Bengals vs. Bills Sunday Night Football highlights: Cincinnati gets fourth straight win

The Cincinnati Bengals stretched their win streak to four games after defeating the Buffalo Bills, 24-18, on “Sunday Night Football.”

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow completed 30 passes for 348-yards and two touchdowns, while receiver Tee Higgins led Cincinnati with eight receptions for 110 yards. The Bengals move to 5-3 on the season after losing three of their first four games. 

The Bills attempted a fourth-quarter comeback, but their efforts came up short. Quarterback Josh Allen connected with receiver Stefon Diggs for a 17-yard touchdown and successful two-point conversion with 3:32 remaining in the game to cut the Bengals' lead to six points. But running back Joe Mixon sealed the win for Cincinnati with a 5-yard run to get a first down. 

The Bills’ Super Bowl aspirations took another hit as they drop to 5-4 following the key AFC matchup.  Allen had 26 completions for 258-yards, one touchdown and one interception, in addition to 44 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown. 

The last time these two met in the regular season was last year during "Monday Night Football" when Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest on the field. Hamlin was revived at a Cincinnati hospital and his inspirational story continues despite being inactive for eight of the Bills' nine games. — Cydney Henderson

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Bengals vs. Bills highlights

While the Bengals now have won four consecutive games following a 1-3 start to the season, the Bills have lost three of their last five games.

Winners and losers from Bengals' win over Bills

WINNERS

Joe Burrow’s healthy and back: One of Burrow’s best attributes is his pocket awareness and ability to maneuver within the pocket to buy extra time. That was absent when he was hampered with a calf injury, but the Bengals quarterback is healthy now.

Burrow was sharp in the pocket and picked Buffalo’s defense apart with an assortment of weapons.

Burrow finished 31-of-44 passing for 348 yards and two touchdowns, resulting in a 108.9 passer rating.

The Bengals quarterback hit eight different pass catchers in what was a good day in the office for the quarterback.

Wide receiver Tee Higgins led the way with eight catches for a season-high 110 receiving yards.

Bengals defense: Germaine Pratt is one of the unheralded members of the Bengals defense, but he’s a playmaker. The Bengals linebacker had a team-best 11 tackles.

Nick Scott had a big forced fumble in the fourth quarter when the Bills were threatening to score.

Cincinnati’s defense held the Bills to just seven points in the first half, and the Bills were only able to reach the end zone once second half.

The Bengals defense forced two total turnovers in the victory.

Bengals tight ends: The Bengals haven’t got much usage out of their tight end position this season, but they produced Sunday night.

Tight Irv Smith, Drew Sample and Tanner Hudson combined for 10 catches, 101 yards and two touchdowns.

LOSERS

Bills offense: The Bills offense found some life late in the fourth quarter, but it was too little too late.

The Bills were held to just seven points in a first half that featured Josh Allen’s ninth interception of the season. When the Bills were driving to score early in the fourth quarter, tight end Dalton Kincaid had a costly fumble.

At times, Buffalo’s best offense was a broken play and an Allen scramble.

Bills' rushing offense: Josh Allen’s 26 rushing yards led the Bills. The Bills played from behind for the entire game, but they didn’t get anything from their rushing attack that produced a modest 46 total yards.

Bills' pass defense: Injuries took a toll on the Bills defense on Sunday night, especially in the secondary.

The Bills defense gave up 397 yards, including 343 through the air.

The Bengals averaged 5.9 yards per play. — Tyler Dragon

Joe Mixon run seals Bengals win

Coming out of the two-minute warning, Bengals running back Joe Mixon secured his team's fourth consecutive victory by juking past Bills edge rusher Von Miller for a 5-yard gain on third-and-3 at the Bills' 36-yard line.

A 32-yard strike from quarterback Joe Burrow to receiver Tyler Boyd after the kickoff following the Bills' touchdown set up the Bengals in Bills territory.

While the Bengals' win means every team in the AFC North is over .500, the Bills' defeat kept the team from moving into a tie for first in the AFC East after the Dolphins' loss to the Chiefs in Frankfurt, Germany. — Jim Reineking

Bengals 24, Bills 18: Stefon Diggs TD, two-point conversion brings Buffalo closer

The Bills finally reached pay dirt, doing so for the first time since their initial offensive drive of the game when quarterback Josh Allen connected with receiver Stefon Diggs for a 17-yard score.

Allen and Diggs connected again on the ensuring two-point conversion attempt, with Diggs colliding with a stadium security worker behind the end zone. Both appeared fine after the collision.

The score brought Buffalo within six points of Cincinnati, but time is ticking away at further opportunities to tie up the game. — Jim Reineking

Bengals 24, Bills 10: Cincy extends lead in fourth quarter

The Bengals scored their first points of the second half.

Bengals kicker Evan McPherson made a short 20-yard field goal to extend Cincinnati’s lead, 24-10.

The 12-play, 85-yard field goal drive came after Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid had the football punched out from him by Bengals safety Nick Scott. — Tyler Dragon

Bills’ Dalton Kincaid fumbles in Bengals territory

Bills quarterback Josh Allen completed a 11-yard pass to tight end Dalton Kincaid, who attempted to hurdle over Bengals safety Nick Scott to get the first down. But Kincaid was flipped upside down on the play and fumbled the ball before he landed. Scott recovered the ball on the Bengals’ 13-yard line.

It marked the Bills’ second turnover of the day. — Cydney Henderson

Bills score only points in third quarter, but Bengals still lead

Defenses on both sides won the third quarter.

Buffalo’s successful 34-yard field goal represented the only points of the quarter. 

The Bills defense forced the Bengals to turn the ball over on downs with a little over two minutes remaining in the third period.

Buffalo’s defense held the Bengals to 57 total yards in the third quarter. — Tyler Dragon

Bengals 21, Bills 10: Field goal cuts into Cincy's lead

The opening drive of the second half resulted in a successful 34-yard field goal attempt by Bills kicker Tyler Bass.

The three-pointer capped an 11-play, 58-yard drive for Buffalo, which entered halftime trailing Cincinnati by two touchdowns. The biggest play of the drive was a 15-yard connection between Josh Allen and receiver Stefon Diggs that put the Bills in field goal range. — Jim Reineking

Bengals hold two TD lead at halftime

The Bengals were the best team on the field in the first half.

The Bengals offense scored touchdowns on three of their five possessions and the defense intercepted Josh Allen once in the first half to take a 21-7 lead at halftime.

Joe Burrow has been sharp through two quarters. The Bengals' quarterback has 181 passing yards and two touchdowns, resulting in a 123.8 passer rating.

The Bills scored of their first possession, but they were contained on their four following drives.

Bengals tight ends have combined for seven catches and two touchdowns in the first half.

Bills safety Jordan Poyer currently has a game-high eight tackles. — Tyler Dragon

Bengals 21, Bills 7: Joe Burrow tosses second touchdown

The Bengals reached the end zone for a third time late in the second quarter.

On third down, Joe Burrow found tight end Drew Sample wide open for a short pass and Sample scampered for a 22-yard touchdown to give Cincinnati a 21-7 advantage.

Sample and fellow tight end Irv Smith have two of Cincinnati’s three touchdowns in the first half.

Burrow has 181 passing yards and two touchdowns through two quarters. — Tyler Dragon

Joe Burrow battling through bloodied finger

The Bengals quarterback has a finger injury. 

The NBC broadcast showed Burrow’s right index finger bleeding on his throwing hand, but it’s not clear how serious the injury is or if it is affecting him. He was seen sucking the blood off his finger and even wiping it on a towel during the second quarter. 

After the Bengals punted the ball following a three-play, minus-10 yard drive, Burrow was attended to on the sidelines. According to NBC’s Melissa Stark, trainers cleaned off and sterilized Burrow’s fingernail. He didn’t take any warmup throws before taking the field again. 

Trainers also put a heating pad on Burrow’s right calf, the same one he injured in the preseason. — Cydney Henderson

Bengals' all-time rushing leaders

If you're wondering where Joe Mixon ranks on the Bengals' all-time rushing yardage list, he is climbing toward the top after recently passing Rudi Johnson to move into third place.

Here are the Bengals' rushing yardage leaders:

1. Corey Dillon (1997-2003): 8,061 yards
2. James Brooks (1984-1991): 6,447 yards
3. Joe Mixon (2017-present): 5,831 yards*
4. Rudi Johnson (2001-2007): 5,742 yards
5. Pete Johnson (1977-1983): 5,421 yards
6. Cedric Benson (2008-2011): 4,176 yards
7. Harold Green (1990-1995): 3,727 yards
8. Giovani Bernard (2013-2020): 3,697 yards
9. Essex Johnson (1968-1975): 3,070 yards
10. Boobie Clark (1973-1978): 2,978 yards

*Total entering Sunday night's game.

Bengals pick off Josh Allen

After allowing an opening drive touchdown, the Bengals defense has stopped Buffalo for two straight drives.

Josh Allen’s deep pass to Gabe Davis was picked off by Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt at the Buffalo 32-yard line.

The interception was Allen’s ninth of the season.  — Tyler Dragon

Hot first quarter for both offenses

The Bills and Bengals combined for 217 yards and three touchdowns in the first quarter.

The Bengals ended the first period with a 14-7 lead. Bengals QB Joe Burrow’s completed 11 of 14 passes for 114 yards and has a touchdown.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen has completed five of six passes for 83 yards. He also has a touchdown on the ground. — Tyler Dragon

Bengals 14, Bills 7: Cincy back on top with Joe Mixon’s rushing TD

The Bengals retook the lead against the Bills with a 2-yard touchdown run from running back Joe Mixon that capped a 11-play, 69-yard drive. 

Nixon has eight yards and one touchdown on four carries. 

The Bengals lead, 14-7. Cincinnati has possessed the ball 11:10 and ran a total of 20 plays, compared to Buffalo only having the ball for 3:15  and running a total of seven plays. — Cydney Henderson

Bills 7, Bengals 7: Josh Allen scores TD, gets penalized for taunting

Josh Allen saw the Bengals offense make it look easy on their first possession.

Allen led the Bills on an opening drive touchdown to tie the game at 7-7.

The Bills' quarterback only had one incompletion during a seven-play, 85-yard touchdown drive.

Allen ran for a 2-yard touchdown to cap off Buffalo’s first series. The quarterback was called for a taunting penalty on the touchdown run for pointing at a Bengals defender. — Tyler Dragon

Bengals 7, Bills 0: Cincinnati sharp during opening drive

The Bengals took possession of the football to start the game, and proceeded to waltz down the field on a nine-play, 76-yard touchdown drive.

Joe Burrow was a perfect six-for-six on Cincinnati’s first drive. Burrow threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to tight end Irv Smith to end the series. — Tyler Dragon

What time is the Bengals vs. Bills 'Sunday Night Football' game? 

The Bills at Bengals kickoff at 8:20 p.m. ET. The game will air on NBC and Peacock. The game is also available to stream for free on Fubo. 

Bengals vs. Bills: Predictions, picks and odds

The Bengals are favorites to defeat the Bills, according to BetMGM NFL odds. 

• Spread: Bengals (-1.5) 
• Moneyline: Bengals (-125); Bills (+105) 
• Over/under: 50.5 

Here are the USA TODAY Sports’ staff picks for this game:

• Lorenzo Reyes: Bengals 
• Tyler Dragon: Bills 
• Victoria Hernandez: Bengals 
• Jordan Mendoza: Bengals 
• Jarrett Bell: Bengals 
• Safid Deen: Bengals 
• Nate Davis: Bengals 
• Chris Bumbaca: Bengals 
• Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz: Bengals 

Will Joe Burrow throw 3-plus TD passes?

Joe Burrow has 16 career games with three or more touchdown passes, tied with Peyton Manning and Dak Prescott for the fifth-most such games by a quarterback in his first four NFL seasons. — Tyler Dragon

Josh Allen is a threat by air and ground

Josh Allen has 43 career rushing touchdowns, tied with Hall of Fame QB Steve Young for second on the NFL’s all-time list among quarterbacks. Allen only trails 2015 NFL MVP Cam Newton (75). — Tyler Dragon

How to bet on 'Sunday Night Football'

Not interested in this game? Our guide to NFL betting odds, picks and spreads has you covered with Thursday Night Football odds, Monday Night Football odds and more. 

If you’re new to sports betting, don’t worry. We have tips for beginners on how to place a bet online. And USA TODAY readers can claim exclusive promos and bonus codes with the online sportsbooks and sports betting sites. — Richard Morin 

All odds provided by BetMGM 

Bills vs. Bengals inactives: Damar Hamlin will not play

Returning the site of his scary cardiac arrest on Jan. 2, 2023, Bills safety Damar Hamlin is inactive and will not play. Hamlin has been inactive for eight of the Bills' nine games this season.

Bills' inactive players:

• S Damar Hamlin
• LB A.J. Klein
• LB Baylon Spector
• OG Germain Ifedi
• OT Alec Anderson
• DT Poona Ford

Bengals' inactive players:

• CB DJ Ivey
• C Trey Hill
• LB Devin Harper
• OT D'Ante Smith
• DT Josh Tupou

Bengals vs. Bills: A history lesson

The Bengals and Bills have been squaring off since Cincinnati joined the American Football League as an expasion team in 1968. Sunday night's matchup is the 34th meeting between the two teams, with Buffalo holding a 17-16 series edge (including playoff games).

The Bengals have won all three of the playoff showdowns against the Bills. During the 1981 season, the Bengals defeated the Bills, 28-21, en route to reaching Super Bowl XVI. In 1988, the Bengals defeated the Bills, 21-10, in the AFC championship game. And, last season, the Bengals topped the Bills, 27-10, in the divisional playoffs.

Following that 1988 AFC title game loss, the Bills would win 10 consecutive games against the Bengals in a run that spanned from 1989 through 2010. — Jim Reineking

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Who is the highest-paid NFL player? 

The NFL's top 15 players in average annual salary are all quarterbacks, according to OverTheCap.com. As Joe Burrow proved in his new deal with the Cincinnati Bengals, teams place a huge priority on having a top-flight QB under center. Burrow's five-year, $275 million contract extension made him the league's highest paid player at a staggering average annual value of $55 million. San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa is the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league after signing a five-year, $170 million extension. 

Here’s the complete list of the league’s highest-paid players. 

Who are the highest paid NFL players at each position? 

We have a complete list at every position: 

• Quarterbacks 
• Running back 
• Receivers 
• Tight ends 
• Offensive tackles 
• Offensive guards 
• Centers 
• Edge rushers 
• Interior defensive linemen 
• Linebackers 
• Cornerbacks 
• Safeties 
• Kickers 
• Punters 

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