Cincinnati (5-10) got production out of its “Big 3,” plus Brown, and took advantage of three takeaways in the second half, as the league’s worst defense made things difficult for Miami rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers in his first NFL start.
Brown finished with 109 yards from scrimmage, Burrow completed 25 of 32 passes for 309 yards and four touchdowns, Ja’Marr Chase caught nine passes for 109 yards, and Tee Higgins, in his return from a second concussion in three weeks, had a first-half touchdown and finished with 53 yards on three catches.
After a back-and-forth first half, Miami (6-9) had a chance to take a lead on the opening drive of the second half but Jordan Battle forced the ball out of Greg Dulcich’s hands at the end of a 10-yard catch, and Myles Murphy came back to pounce on it for the recovery.
That put the Bengals on the Dolphins’ 34-yard line, to set up Brown’s first touchdown. Joe Burrow connected with him on a 9-yard touchdown pass, on which Brown made a nice cutback at around the 6-yard line to get inside the defender, scamper and dive into the endzone.
Just three plays later, Josh Newton got a tip on Ewers pass intended for Theo Wease Jr. and Barrett Carter caught the interception and returned it 16 yards to the Miami 35-yard line. Burrow threw a 23-yard pass to Brown, and Brown finished the two-play drive with a 12-yard run to make it a 31-14 lead.
Cincinnati’s defense then forced a turnover on downs, stopping a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-1 near midfield, and Brown finished off the ensuing drive with his third touchdown on a 5-yard run.
Ewers to that point couldn’t be faulted for the turnovers, but he made a big mistake throwing into trouble down the sideline on the very next play from scrimmage, and Jalen Davis picked off the pass intended for Jaylen Waddle.
The Bengals kept the foot on the gas and drove 52 yards on seven plays, with Mike Gesicki capping it off on a 17-yard touchdown grab against the team that drafted him in 2018.
That ended Burrow’s day, and Joe Flacco entered for the final two drives, after the defense forced a punt, but attempted just one pass before the offense exited with a three-and-out on back-to-back drives. Miami finally ended its drought with a touchdown run by Jaylen Wright between Flacco’s two series.
Ewers had gotten off to a good start and had the help of a dominant running game in the first half but couldn’t replicate that success in the second half. He finished with 260 yards on 66.7 percent passing and had two interceptions.
The Dolphins managed 129 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, including 81 yards on 15 carries from De’Von Achane, but most of that came in the first half.
Cincinnati returns home for the final two games against Arizona, on Dec. 28, and Cleveland.
NEXT GAME
Who: Cardinals at Bengals
When: 1 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 28
TV: Fox
Radio: 104.7-FM, 700-AM
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