1:00 PM ET, September 21, 2014
Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, OH
Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, OH
Associated Press
Game Balls: Bengals vs. Titans
Why not? The way things are going for the Bengals, even the most risky play turns out right.
And yes, that includes the Bengals quarterback trying to emulate Pro Bowl receiver A.J. Green.
More from ESPN.com
Andy
Dalton's touchdown reception from Mohamed Sanu provided another example
of the unpredictability Hue Jackson brings to the Bengals' offense,
Coley Harvey writes. Story
The
Titans are still trying to find out if Jake Locker is a reliable
starting quarterback. On Sunday he failed to answer that question on the
field with his play or in the locker room with the media, writes Paul
Kuharsky. StoryAnd feeling pretty good, too.
"I was joking with the guys all week: Who's going to catch the first TD pass, me or one of the other guys?" said Dalton, who caught one pass at TCU. "In practice, that (defender) wasn't out there. I thought I was going to get hit."
Nope.
Cornerback Blidi Wreh-Wilson missed -- missed the chance for the interception, missed the chance to deck the quarterback, who slipped off him and went 18 yards for the touchdown, diving just inside the pylon.
There was a lot more to it than just the Dalton-turned-receiver trickery. The defense nearly pitched a shutout.
And sloppy Tennessee (1-2) helped out a lot, too, doing just about everything wrong a few hours after getting some very sad news about a former player.
A few hours before kickoff, the Titans learned that kicker Rob Bironas had died overnight in a one-car crash in Nashville. He'd been released in March after his ninth season with Tennessee.
SportsNation: NFL Week 3
Which of the NFL's 3-0 teams is most for real? Which 1-2 team has been the biggest disappointment? Vote! »The Bengals (3-0) are off to their best start in eight years. They got a lot of big plays, a few breaks and plenty of help.
The Titans committed a safety for holding in the end zone on a punt, missed those two field goal attempts, snapped the ball before Jake Locker was ready in shotgun formation, and whiffed on the game's defining play.
On the final play of the first quarter, Dalton flipped the ball to receiver Mohamed Sanu, who ran to his right while the quarterback sneaked toward the other side of the field. Sanu stopped and threw a cross-field pass that hung in the air.
Wreh-Wilson misplayed it, bumping Dalton as he ran past. Dalton became the first NFL quarterback to score on a catch since Kansas City's Tyler Thigpen in 2008.
"I saw the guy and said, `Oh, God," Sanu said. "But (Dalton) went up and made the play. I was scared for a moment."
Even more stunning: The Titans were prepared for the play, having practiced for it during the week.
Dalton's threw his first interception -- Cincinnati's first turnover of the season -- with 44 seconds left before halftime. But Locker forced a throw into coverage in the end zone for an off-setting interception that left the Bengals with a 19-0 halftime lead.
The Bengals didn't have to do much in the second half other than let their defense finish it off. Dalton was 15 of 23 for 169 yards and wasn't sacked for the third straight game.
Green, who missed most of the last game with an injured big right toe, started and had six catches for 102 yards. He also drew a pair of pass interference penalties from Wreh-Wilson.
Giovani Bernard had a pair of 1-yard touchdown runs. His dive with 1:58 left in the third quarter completed a 14-play, 80-yard drive that lasted 7 minutes, 18 seconds and finished off Tennessee.
The Titans repeatedly undercut drives with penalties. Locker was 17 of 34 for 185 yards with two interceptions, two sacks and a passer rating of 41.9. Succop missed field goal attempts of 40 and 44 yards in the first half, helping Cincinnati take control.
The Titans ended the shutout on Shonn Greene's 1-yard touchdown run with 6:09 to go.
Game notes
Quentin Groves was called for holding Cedric Peerman in the end zone on the punt, resulting in a safety. ... The Bengals set a club record with their 11th straight regular season win at home. They lost at Paul Brown Stadium in the playoffs last season. ... Dalton became the fifth Bengals QB to catch a pass, joining Akili Smith, Ryan Fitzpatrick, David Klingler and Sam Wyche. ... Pro Bowl LB Vontaze Burfict was inactive because of two concussions in two weeks.
Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press
Photo Wire
CINCINNATI, OH - SEPTEMBER 21: Andy Dalton #14 of the Cincinnati Bengals walks off of the field after warming up...
(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Team Stat Comparison
TEN
|
CIN
| |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Downs | 22 | 25 |
Passing 1st downs
| 7 | 10 |
Rushing 1st downs
| 11 | 11 |
1st downs from penalties
| 4 | 4 |
3rd down efficiency
| 2-12 | 3-9 |
4th down efficiency
| 1-2 | 0-1 |
| Total Plays | 64 | 57 |
| Total Yards | 326 | 300 |
| Yards per play | 5.1 | 5.3 |
| Total Drives | 12 | 12 |
| Passing | 177 | 184 |
Comp-Att
| 17-34 | 17-26 |
Yards per pass
| 4.9 | 7.1 |
Interceptions thrown
| 2 | 1 |
Sacks-Yards Lost
| 2-8 | 0-0 |
| Rushing | 149 | 116 |
Rushing Attempts
| 28 | 31 |
Yards per rush
| 5.3 | 3.7 |
| Red Zone (Made-Att) | 1-2 | 4-5 |
| Penalties | 11-99 | 7-50 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
Fumbles lost
| 0 | 0 |
Interceptions thrown
| 2 | 1 |
| Defensive / Special Teams TDs | 0 | 0 |
| Possession | 31:16 | 28:44 |
Scoring Summary
| FIRST QUARTER | TEN | CIN | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | FG | 4:48 | Mike Nugent 29 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 9 plays, 59 yds, 4:03
| 0 | 3 |
| TD | 0:00 | Andy Dalton 18 Yd pass from Mohamed Sanu (Mike Nugent Kick)
Drive info: 5 plays, 73 yds, 2:35
| 0 | 10 |
| SECOND QUARTER | TEN | CIN | |||
| SF | 6:25 | Penalty on Quentin Groves enforced in end zone for a safety
Drive info: 3 plays, -2 yds, 2:07
| 0 | 12 |
| TD | 3:29 | Giovani Bernard 1 Yd Run (Mike Nugent Kick)
Drive info: 1 plays, 17 yds, 0:09
| 0 | 19 |
| THIRD QUARTER | TEN | CIN | |||
| TD | 1:58 | Giovani Bernard 1 Yd Run (Mike Nugent Kick)
Drive info: 14 plays, 80 yds, 7:18
| 0 | 26 |
| FOURTH QUARTER | TEN | CIN | |||
| TD | 9:26 | Jeremy Hill 4 Yd Run (Mike Nugent Kick)
Drive info: 8 plays, 76 yds, 4:07
| 0 | 33 |
 | TD | 6:09 | Shonn Greene 1 Yd Run (Ryan Succop Kick)
Drive info: 6 plays, 80 yds, 3:17
| 7 | 33 |
Research Notes
Jake Locker
was 6-of-20 for 98 yards and two interceptions on throws deeper than 5
yards downfield. Locker fell well below the 54.1 percent league average
on those throws, as the Bengals defense picked up right where they left
off last year. Cincinnati's defense held opponents to a 46.7 completion
percentage on those throws last year, second best in the league (Bills,
46.5 percent).
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