Week 2 | September 14, 2025 | Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati | Attendance: 65,871 | CBS
Jake Browning had three interceptions on the board. Joe Burrow was somewhere in the locker room on crutches with a boot on his left foot. The Bengals were backed up at their own 8-yard line, trailing 27-24, with 3:42 left on the clock.
Fifteen plays, 92 yards, and 18 seconds of remaining time later — Browning lunged over the goal line. Cincinnati 31, Jacksonville 27.
The Bengals are 2-0 for the first time since 2018. They’ll be doing it, for the foreseeable future, without Joe Burrow. He underwent surgery for a Grade 3 turf toe injury on his left foot after leaving the game in the second quarter and was placed on injured reserve — estimated return: roughly 10 weeks.
Table of Contents
First Half: Jacksonville in Control
The Jaguars opened clean. Trevor Lawrence hit Dyami Brown on a 9-yard touchdown nine minutes into the first quarter, capping a 9-play, 69-yard opening drive. The Bengals answered — Burrow ran 11 plays, 80 yards, and finished it with a 4-yard slant to Ja’Marr Chase. Tied at 7 heading to the second quarter.
Then Arik Armstead got to Burrow. A sack on second-and-20 with 9:02 left in Q2 — Armstead’s second of the afternoon on the Bengals quarterback — left Burrow on the turf. He walked to the sideline, eventually walked to the locker room, and never came back. Lawrence added a Bhayshul Tuten touchdown pass for 14-7, Evan McPherson hit a 31-yard field goal, and Cam Little answered with a 42-yarder. Jacksonville led 17-10 at halftime.
Cincinnati coach Zac Taylor had nothing on Burrow’s condition post-game.
Second Half: Browning Keeps the Bengals Breathing
Browning’s takeover was messy — three interceptions across the afternoon — but he kept putting points on the board when it mattered.
On the opening drive of Q3, receiver Mitchell Tinsley made a one-handed grab in the back of the end zone over Jarrian Jones for a 13-yard score. It was Tinsley’s first career reception and first career touchdown. Tied at 17.
Three plays later on the same drive, Browning found Tee Higgins streaking past Tyson Campbell on 3rd-and-5. Campbell and safety Andrew Wingard collided at the 11-yard line. Higgins walked in untouched. 24-24.
Jacksonville wasn’t done. Lawrence connected with Travis Etienne Jr. on an 11-yard score in Q3 to go up 24-17 — then Cam Little’s 25-yard field goal with 11:43 remaining in the fourth pushed it to 27-24. That held until the Bengals got the ball back with 3:42 left.
The Drive That Won It
“I had thrown three picks, and somehow we had a chance to win the game. I can’t be afraid of the fourth in that situation. The defense did a good job forcing a turnover on downs, so I had to be delusional and aggressive, because the moment called for it.” — Jake Browning
Starting at their own 8, Browning completed 9 of 12 passes for 65 yards on the drive. Two fourth-down conversions kept it alive — a 13-yard flare to Chase Brown on 4th-and-3, and a pass interference penalty on rookie Travis Hunter on 4th-and-5 that moved the ball from the Cincinnati 33 to the Jacksonville 42. Browning punched it in from the 1 with 18 seconds left. McPherson’s extra point made it final.
Ja’Marr Chase’s 14-catch, 165-yard performance — alongside hitting 400 career receptions in Q1 — was the engine of the offense all afternoon.
Jacksonville Jaguars vs Cincinnati Bengals: Full Box Score
Passing
| Player | Team | CMP | ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | SACKS | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevor Lawrence | JAX | 24 | 42 | 271 | 6.5 | 3 | 2 | 1-10 | 80.6 |
| Jake Browning | CIN | 21 | 32 | 241 | 7.5 | 2 | 3 | 1-7 | 69.9 |
| Joe Burrow | CIN | 7 | 13 | 76 | 5.8 | 1 | 0 | 2-8 | 97.0 |
Rushing
| Player | Team | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travis Etienne Jr. | JAX | 14 | 71 | 5.1 | 0 | 30 |
| Bhayshul Tuten | JAX | 8 | 42 | 5.3 | 0 | 9 |
| LeQuint Allen Jr. | JAX | 2 | 13 | 6.5 | 0 | 9 |
| Dyami Brown | JAX | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | 9 |
| Trevor Lawrence | JAX | 2 | 4 | 2.0 | 0 | 3 |
| Chase Brown | CIN | 16 | 47 | 2.9 | 0 | 11 |
| Jake Browning | CIN | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 |
Receiving
| Player | Team | REC | TGT | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ja’Marr Chase | CIN | 14 | 16 | 165 | 11.8 | 1 | 25 |
| Parker Washington | JAX | 5 | 5 | 76 | 15.2 | 0 | 40 |
| Dyami Brown | JAX | 5 | 7 | 57 | 11.4 | 1 | 18 |
| Tee Higgins | CIN | 3 | 8 | 56 | 18.7 | 1 | 42 |
| Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX | 4 | 12 | 49 | 12.3 | 0 | 18 |
| Bhayshul Tuten | JAX | 2 | 2 | 32 | 16.0 | 1 | 24 |
| Travis Hunter | JAX | 3 | 6 | 22 | 7.3 | 0 | 9 |
| Travis Etienne Jr. | JAX | 2 | 3 | 18 | 9.0 | 1 | 11 |
| Brenton Strange | JAX | 3 | 5 | 17 | 5.7 | 0 | 10 |
| Noah Fant | CIN | 3 | 4 | 28 | 9.3 | 0 | 25 |
| Mike Gesicki | CIN | 3 | 4 | 18 | 6.0 | 0 | 10 |
| Chase Brown | CIN | 2 | 3 | 18 | 9.0 | 0 | 13 |
| Mitchell Tinsley | CIN | 1 | 1 | 13 | 13.0 | 1 | 13 |
| Andrei Iosivas | CIN | 1 | 5 | 12 | 12.0 | 0 | 12 |
| Drew Sample | CIN | 1 | 2 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 7 |
| Tim Patrick | JAX | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | — |
Defense — Key Stats
| Player | Team | TOT | SOLO | SACKS | TFL | PD | INT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geno Stone | CIN | 9 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dax Hill | CIN | 9 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Logan Wilson | CIN | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Jourdan Lewis | JAX | 8 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Eric Murray | JAX | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Foyesade Oluokun | JAX | 7 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Demetrius Knight Jr. | CIN | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Josh Hines-Allen | JAX | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Travon Walker | JAX | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Trey Hendrickson | CIN | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Arik Armstead | JAX | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jordan Battle | CIN | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Cam Taylor-Britt | CIN | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Interceptions
| Player | Team | INT | RET YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Wingard | JAX | 1 | 39 | 0 |
| Devin Lloyd | JAX | 1 | 22 | 0 |
| Eric Murray | JAX | 1 | 12 | 0 |
| Jordan Battle | CIN | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Dax Hill | CIN | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
| Player | Team | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evan McPherson | CIN | 1/1 | 100% | 31 | 4/4 | 7 |
| Cam Little | JAX | 2/2 | 100% | 42 | 3/3 | 9 |
Punting
| Player | Team | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | IN 20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Rehkow | CIN | 3 | 166 | 55.3 | 63 | 2 |
| Logan Cooke | JAX | 2 | 95 | 47.5 | 60 | 1 |
Kick & Punt Returns
| Player | Team | TYPE | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samaje Perine | CIN | KR | 6 | 154 | 25.7 | 37 |
| Parker Washington | JAX | KR | 3 | 75 | 25.0 | 32 |
| Bhayshul Tuten | JAX | KR | 1 | 26 | 26.0 | 26 |
| Charlie Jones | CIN | PR | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 11 |
| Parker Washington | JAX | PR | 2 | 19 | 9.5 | 15 |
Team Stats Comparison
| Category | Jacksonville | Cincinnati |
|---|---|---|
| Total Yards | 400 | 350 |
| Rushing Yards | 139 | 48 |
| Passing Yards (net) | 261 | 302 |
| Total Plays | 71 | 65 |
| Yards Per Play | 5.7 | 5.4 |
| 1st Downs | 21 | 24 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 3 |
| Penalties | 6 for 55 yds | 3 for 29 yds |
| 3rd Down | 6/13 (46%) | 6/14 (43%) |
| 4th Down | 0/1 | 1/5 (20%) |
| Red Zone (Made/Att) | 3/6 (50%) | 3/4 (75%) |
| Time of Possession | 33:11 | 26:49 |
| Sacks Allowed | 1 | 3 |
Jacksonville ran for 91 more yards, controlled possession by over six minutes, and gained 50 more total yards. They still lost. The red zone was where it came apart — the Jaguars left two scoring opportunities on the field that Cincinnati did not.
Scoring Summary
| QTR | TIME | SCORE | PLAY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 10:51 | JAX 7-0 | Dyami Brown 9-yd pass from Lawrence (Little kick) |
| Q1 | 0:07 | JAX 7-7 | Ja’Marr Chase 4-yd pass from Burrow (McPherson kick) |
| Q2 | 10:54 | JAX 14-7 | Bhayshul Tuten 8-yd pass from Lawrence (Little kick) |
| Q2 | 3:28 | JAX 14-10 | McPherson 31-yd FG |
| Q2 | 1:35 | JAX 17-10 | Little 42-yd FG |
| Q3 | 11:05 | JAX 17-17 | Mitchell Tinsley 13-yd pass from Browning (McPherson kick) |
| Q3 | 4:08 | JAX 24-17 | Travis Etienne Jr. 11-yd pass from Lawrence (Little kick) |
| Q3 | 2:39 | JAX 24-24 | Tee Higgins 42-yd pass from Browning (McPherson kick) |
| Q4 | 11:43 | JAX 27-24 | Little 25-yd FG |
| Q4 | 0:18 | CIN 31-27 | Browning 1-yd rush (McPherson kick) — FINAL |
What Lawrence Said, What It Tells You About the Jaguars
Lawrence threw three touchdowns but gave the ball away twice. His line looks fine. His interceptions cost Jacksonville the game.
“I think overall, we showed we can make plays. Just the consistency piece is lacking at times. Not shooting ourselves in the foot — that’s still showing up. It’s something we have to correct.” — Trevor Lawrence
First-year head coach Liam Coen defended his late fourth-down calls aggressively. His defense on the pivotal 4th-and-5 that Hunter fouled on: “That’s 100 percent a ‘Go.'” The Jaguars had the better team on the field Sunday — on paper and on the scoreboard through most of the afternoon. They went home 1-1.
The Bigger Picture
Cincinnati’s next five games are all against teams that made the playoffs the prior season. The Bengals will go into that stretch with Jake Browning as the starter, Joe Burrow on injured reserve, and a 2-0 record that nobody expected to see after Week 2.
The Bengals won a game they had very little business winning. Three turnovers, outrushed nearly 3-to-1, outgained by 50 yards. Browning threw three interceptions and scored the winning touchdown. Chase had 14 catches for 165 yards and made it look routine.
The Jacksonville Jaguars vs Cincinnati Bengals final scoreline was 31-27. But the number that mattered most was a different one entirely: the eight weeks Joe Burrow spent away from a football field.
September 14, 2025 | Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati, OH Officials: Referee Alan Eck | Line Judge Greg Bradley | Field Judge John Jenkins
