The Bengals take back the AFC Central
With the Pittsburgh Steelers losing on Saturday, the Cincinnati Bengals took full advantage and beat the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, 44-28, to take back the AFC Central lead with a game remaining in the regular season.
The Bengals exploded on offense racking up 44 points and 517 total yards against the stout Cowboy defense. The Bengals rushed for 182 yards and Boomer Esiason threw for 343 yards in the victory. Esiason tossed two touchdowns including a 75-yard bomb to WR Darnay Scott to give the Bengals a 28-20 lead in the second quarter.
The Bengals got 113 yards rushing from RB Corey Dillon on the day and he scored. In fact, the Bengals rushed for four touchdowns on the day. Ki’Jana Carter rushed for 70 yards with a TD.
As for the Cowboys, they just couldn’t match the firepower of the Bengals. QB Troy Aikman threw for 216 yards on 27 of 45 passing. RB Emmit Smith rushed for 110 yards on 12 carries with three touchdowns.
The Bengals and the Steelers are tied for the division lead at 10-5 records; however, the Bengals own the tiebreaker beating the Steelers twice this season. The Bengals will hope to secure the division championship when they host the Baltimore Colts. The Steelers will travel to Tennessee.
The Cowboys (7-7) have now been eliminated from the playoffs. They will end their season at home Sunday afternoon against the New York Giants.