'This team just kept finding a way': Bengals beat Browns for first time since 2019

Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor was adamant this week that December football in the NFL is about winning at all costs. In the NFL, good teams pull out wins in a variety of ways.

On Sunday at Paycor Stadium in front of an announced attendance of 66,222, the Bengals found a way to beat the Cleveland Browns, 23-10, despite a sluggish start offensively and injuries to two of its top playmakers. It's the Bengals' first win in the Battle of Ohio since the 2019 season-finale.

"It was really just a great team effort of finding a way to win in December," Taylor said.

Going into the week, the Bengals had surged near the upper echelon of nearly every league-wide power ranking and were getting healthy at the right time.

Reactions:Bengals snap Battle of Ohio losing streak with 23-10 win over Browns

That changed instantly on Sunday when both sides of the ball suffered key injuries. Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins, who was limited with a hamstring injury on Thursday, played just one snap after he reaggravated the injury during warmups. Taylor said Higgins "found a way" onto the field for the first snap of the game. On the second snap of the afternoon, Tyler Boyd suffered a right finger injury and did not return.

Taylor said there was an emergency offensive staff meeting at noon when they found out Higgins couldn't go. The Bengals did not make Higgins inactive because they already had five inactive players and the third-year wide receiver might be able to contribute in a goal-line package.

On Cleveland’s first drive, defensive back Mike Hilton was banged up with a lower leg injury while blitzing, but soon returned to the game.

"This team just kept finding a way," Taylor said. "I have confidence in these players to just step up. We really lost Tee in warmups and T.B. (Tyler Boyd) and guys just stepped up, knew what to do and got all of the modifications. We settled in and found a way to move the ball."

No Tee Higgins or Tyler Boyd, no worries for Bengals' passing game

But the Bengals success after an 0-2 start has been built on its “next man up” mentality, especially at receiver after going 3-1 without Ja’Marr Chase.

This time, Chase carried the load with Higgins and Boyd sidelined. Chase tied a season-high with 10 catches for 119 yards and opened the scoring with a 15-yard touchdown reception on a throw Burrow fit through a tight window between Browns’ corner Denzel Ward and safety John Johnson III.

"That was a fun one," Burrow said of threading the needle for the ice-breaking score. "Ja'Marr (Chase) is really good at that route. They ended up rotating away from him and we found a window. It was a tight one, but we got it in there."

The scoring drive was largely fueled by the Browns’ defense, which aided a Bengals offense that looked lost early in the game without two of its top playmakers. The Browns committed four penalties that netted Cincinnati nearly 60 yards, including a roughing the kicker penalty on a Drue Chrisman punt and a 33-yard pass interference on Ward.

The Bengals moved more efficiently on their ensuing touchdown drive before the half. Trent Taylor was the first Bengals’ receiver besides Chase to record a catch with a career-long 34-yard reception on third-and-10 that moved the Bengals into the redzone.

Joe Burrow on Trent Taylor and Trenton Irwin: 'Have so much faith in them'

On third-and-10 just three plays later, Burrow improvised by eluding the Cleveland pass rush and flipped a 12-yard pass to Trenton Irwin for a first down. One play later, Samaje Perine’s six-yard touchdown run gave the Bengals a 13-3 lead at the half.

"Trent (Taylor) and Trenton (Irwin) are guys that work really hard, know their stuff and are gonna be right where I expect them to," Burrow said. "I see those guys working every day and have so much faith in them."

In the second half, the Bengals dialed up a trick play at the perfect spot to take a three-possession lead. On first down from the Cleveland 45, a flea-flicker caught the Cleveland secondary off guard and Irwin was wide-open for a 45-yard score that gave Cincinnati a 20-3 advantage.

"You carry those plays because you think they're gonna work," Taylor said of the flea-flicker. "They're a fast defense (Cleveland), they come downhill and they're good against the run, make you earn everything and sometimes those play help out and work."

The play was run in practice all week with Higgins, but Irwin stepped up when his number was called.

"It just goes to show that Trenton Irwin studies his stuff and knows every position and he's gonna get thrown in there when someone goes down," Burrow said.

Bengals defense keeps Deshaun Watson, Nick Chubb in check

Quarterback Deshaun Watson was making his second start in a Browns uniform after struggling last week in his Cleveland debut against the Houston Texans (13-of-22, 131 yards, one interception and no touchdowns).

Watson, making his first start in Cincinnati since his rookie year in 2017, struggled mightily once again, starting just 10-of-15 for 123 yards and was sacked twice before Cleveland had to air it out late facing a double-digit deficit. Watson finished 26-of-42 for 276 yards and used his legs for multiple third-down conversions, running for 33 yards on six attempts.

Containing Cleveland’s rushing attack was top priority for a Bengals defense that permitted 172 yards and three touchdowns on the ground back on Halloween. Nick Chubb broke a 13-yard run on his second attempt of the game but managed just 23 yards over his final 12 carries.

Over the last three seasons, the Browns are 13-4 when Chubb runs for over 100 yards in a game and just 8-14 when he doesn’t cross the century mark, including a 1-6 mark this year.

"That's a really great plan by Lou (Anarumo) and the defensive staff," Taylor said. "Really, really proud of the defense today. They gave us our best chance to win it and the offense found a way to overcome that adversity and score some points."

Logan Wilson led the Cincinnati defense with a game-high 17 tackles and a half-sack that was split with safety Vonn Bell. DJ Reader, who missed the Week 8 loss to Cleveland, has now helped the Bengals' defense hold Derrick Henry and Chubb to a combined 72 rushing yards on 31 attempts (2.3 yards per carry) over the last three games.

"Can't get through. He (Reader) is a gladiator," Taylor-Britt said. "I love playing with DJ. I don't see anybody stopping those guys (defensive line) without holding. You see that on the film."

Cleveland's offense found the endzone for the first time with Watson as its quarterback in the third quarter with a 10-play, 71-yard march capped off with a touchdown toss to David Njoku to trim Cincinnati's lead to 10. The Bengals immediately answered with a field goal drive when Joe Mixon broke a 40-yard run, his longest since 2019.

Joe Mixon runs for 96 yards in return for Bengals

Mixon was used as the starter in his return and handled the majority of the workload. Mixon ran for 96 yards on 14 attempts while Perine added 22 yards on just four attempts and a rushing score.

"He (Mixon) had a heck of run that put is in position there," Taylor said. "That combination of him and Samaje (Perine) is gonna be a great deal for us going forward."

Cincinnati's defense had one takeaway, which came in the third quarter on an interception from Jessie Bates. But Cleveland had three possessions reach Bengals' territory that resulted in a turnover on downs. The Browns went for it on fourth-and-1 in the redzone on its first drive, but back-up quarterback Jacoby Brissett overthrew Donovan Peoples-Jones in the endzone.

Cleveland's final effort to rally in the fourth quarter from a double-digit hole came up empty when Watson's fade route on fourth-and-goal from the Bengals' 4-yard line was broken up by Taylor-Britt with 5:28 remaining. Cleveland's final possession started in Cincinnati territory, but ended without a first down when Watson was pressured and missed Amari Cooper.

The Bengals remain in the AFC's top wild card spot after the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on the road Sunday, 16-14.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Battle of Ohio: Bengals snap 5-game losing streak to Cleveland Browns