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.
Jake Browning threw three touchdowns for the Bengals (9-8), finishing 18-of-24 passing with 156 yards and one interception before being replaced by AJ McCarron late in the third quarter.
The Browns (11-6), who failed to secure their first 12-win season since 1986, rested many of their starters with the fifth seed in the AFC sewn up. Wide receiver Amari Cooper, defensive end Myles Garrett and cornerback Greg Newsome II were all inactive.
It was a day of milestones for the Bengals, 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.
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.
With the Browns resting starting quarterback Joe Flacco, Jeff Driskel started and played the entire game, going 13-of-26 for 166 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.
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 on the drive that ended in his 6-yard touchdown catch.
The Bengals drove 99 yards in 14 plays on their second drive of the third quarter to go up 31-0. The drive was kept alive by Cleveland’s fourth encroachment penalty as Cincinnati was lining up to go for fourth down. Later, the rookie Iosivas caught his second TD of the day on a 7-yard play.
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.
–Field Level Media