Burrow on the mark as Bengals win at Miami
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MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) -- The Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase connection never seems to fail for the Cincinnati Bengals.
Chase missed practice time this week after suffering a concussion last Sunday against Jacksonville, but that didn’t stop the All-Pro receiver from coming down with a highlight-reel, one-handed touchdown on a 45-yard throw from Burrow Sunday against the Miami Dolphins.
“I saw the protection that I really like. It buys me time and space,” Burrow said. “Pushed the ball downfield, and when you push the ball downfield with the guys that we have and (with) that kind of time, you can see what number one can do whenever the ball’s in the air. Obviously, an unbelievable play. You don’t want to take it for granted, but we’re used to it at this point.”
Burrow threw four touchdown passes, safety Jordan Battle had a pair of interceptions and the Bengals beat the Dolphins 31-24 on Sunday.
“It’s a blessing to get these opportunities,” said Chase, who secured the bobbling pass with his right forearm while he was being defended by cornerback Jason Marshall Jr. late in the third. He caught six passes for 77 yards, and his touchdown made it 28-10.
Burrow completed 23 of 32 passes for 190 yards and also threw touchdowns to tight ends Mike Gesicki and Tanner Hudson and running back Samaje Perine. The Bengals quarterback took advantage of the Dolphins’ young secondary, completing passes to nine different receivers.
Battle picked off Malik Willis on back-to-back drives in the second quarter. The veteran had a big game after saying this week he had a tell on how Willis throws the football -- pointing out the Dolphins quarterback apparently taps the ball before he throws.
“You study players and see things,” Battle said Sunday, “but it’s just trusting the game plan and putting me in position to make plays.”
The Dolphins (0-5) pulled within 7 with 45 seconds left on a Willis’ 1-yard touchdown run, set up by a 23-yard catch by rookie Kevin Coleman Jr., who also caught a touchdown earlier in the fourth. Riley Patterson clanked the extra-point attempt off the left upright, and the ensuing onside kick went out of bounds to end it and snap the Cincinnati’s two-game skid.
Willis had just five completions in the first half and finished 15 of 27 with 137 yards passing. The Dolphins offseason free-agent pickup was late on throws and missed several open receivers in addition to the pair of interceptions and a lost fumble.
“We’ve just got to go back to the drawing board,” Willis said, “watch these last few games, compare it to practice, understand what we’re good at, what we’re not good at, understand what guys are comfortable with and what they’re not comfortable with, and then just try to go and execute the next opportunity we can get.”
STEELERS 34, COLTS 22
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Jaylen Warren spent time before Pittsburgh’s game against Indianapolis watching old highlights of himself, back when the fifth-year running back was just 5-foot-8 and 220 pounds of raw material playing for a junior college in Utah, a time in his life when the spotlight of the NFL seemed a million miles away.
That spotlight is considerably closer now.
So close that Warren is practically standing in it.
Warren had a star turn during the Steelers’ 34-22 victory over the Colts on Sunday, piling up 188 total yards and two long touchdowns while outplaying Indy’s Jonathan Taylor in a three-hour showcase for Warren’s journey from undrafted rookie free agent to maybe one of the NFL’s best players at his position.
“I’ve always believed in myself,” Warren said.
So have the Steelers (3-2), who relied heavily on Warren’s churning legs to bounce back from a loss to Cleveland.
Warren’s 80-yard catch-and-run score in the first quarter gave Pittsburgh an early jolt, and his 50-yard sprint to the end zone through the middle of the Indianapolis defense in the third quarter ended with Warren clearing an imaginary hurdle at the goal line, a nod to the teenager who would occasionally do the same while scoring for Snow College in Ephraim, Utah.
In between the splashy plays were grimy yards between the tackles, including a 1-yard gain on fourth-and-1 in Indianapolis territory in the fourth quarter that set up the second of tight end Pat Freiermuth’s touchdowns.
“He’s the man,” Steelers coach Mike McCarthy said of Warren. “He’s hauling it right now for us.”
Warren hasn’t really had a choice. With backfield mate Rico Dowdle missing a third straight game with a toe injury, Warren was Pittsburgh’s only experienced option. He showed again he is capable -- and more than willing -- to carry a heavy workload.
“Whenever my name is called, I’ve got to seize the moment,” said Warren, who has 490 total yards in the three games since Dowdle went out. “With Rico being down, obviously it sucks, but knowing he’s one day closer to coming back, I feel like I can hold it down until then.”
The Steelers needed Warren, Aaron Rodgers and their offense to be productive on a day the Colts (2-3) hung around well into the fourth quarter.
Rodgers completed 22 of 31 passes for 235 yards and three scores. While Warren did most of the work on their 80-yard connection, the 42-year-old Rodgers paid the price by absorbing a crushing hit from 314-pound Colts defensive tackle Grover Stewart as he flicked the ball to the do-everything running back.
“I feel like I kind of earned it a bit,” Rodgers said about his ninth touchdown pass of at least 80 yards or more, which tied Ben Roethlisberger’s NFL record. “Maybe not 80 yards and a touchdown, but yeah.”
Pat Freiermuth caught five passes for 44 yards and two scores for Pittsburgh, the second a 17-yard toss from Rodgers with 6:40 remaining that gave the Steelers enough cushion to beat the Colts for the 10th time in 12 meetings.
Colts have too many field goals, not enough TDs
Daniel Jones threw for 267 yards for Indianapolis (2-3) and avoided the turnovers that have plagued him whenever he’s faced the Steelers, but the Colts also had drives consistently stall in Pittsburgh territory.
Spencer Shrader kicked five field goals for Indianapolis, including three in the second half from 40 yards and in.
Tyler Warren finished with seven receptions for 83 yards and the second rushing touchdown of his career, but it wasn’t enough for the Colts to win at Pittsburgh for the first time since 2008.
Not with Warren becoming the first player since Herschel Walker for Dallas in 1986 to have a touchdown run of at least 50 yards and a TD catch of at least 80 yards in a game.
“That’s unbelievable,” Warren said before deflecting praise as usual, adding later, “It’s an honor. It’s a credit to my teammates for achieving stats like that.”
JETS 17, BROWNS 12
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Demario Davis has seen a lot in his 15 NFL seasons. So when the New York Jets linebacker makes a declarative statement, it holds some weight.
This time, it might also raise some eyebrows.
Braelon Allen ran 22 yards for the go-ahead touchdown late in the fourth quarter after New York recovered a fumbled punt snap, and the Jets ended a three-game skid with a 17-12 victory over the Cleveland Browns on a rain-soaked Sunday.
“I would go as far as to say this was a historic win for this organization,” Davis said.
Whoa.
Rookie David Bailey had three of New York’s eight sacks of Deshaun Watson, and Geno Smith had a touchdown pass to Garrett Wilson on the first drive for the Jets (2-3), who ended the Browns’ three-game winning streak.
Cleveland (3-2) had a final chance with 1:41 left and no timeouts. But New York’s defense, as it did all game, stiffened and sealed it when Will McDonald had a strip-sack of Watson on fourth down and recovered the fumble.
“You’re talking about a team that had lost the last three games and when you’re going through that type of adversity, it can weigh on you,” Davis said. “It can weigh on you emotionally, it can weigh on your faith, it can weigh on your belief. And it can weigh on an organization that has historically been disappointed.”
Davis said the Jets didn’t waver or flinch. Even though it looked as if they might be headed toward another tough loss.
“A good team win,” coach Aaron Glenn said. “Every part had some bright moments.”
Smith finished 17 of 30 for 182 yards and the TD to Wilson, who had seven catches for 104 yards, and Allen ran for 116 yards and the winning touchdown on 24 carries.
This one wasn’t pretty, with a steady rain falling throughout as the remnants of Hurricane Isaias blew through the Northeast. But the struggling Jets were able to bounce back after giving up a fourth-quarter lead.
“That’s the feeling we’re hunting every weekend,” Wilson said. “It felt good.”
Watson, who was 15 of 33 for 155 yards, threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to rookie Denzel Boston to give the Browns their first advantage. Andre Szmyt missed the extra point, putting Cleveland up 12-10 with 6:15 left.
The Browns got the ball back moments later when Carson Schwesinger sacked Smith, and Adin Huntington recovered the fumble.
The Jets forced a three-and-out and then their special teams came through when a high snap from Cleveland’s Rex Sunahara went through punter Corey Bojorquez’s hands -- perhaps with an assist from the rain -- and bounced behind him as several players chased after it and Trevin Wallace recovered for New York.
“The ball was wet the whole game,” Browns coach Todd Monken said. “Is that a part of it? Probably. Is that a part of some of the drops? Probably. Is that a part of some of the ball security? Probably. But we both had to play in it.”
Three plays later, Allen took a handoff, found a crease off the left side and scooted 22 yards for a touchdown that put the Jets ahead with 3:01 remaining and sent the poncho-wearing fans in the MetLife Stadium stands into a frenzy.