Cleveland Browns vs Cincinnati Bengals Match Player Stats On Nov 26, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Nov 26, 2017

CINCINNATI -- Rookie Joe Mixon rushed for a career-high 114 yards on 23 carries and a touchdown, and Andy Dalton passed for 214 yards and two touchdowns, lifting the Cincinnati Bengals to a 30-16 victory over the winless Cleveland Browns on Sunday at Paul Brown Stadium.

Cincinnati (5-6) revived its dormant rushing attack with a season-high 152 yards, averaging 5.1 yards per carry, to help keep its slim playoff hopes alive. But Sunday's game wasn't without some nervous moments.

The Browns were within a touchdown and appeared to have the Bengals stopped on third-and-5 with less than four minutes remaining in the game when Dalton's pass to Josh Malone fell incomplete on the sideline after a hard hit by safety Jabrill Peppers.

Malone did not appear to have possession of the ball when he was hit. Peppers was flagged for hitting a defenseless receiver and Mixon scored on an 11-yard run to seal the victory moments later.

Isaiah Crowell rushed for 95 yards and DeShone Kizer passed for 268 yards and rushed for 39 and a touchdown for Cleveland. But the mistake-prone Browns (0-11) had a pair of drive-stalling penalties in the first half and a dropped touchdown pass by Corey Coleman in the end zone in the third quarter.

After a 15-yard penalty on Cincinnati linebacker Vontaze Burfict for a hit on a receiver helped extend the Browns' drive on their first possession, Cleveland had first-and-goal at the 8. But, the Browns settled for a 27-yard field goal by Zane Gonzalez to cap an 11-play, 66-yard drive after an offensive pass interference penalty on tight end David Njoku.

On the Browns' second drive, a taunting penalty on wide receiver Bryce Treggs set them back, and Gonzalez missed a 43-yard field-goal attempt, wasting a 44-yard pass from Kizer to Coleman.

Cincinnati had a 75-yard scoring drive in the first quarter, taking a 7-3 lead on Tyler Boyd's 8-yard touchdown catch, his first of the year. The Bengals rushed for 43 yards on the drive, averaging 8.6 yards per carry.

The Bengals weren't immune to mistakes on Sunday. Adam Jones had a 55-yard punt return for an apparent touchdown negated when backup tight end Cethan Carter was flagged for a block in the back.

Randy Bullock kicked field goals of 21, 31, and 49 yards in the first half, and a 1-yard touchdown pass from Dalton to tight end Tyler Kroft in the third made the score 23-6.

Cleveland cut its deficit to 23-16 on Kizer's 3-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal with seven minutes remaining, but couldn't complete the rally.

The Bengals' pass rush produced four sacks and 11 quarterback hits.

NOTES: Browns QB DeShone Kizer briefly left the game in the second quarter and was evaluated for a concussion. Cody Kessler replaced him for one series, but Kizer was cleared to return. ... The Browns' 0-11 start is their worst since beginning last season 0-14. The last team to go winless in a 16-game schedule was the 2008 Detroit Lions. ... Bengals LB Nick Vigil twice left the game with an injured ankle before being declared out in the third quarter. ... The Bengals lead the all-time series 50-39, including six straight wins and 21 of 27.