The Bengals closed out the season at home against the Browns, after losses in the last two games left them eliminated from playoff contention. Cleveland, locked into the 5th seed, decided to rest almost all of their starters. The Bengals, meanwhile, played most of theirs for roughly 3 quarters, before AJ McCarron and the other backups got in to close out the game.
The two teams traded interceptions to start the game. Jordan Battle got his first career pick on the game’s opening drive, before Browning gave it back off a high throw intended for Boyd.
But not long after, the floodgates opened up. With the ball back, Browning found Charlie Jones for 35 yards to highlight their first TD drive. This one resulted in a 1 yard Joe Mixon run to cap it off. 7-0 Bengals.
Joe Mixon would score his second TD of the game on the next drive, off a 6 yard pass from Browning. It was a short drive with a few chunk plays — a 44 yard run by Mixon, an 18 yard pass to Iosivas, and another one to Iosivas, this time for 15 yards. 14-0 Bengals.
The Bengals added to their lead in the 2nd quarter. This drive was more methodical, with the three longest plays coming off 10+ yard runs by Chase Brown, Joe Mixon, and Jake Browning, respectively. The drive was capped off by a 3 yard TD pass from Browning to Andrei Iosivas. 21-0 Bengals.
Off a Logan Wilson interception, the Bengals would add a field goal to go up 24-0. This was the score at half time.
In the 2nd half, after a Cleveland punt to the 1 yard line, the Bengals proceeded to drive the length of the field. Early in the drive, a 15 yard run by Mixon was followed by a 27 yard run by Chase Brown. Later, on 4th down at the Cleveland 40, the offence was able to get Cleveland to jump, extending the drive. Deeper in Browns territory, the Bengals had 3rd & 18, and Browning was able to thread the needle to Trenton Irwin for 25 yards. A couple of plays later, Browning found Andrei Iosivas from 7 yards out for the rookie’s second TD of the game. 31-0 Bengals.
After that TD, more backups saw the field for the Bengals, and the Browns offence had a better time moving the ball. And Cincinnati’s offence, meanwhile, with mostly backups at OL, had a much harder time moving the ball, though the conservative approach from that point onwards also played a part.
The Browns offence did manage to score 2 TD’s in the 4th quarter. DJ Turner and Daxton Hill, two of the few starters that remained in the game, were burned for a 31 yard TD on 4th down. Former Bengal Jeff Driskel connected with David Bell on the play. Driskel would later find Bell again from 24 yards out for a TD. 31-14 final.
Cincinnati finishes the year at 9-8, just missing out on a playoff spot. Instead, they will get the 18th overall pick in the NFL Draft, as the focus now shifts to the offseason.
Modified Homescreen Image Via: The University of Alabama (CC)