CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow embraced NFL Hall-of-Famer Joe Montana before the game and went out and performed like him on Sunday afternoon.
Burrow completed 28 of 32 passes for 286 yards and three touchdowns as the Bengals beat the San Francisco 49ers, 31-17, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
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The Bengals never trailed the 49ers on Sunday.
They forced a three-and-out to start the game and capped an 85-yard drive with a seven-yard touchdown catch by Tyler Boyd to take a 7-0 lead.
Christian McCaffrey’s two-yard touchdown run tied the game at 7-7 to tie an NFL record with a touchdown in his 17th straight game, including the playoffs, tying the record set by Lenny Moore in 1963-64.
Trayveon Williams’ 41-yard kickoff return gave Cincinnati great field position. Burrow found rookie wide receiver Andrei Iosivas for a touchdown to reclaim the advantage, 14-7, after one quarter.
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Jake Moody’s 36-yard field goal cut it 14-10 with 2:44 left until halftime. The Bengals drove to the 49ers’ three-yard line but Irv Smith, Junior’s fumble ended the drive and the half ended with Cincinnati leading, 14-10.
Evan McPherson nailed a 56-yard field goal to open the third quarter to extend the lead to 17-10. San Francisco was looking to tie the game late in the third quarter, but Germaine Pratt tipped Brock Purdy’s pass with one hand and caught it with another to keep Cincinnati ahead, 17-10, after three quarters.
Logan Wilson intercepted Purdy early in the fourth quarter for his 10th career interception. On the next play, Burrow found Ja’Marr Chase for a touchdown to expand the lead to 24-10.
San Francisco responded as Purdy found McCaffrey for a four-yard touchdown pass to cut it to 24-17. But Joe Mixon’s five-yard touchdown run extended the lead back to 14 points, 31-17.
Trey Hendrickson sealed the win with a strip sack and fumble recovery with less than two minutes to play.
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Chase led the Bengals with 10 catches for 100 yards and a touchdown. Joe Mixon rushed for 87 yards and a score. Burrow also ran for 43 yards.
Cincinnati is in a three-way tie with Pittsburgh and Cleveland for second place in the AFC North trailing Baltimore by 1.5 games.
The Bengals host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday Night, November 5, at Paycor Stadium.
Kickoff will be at 8:20 p.m.
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