Joe Burrow threw for 462 yards and five touchdowns, and he added a nine-yard touchdown run in overtime as the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Tennessee Titans 43-36 on Sunday at Paycor Stadium. The Bengals improved to 5-2 and pulled within half a game of first place in the AFC North. The Titans fell to 1-7.
Cincinnati trailed 13-0 after the first quarter and 21-13 in the third quarter before rallying. Tennessee answered twice more in the fourth quarter, the last a Wan’Dale Robinson touchdown catch with a two-point conversion that put the Titans up 36-29 with 3:46 left. Tee Higgins caught his second touchdown of the night, an 18-yard score with 1:17 remaining, to force overtime at 36-36. Burrow then capped a Cincinnati possession in the extra period with his rushing touchdown for the final margin.
Key Moments And How It Was Won
The Titans built their early lead on a Joey Slye 46-yard field goal, a 40-yard Tony Pollard touchdown run and a second Slye field goal, taking a 13-0 lead by the 2:14 mark of the first quarter. Burrow got Cincinnati on the board with a 30-yard touchdown to Ja’Marr Chase, then found Jack Endries for a one-yard score with 20 seconds left in the half to put the Bengals ahead 14-13 at the break.
Cincinnati pushed the lead to 21-13 on a 17-yard Higgins touchdown early in the third, but Pollard’s second rushing touchdown, with Cam Ward converting a two-point run, tied it at 21. A Bengals safety on a Pollard rush made it 23-21 heading into the fourth. Chimere Dike’s 11-yard touchdown catch gave Tennessee a 28-23 edge before Mike Gesicki’s 25-yard touchdown reception put Cincinnati back in front 29-28, though the two-point attempt failed. Robinson’s score and conversion gave the Titans their final lead before Higgins and Burrow finished the comeback in the extra period.
Top Performers
Burrow completed 38 of 48 passes for 462 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions, finishing with a 115.5 passer rating despite the turnovers. Higgins caught 10 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns, while Chase added 11 receptions for 141 yards and a score. Chase Brown led Cincinnati on the ground with 55 yards on 12 carries.
For Tennessee, Ward threw for 304 yards and two touchdowns on 26-of-40 passing and ran for 41 more yards. Pollard rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries and added three catches. Gunnar Helm led Titans receivers with five catches for 76 yards, and Anthony Hill Jr. paced the defense with 14 tackles. Amani Hooker intercepted Burrow three times.
What It Means
Cincinnati moved to 5-2, sitting behind only Pittsburgh (6-2) in the AFC North. The Bengals outgained the Titans 510-440 in total yards despite committing four turnovers to Tennessee’s two. Tennessee dropped to 1-7 and remains last in the AFC South behind Jacksonville, Houston and Indianapolis.
What’s Next
Cincinnati hosts another AFC South opponent next week. Tennessee continues searching for its second win as it prepares for Week 9.
Don't stop here
Every Score. Every Story. One Home.
Breaking sports, entertainment and news from across the Total Apex network, updated all day.
Get the Full Story →
