for good.
On the next drive for Cleveland, rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr., a third-round draft pick, dropped a pass on third down, and Jeudy dropped one on fourth down. Both were wide open and should have been easily converted.
Cincinnati got another stop on a third-and-7 pass to Jeudy that Flacco couldn’t convert the next drive, and the Browns ended up sacking Burrow on three straight plays, but Szmyt missed a 36-yard field goal the following possession.
The Bengals managed one first down in the second half, but they had gotten off to a fast start to the game. They moved the ball 67 yards on 12 plays to get on the board on the opening drive, capped by Chase Brown’s 5-yard run.
Cleveland responded with an almost 10-minute touchdown drive to tie the game early in the second quarter after the Bengals got a stop on third down. Raheim Sanders found a gap on fourth down and ran it in from the 1-yard line.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Cincinnati found itself in a similar situation later in the quarter, but went a different approach with seven offensive linemen on the field for a third down at the 1-yard line. Burrow found new tight end Noah Fant in the endzone for his first touchdown pass of the season.
That was enough to give the Bengals a halftime lead, thanks to a stop by the defense, holding the Browns to a 45-yard field goal from Szmyt.
Burrow completed 14 of 23 passes for just 113 yards and one touchdown, and he was sacked three times. Tee Higgins caught three passes for a team-high 33 yards. Brown carried the ball 21 times for 43 yards, all of his production coming in the first half.
The Bengals lost right guard Lucas Patrick to a calf injury early in the second quarter, Logan Wilson missed time being evaluated for a concussion before returning in the third quarter and Geno Stone was in and out of the blue medical tent but finished the game.
Cleveland still managed 327 yards of offense, compared to 141 net yards for Cincinnati, but the Bengals didn’t have any turnovers, while the Browns lost two interceptions.
Cincinnati had not won an opener since 2021 when the team made its run to the Super Bowl.
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