CINCINNATI, Ohio — The first match back in Cincinnati for the Bills since safety Damar Hamlin's on-field collapse went down to the wire during Sunday Night Football.
It was a back-and-forth game to start things off but picked up in favor of the Bengals. The Bills defense even seemed like they could pull one off, with multiple starters still dealing with injuries and new additions just being made to the roster this week ahead of the trade deadline.
Things would eventually catch up to Buffalo though, as they dropped this one with a final score of 24-18.
Allen finished the game with 26 completions on 38 attempts, earning himself 258 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and an 85.2 overall rating on the night.
With 8:08 remaining in the fourth quarter, tight end Dalton Kincaid redeemed himself by helping the offense march quickly downfield, setting up wide receiver Stefon Diggs for a 17-yard touchdown. Diggs also completed the two-point conversion putting Buffalo behind 24-18 Bengals.
Moving into the final quarter of regulation now, the Bills were desperately trying to crawl back within one score. On their eighth drive, a pass to Kincaid was punched out, forcing him to fumble the ball and ultimately leading to the Bengal's last scoring play of the game.
This would end up being the only score of the third quarter, despite both teams getting quality opportunities.
Things were looking up so far at the start of the second half for Buffalo. Allen targeted Diggs twice to start the drive, and Tyler Bass quickly converted the field goal to get the Bills back on the board, trailing 21-10.
The final score of the half comes as Bengals tight end Drew Sample squeezes through from just outside the red zone. With 1:37 to go in the second, the Bills trailed 21-7.
Buffalo got the ball back after the penalty but was unable to advance downfield and punted it from their end zone.
The turnover almost led to a Bengals field goal, but a false start negated the attempt.
Going into the second quarter, Buffalo couldn't complete their second drive. The Bengals would also have no luck on their next drive but were gifted the ball almost immediately after turning it over on downs. Allen threw an interception, which was originally intended for Gabe Davis but was picked off by Cam Taylor-Britt.
Cincinnati ends up grabbing two more touchdowns after Allen's rushing score. After drawing a roughing the passer penalty, Burrow eventually found Joe Mixon with 35 seconds remaining in the first for a 2-yard score.
Allen took no time to respond, as he and the Bills answered right back with a seven-play, 85-yard touchdown drive of their own. Diggs broke through a tackle to pick up 34 yards and eventually set up Allen, who ran it in for a 2-yard rushing score, faking a pass to a receiver and deking out the Cincinnati defense. The Bills QB did end up taking a taunting penalty after this play due to pointing his finger as he ran the ball in for the score.
Buffalo started very slowly defensively as they allowed the Bengals to march right down the field on the opening drive. A 75-yard, nine-play drive led to tight end Irv Smith Jr. scoring the first touchdown of the game.