CINCINNATI — Andrei Iosivas caught two touchdown passes and Joe Mixon ran for one and caught another as the Cincinnati Bengals ended their season with a 31-14 win over the visiting Cleveland Browns Sunday.
Bengals quarterback Jake Browning threw three touchdowns on the day, finishing 18-of-24 passing with 156 yards and one interception before being replaced by AJ McCarron late in the third quarter.
It was a day of milestones for the Bengals (9-8), who finished with a winning record for the third straight season under head coach Zac Taylor.
Cincinnati’s victory ensured all four AFC North teams finished the season with a winning record, marking the first such instance since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger and the first in the NFL since 1935.
The two-time defending AFC North champion Bengals were dethroned this year by the Baltimore Ravens and eliminated from playoff contention with last week’s 25-17 loss in Kansas City.
Mixon ran for a season-high 111 yards on 14 carries, giving him 1,034 on the season. His two touchdowns earned Mixon a substantial bonus, per his restructured contract last July.
Asked Joe Mixon if he felt like this was a farewell to Cincinnati “Just taking it all in… live in the moment… we built this from ground up.” Also had a special shout to Jessie Bates pic.twitter.com/FYhkeGaoui
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) January 7, 2024
Ja’Marr Chase finished with four catches for 19 yards. Chase finished with 100 catches on the season, matching Carl Pickens in 1996 for second-most in team history.
Bengals pass rusher Trey Hendrickson finished with a half-sack, giving him 17.5 for the season, 1.5 sack shy of T.J. Watt and the NFL lead.
The Browns (11-6), who failed to secure their first 12-win season since 1986, rested many of their starters. Wide receiver Amari Cooper, defensive end Myles Garrett and cornerback Greg Newsome II were all inactive.
With the Browns resting starting quarterback Joe Flacco, Jeff Driskel started and played the entire game, going 13-of-26 for 167 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Driskel, signed last week off Arizona’s practice squad, ended Cincinnati’s shutout bid on a fourth-and-4 from the Bengals 31 when he found David Bell in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown.
“It was super-gratifying” Andrei Iosivas on his 2-TD day and his rookie season pic.twitter.com/y0U9V3g36F
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) January 7, 2024
Bell caught another touchdown pass, a 24-yarder on Cleveland’s next possession to make it 31-14.
Mixon had a 44-yard run in the first half, which also included a touchdown run and a touchdown catch.
After neither team could do anything with their first forced turnover, the Bengals put together a seven-play, 60-yard drive that ended with a Mixon 1-yard run off the right side. The touchdown was set up by a 35-yard pass over the middle to rookie Charlie Jones.
Cincinnati’s next drive featured another explosive play, this time from Mixon, who broke off a 44-yard run off to the right side to put him over 1,000 for the season for the fourth time in his seven-year career. That drive ended when Mixon caught a six-yard pass for a touchdown and a 14-0 Cincinnati lead.
The Bengals made it 21-0 when Browning found a wide-open Andrei Iosivas for a 3-yard touchdown with 9:19 left in the second quarter. At that point, the Bengals had outgained the Browns 224-0 in total net offense.
The Bengals drove 99 yards in 15 plays on their second drive of the third quarter to put the Bengals up, 31-0. The drive was kept alive by Cleveland’s fourth encroachment penalty as Cincinnati was lining up to go for fourth down.
