Joe Flacco passed for 342 yards and three touchdowns, Evan McPherson made a 36-yard field goal with seven seconds remaining and the Cincinnati Bengals snapped a four-game losing streak with a 33-31 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night.
Acquired from the Cleveland Browns on October 7, the 40-year-old Flacco completed 31 of 47 passes in his second Cincinnati start, and outduelled 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers in only the third regular-season game between starting quarterbacks in their 40s.
It also marked the 23rd fourth-quarter comeback of Flacco’s 18-year career.
“This is a huge win. We needed it,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said.
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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers finds tight end Pat Freiermuth on the perfect line that ends in a 68-yard touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals
Rodgers went 22 of 32 for 244 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions. He gave Pittsburgh (4-2) a 31-30 advantage with 2:31 remaining on a 68-yard touchdown to Pat Freiermuth. On second-and-20, Rodgers rolled left and found Freiermuth open downfield. The fifth-year tight end caught the ball at the Bengals 36 after getting separation from safety Geno Stone and scored his second touchdown.
Flacco led the Bengals (3-4) 52 yards in eight plays, including completions of 15 and 18 yards to Ja’Marr Chase to get Cincinnati into Pittsburgh territory. The 18-year veteran then found Tee Higgins for a 28-yard gain to the Steelers 5 with 1:39 remaining to put the Bengals well within McPherson’s range.
Chase had a franchise-record 16 receptions for 161 yards and a TD, making him the fourth receiver in NFL history with two games of at least 14 catches in a single season. Higgins finished with six catches for 96 yards and a score. Noah Fant also had a TD reception.
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Aaron Rodgers fumed at his teammate after he hit the deck as the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrated a touchdown
The Bengals scored on seven of their last eight possessions and won for the first time since Joe Burrow went down with a toe injury September 14. Jake Browning struggled in his three starts after Burrow’s injury, prompting the Bengals to acquire Flacco from their AFC North rival.
Chase Brown had 108 rushing yards on 11 carries, the second 100-yard game of his career.
Freiermuth had four catches for 106 yards for the Steelers. Jaylen Warren ran for 127 yards on 16 carries.
The Steelers are up next on October 26 as they host the Green Bay Packers, while the Bengals host the New York Jets on the same day.
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