FOXBORO — It was a Christmas Miracle early for the Bengals.
After clinching a playoff berth on Thursday night by watching the Jaguars beat the Jets, the Bengals went out and barely beat the Patriots, 22-18, at Gillette Stadium.
Vonn Bell stripped Rhamondre Stevenson with under a minute remaining and BJ Hill recovered at the Cincinnati 8 as the Patriots appeared ready to pull off a comeback from 22 points down.
The Bengals won at Gillette Stadium for the first time in five regular season tries and beat the Patriots on the road for the first time since Dec. 7, 1986, when they prevailed, 31-7, at old Sullivan Stadium in Foxboro.
Cincinnati’s seventh straight win improved the Bengals to 11-4 and kept the Bengals a game ahead of the Ravens in the AFC North. The Ravens defeated the Falcons in Baltimore to keep pace with the Bengals.
The Bengals lost starting right tackle La’el Collins, who suffered a left knee injury in the second quarter when Patriots defensive lineman Davon Gadchaux rolled into the side of it.
Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer reported that his left ACL was intact and passed initial tests. He will have further tests back in Cincinnati, including an MRI.
The Patriots made a late charge, scoring on a Hail Mary with six minutes left to draw within four, 22-18. Mac Jones threw to the end zone for former Bengals receiver Scotty Washington. On third-and-29, Jones threw for Washington, who batted the ball into the hands of Jakobi Meyers for the touchdown that brought Patriots within four.
The Bengals got the ball back and Ja’Marr Chase fumbled a reception that the Patriots recovered, giving them the ball at the Bengals 43. The Patriots were marching with under three minutes remaining and appeared ready to pull off the massive comeback.
Joe Burrow was 28-of-36 for 284 yards, three touchdowns and an interception in the first half, as the Bengals raced out to 22-0 halftime lead.
By contrast, the Bengals held Mac Jones to 5-of-8 passing for 34 yards in the first half.
The game started very well for the Bengals.
The Bengals took the game’s opening drive and, thanks in part to a 39-yard fly route to Tee Higgins, moved right down the field. Burrow hit Higgins on an out pattern for a 9-yard touchdown, dragging Patriots corner Jonathan Jones into the end zone. Burrow was 5-for-5 for 74 yards.
In the endzone early ?#CINvsNE | ? CBS pic.twitter.com/6zGs2iFUuh
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) December 24, 2022
The Bengals also scored a touchdown on their second possession, a 23-yard post pattern to Trenton Irwin, beating Devin McCourty.
Beautiful.#CINvsNE | ? CBS pic.twitter.com/djBWEGjb8s
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) December 24, 2022
Evan McPherson had difficulty with the wind in the south end zone as his first two extra points started down the middle and then faded wide right. His second attempt didn’t count as the Patriots were guilty of a personal foul on the extra point and the Bengals couldn’t punch in the two-point conversion.
McPherson also missed from 43 yards in the fourth quarter as the Bengals were looking for insurance.
Defensively, the Patriots came in with a terrible reputation and the Bengals defense came in prepared to take advantage. The Bengals forced a pair of three-and-outs from Mac Jones in the first quarter.
Tyler Boyd re-injured his left middle finger in the first quarter, got treatment in the medical tent and returned.
The Bengals increased their lead to 15-0 on a 28-yard McPherson field goal nine seconds into the second quarter.
Burrow capped a 12-play, 80-yard drive with a four-yard TD pass on third-and-goal that made it 22-0 with 14 seconds left in the first half.
While Burrow had a remarkable first half, he was intercepted twice. The Bengals were first and goal at the Patriots’ 8 when he threw over the middle for Tyler Boyd. Boyd stopped his route and McCourty picked it easily. It was the 34th career interception for McCourty tying him with hall of famer Ty Law and Raymond Clayborn for third most in franchise history.
The second Burrow interception accounted for New England’s first points of the day in the third quarter when he threw off his back foot toward the right sideline. Ja’Marr Chase didn’t curl his route and the ball sailed right into the hands of Marcus Jones. The Patriots rookie, who won the Jets game in Foxboro with a game-ending punt return, returned it down the sideline 69 yards for the score.
The Patriots made it interesting when Mac Jones directed a 77-yard drive in 11 plays, capped off by a pass to Kendrick Bourne in the back of the end zone with 12:58 remaining. The two-point try was no good and the Bengals held a 22-12 lead.
