SANTA CLARA, Calif. — This is the Bengals team fans have been waiting on.
Joe Burrow threw three touchdown passes and the Bengals defense intercepted Brock Purdy twice as the visiting Cincinnati Bengals (4-3) beat San Francisco 49ers (5-3), 31-17, Sunday at Levi’s Stadium.
Burrow finished 28-of-32 passing for 283 yards with touchdown passes to Tyler Boyd, Andrei Iosivas and Ja’Marr Chase. At one point of the first half Burrow completed 19 straight passes..
The Bengals won their third straight while the Niners lost their third in a row after winning their first five games.
The Bengals opened the game by holding the 49ers to a three-and-out when Cam Taylor-Britt stopped fullback Kyle Juszyzck on third-and-1 at the San Francisco 34.
The Bengals then marched 85 yards in nine plays highlighted by one of the plays of the year from Joe Burrow. On third-and-10 from the Bengals 31, Burrow escaped a rush from Nick Bosa spun around and then scrambled 10 yards to his right and fired a first-down strike to Tee Higgins, before taking a brutal shot from Fred Warner.
Later in the drive, Joe Mixon broke free for a 20-yard run up the middle. Then Burrow threw a perfect six-yard fade pass to Tyler Boyd from six yards before taking another hard hit after the pass. It also marked his 100th career touchdown pass.
Came out swingin' #CINatSF | 📺 CBS pic.twitter.com/G8Zx4nxR0k
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) October 29, 2023
The Niners made adjustments on their second drive, going 75 yards in eight plays, scoring on a Christian McCaffrey 2-yard run up the middle. It was the 17th straight game – including playoffs – that McCaffrey recorded either a rushing or receiving touchdown, matching the NFL record of Lenny Moore of the Baltimore Colts between 1964-64.
The Bengals offensive line was very impressive in the opening half, opening big holes in the run game.
Joe Burrow finished the first half with 19 straight completions. But the last one resulted in a brutal turnover as Irv Smith Jr. fumbled the ball at the San Francisco 5 with 31 seconds left as the Bengals were poised to take a 21-10 halftime lead.
We'll take that ‼️
#CINvsSF on CBS
NFL+ // https://t.co/KTh0i4nCVJ pic.twitter.com/9wHa13n6vK— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) October 29, 2023
The 19 straight completions left him one shy of Ken Anderson’s record of 20 straight against the Houston Oilers on Jan. 3, 1983 in Houston. Burrow finished the half 21-of-23 for 170 yards, including touchdown passes to Boyd and Andrew Iosivas.
Burrow’s only critical mistake of the half came on Cincinnati’s first possession of the second quarter, when he took a sack on third down and Evan McPherson missed a 50-yard field goal attempt wide right.
The Bengals dominated the 49ers in the half, earning 20 first downs and hold San Francisco to nine.
The Bengals dodged a bullet when Trey Hendrickson left the game with a ankle injury early in the second quarter. He had to be helped off the field and was treated in the medical tent before returning later in the quarter.
The Bengals opened the second half with a seven-play drive that ended with 56-yard McPherson field goal that pushed the Cincinnati lead to 17-10.
The Niners were driving late in the third quarter and had the ball, first and goal at the Bengals 8. Germaine Pratt tipped a Purdy pass to himself and intercepted the pass.
After a Bengals short drive and punt, Purdy threw over the middle for Brandon Aiyuk. Logan Wilson stepped in front for his team-high third interception and return to the 49ers 17. On the next play, Burrow threw a perfect pass in the right corner of the end zone to Ja’Marr Chase, who celebrated the 24-10 lead with a backflip.
The Niners then responded with a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that featured a pair of athletic scrambles by Brock Purdy, who found an open George Kittle down to the Cincinnati 4 on third down. On the next play, Purdy scrambled to his right and found a wide open McCaffrey to make it 24-17 with 8:12 left in the fourth.
