CINCINNATI — This time, near the very end of a mostly agonizing season, the Cincinnati Bengals made enough plays to win.
A familiar connection closed it out.
Joe Burrow threw his third touchdown pass to Tee Higgins with 1:07 left in overtime, and the Bengals kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a wild 30-24 win over the Denver Broncos on Saturday.
“This is one of the crazy ones I’ve been involved with in the NFL,” Burrow said. “It feels like we had a couple of those this year, and it’s nice to come out on top in one.”
After Denver’s second punt in overtime, Burrow completed a 31-yard pass to Higgins to the Denver 3, and then went back to the lanky receiver for the final play in Cincinnati’s fourth consecutive victory. Higgins finished with 11 receptions for 131 yards.
Cade York had a chance to win it for Cincinnati with about three minutes left in overtime, but his 33-yard field goal bounced off the left upright. Denver then went three-and-out, including a Bo Nix incompletion on third down, handing the ball right back to Burrow and the Bengals (8-8).
“Tough one to lose,” Denver coach Sean Payton said. “We had our opportunities. The will to compete and answer, it was pretty impressive. In the end, we didn’t make enough plays, and they did.”
It was the Bengals’ first win this season against a team with a winning record. They need another victory in their final game at Pittsburgh and some help from other teams to make it to the postseason for the first time since 2022.
“We know we can hang with anybody,” Burrow said. “We’ve proven that this year. We played everybody this year close. It’s just about making the plays down the stretch to win those games. Today we did. The last four weeks we have. We’ve got to continue to do it.”
The Broncos (9-7) would have secured an AFC wild card with a victory over the Bengals. They’ll have another opportunity to earn a postseason berth when they host Kansas City next weekend. A victory over the Chiefs also would eliminate the Bengals.
Burrow continued his stellar season, going 39 for 49 for 412 yards and three touchdowns, all to Higgins.
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