Buffalo Bills vs. Cincinnati Bengals Live In-Game Updates, Highlights: Bills Trail 24-18

The Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals will face off in the AFC's game of the week as both teams jostle for playoff position. Can either team prove to be a Super Bowl contender?

In a season with some brutal offensive showings on Sunday Night Football, Week 9 should give fans the fireworks they deserve. The stakes won’t get much higher, either.

The Buffalo Bills (5-3) will visit the Cincinnati Bengals (4-3) on Sunday, in a game with massive playoff implications. According to Sumer Sports, Cincinnati’s playoff odds could improve to 66.6 percent with a win or deflate to 44.4 percent. In a tight AFC North, it’s easy to see why.

Buffalo, on the other hand, could all but lock in a playoff spot with a win—a 6-3 record would be good for an 80.5 percent chance of mid-January football. A loss would toss the Bills back into the traffic jam of fringe AFC playoff teams.

Allen and receiver Stefon Diggs must show up on Sunday / ClutchPoints

The Bengals struggled during the first third of the season due to a calf injury to quarterback Joe Burrow. Last week’s 31-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, however, should give fans confidence that Burrow is healthy and back to elite form.

That could spell trouble for Buffalo. In the Divisional Round last season, Cincinnati escaped with a 27-10 win in snowy conditions. Now, they’ll be facing a virtually identical offense without defensive stars linebacker Matt Milano, tackle DaQuan Jones, and corner Tre’Davious White.

General manager Brandon Beane called in the reinforcements this week, trading for defensive back Rasul Douglas and signing lineman Linval Joseph. How soon they are able to help the defense could decide how Sunday plays out.

Without snowy weather or lingering injuries to hold the Bengals back, Sunday night could very well result in a shootout. After a convincing Thursday Night Football win in Week 8, quarterback Josh Allen needs to keep the hot streak going. If either MVP-caliber passer doesn’t live up to expectations, they’ll put their team at a serious disadvantage.

Expect each team’s stars to show out on Sunday night.

WHAT: Buffalo Bills (5-3) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-3)

WHERE: Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio (65,515)

WHEN: Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023, 8:20 p.m. (ET)

TELEVISION: NBC

RADIO: WGR 550

ODDS: Bills +2.5 (-118), +115 Moneyline, Total: 50.5 (o -110/u -110)

Live updates will appear after kickoff.

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FIRST QUARTER

Bengals First Drive: Cincinnati received the opening kickoff.

Running back Joe Mixon got things started with a quick flat route for eight yards and caught a screen pass on the next play for 15 yards.

Forced out of structure, Burrow was able to find receiver Tee Higgins for a chunk gain. He then hit tight end Irv Smith Jr. to give the Bengals a goal-to-go situation.

On the next play, he went back to Smith for a score.

The Bills trail 7-0 with 9:18 remaining in the first quarter.

Bills First Drive: Tight end Dalton Kincaid was the recipient of Allen's first pass.

After moving the chains on third down, receiver Stefon Diggs used a broken tackle to propel himself into a big play after the catch. 

Allen made a play out of structure of his own, hitting receiver Khalil Shakir for 22 yards and then finding Kincaid again for 13. 

Allen found himself in the end zone for a scrambling score, though he was called for a taunting penalty.

The Bills tied the game, 7-7, with 6:03 remaining in the first quarter.

Bengals Second Drive: Cornerback Dane Jackson made a nice play on a pass to receiver Ja'Marr Chase, but defensive tackle Tim Settle committed a roughing-the-passer penalty.

On third-and-10, Burrow dropped an immaculate pass into receiver Tyler Boyd's arms for a first down. He hit Higgins soon after, but he stepped out of bounds just before he extended for the pylon. 

Mixon found his way into the end zone to regain the lead.

The Bills trail 14-7 with 35 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Bills Second Drive: Running back James Cook bounced around at the line of scrimmage before finding a couple of yards to start the drive.

The Bills trail 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.

SECOND QUARTER

A defensive pass interference call quickly gave Buffalo's drive a boost. However, the drive was unable to continue past the next set of downs. Buffalo elected to punt.

Bengals Third Drive: Higgins caught a pass on a curl route to start the drive. After Chase lost two yards, Mixon granted the Bengals a new set of downs.

Despite it only being fourth-and-2 near midfield, Cincinnati punted the ball back to the Bills.

Bills Third Drive: Allen aired one out on first down to no avail.

He was intercepted on his next pass, targeting receiver Gabe Davis.

Bengals Fourth Drive: Defensive tackle Linval Joseph took Burrow for a ride on an attempted sneak. Burrow ran for a first down, but holding on lineman Alex Cappa negated the gain. 

The drive quickly came to a close, culminating in a 55-yard field goal attempt, though a false start took it off the board. The Bengals decided to punt.

Bills Fourth Drive: After two Cook rushes, Allen took a sack on third-and-2. The Bills would punt from their own end zone, giving Cincinnati the ball in Buffalo territory.

Bengals Fifth Drive: Burrow's first throw of the drive was incomplete. He seems to be dealing with a finger injury.

A vertical shot to Chase fell incomplete. On third-and-10, a Boyd reception made the fourth-down call easier. With a yard to gain, Chase was hit to move the chains.

Tight end Drew Sample scampered into the end zone for a touchdown from just outside the red zone.

The Bills trail 21-7 with 1:37 remaining in the first half.

Bills Fifth Drive: Allen hit Shakir for an explosive play right out of the gate. Kincaid racked up three consecutive catches but was limping a bit  -- something to watch in the second half.

A miscommunication would result in an intentional grounding call. Frankly, it was a questionable call. Regardless, they were forced to punt, but the half came to a close before the snap.

The Bills trail 21-7 at halftime.

HALFTIME

THIRD QUARTER

Bills Sixth Drive: Buffalo received the second-half kickoff. 

Diggs was a priority to start the half, targeted twice to start the drive. 

Kincaid dove for a first down, adding to his impressive day. Allen just missed Davis, leading to a Tyler Bass attempt.

The Bills trail 21-10 with 10:21 remaining in the third quarter.

Bengals Sixth Drive: Mixon started off the drive with a three-yard rush and a similarly productive catch. Burrow then scrambled for a first down. 

Higgins made a nice play after the catch to get them to Cincinnati's 43-yard line. The Bengals wouldn't get any farther.

Bills Seventh Drive: Buffalo swiftly returned the ball to the Bengals after a three-and-out.

Bengals Seventh Drive: Burrow hit Higgins again on the right side of the field for a first down.

On the next set of downs, they would choose to go for it on fourth down, but Buffalo's defense stood tall.

Bills Eighth Drive: Allen began the drive with a chain-moving run.

Kincaid caught a 12-yard pass on the next play. The final play of the third quarter was a run for a first down.

The Bills trail 21-10 at the end of the third quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER

An extended flea-flicker did not trick the Cincinnati defense. A few plays later, Kincaid got a little overzealous, fumbling after getting flipped by a defender. The Bengals recovered.

Bengals Eighth Drive: Tight end Tanner Hudson moved the chains with a big catch on third down.

A honey-hole shot to Chase then gained 32 yards.

The Bengals have decided to be aggressive with their time-out usage, using their final pause with 10:19 remaining. Immediately after, Burrow hit Higgins to set up a goal-to-go situation.

They wouldn't reach the end zone, keeping Buffalo in the game.

The Bills trail 24-10 with 8:08 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Bills Ninth Drive: Kincaid made his 10th catch of the game to begin the drive. An evasive maneuver from Allen then earned a first down.

He would scramble again, his eighth time, for another set of downs. An incorrect challenge would waste the Bills' second time out.

On third-and-1, Allen hit Diggs for a crucial touchdown. On the ensuing two-point conversion, Diggs got both feet in bounds.

The Bills trail 24-18 with 3:32 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Bengals Ninth Drive: Boyd got the drive started with a huge 32-yard reception.

Buffalo took its final timeout with 2:37 remaining.

Mixon broke a tackle and scampered his way across the virtual yellow line to lock in a Bengals victory.

The Bills lost to the Bengals, 24-18, to fall to 5-4.