CLEVELAND -- Cornerback DJ Turner II caught the first interception of his career on a richocet off a dropped pass with 1:24 left as the Bengals held on to beat the Browns, 17-16, in their opener at Huntington Bank Field.

Cleveland was driving with a chance to take the lead late in the fourth, but defending sack champion Trey Hendrickson dropped Browns quarterback Joe Flacco on third down in the red zone and rookie kicker Andre Szmyt missed a 36-yard field goal with 2:25 left.

In Al Golden's debut as Cincinnati's defensive coordinator, his unit held Cleveland to 296 yards before Flacco's last desperate drive. Offensively, the Bengals scored touchdowns on two of their first three possessions but were limited from there, as Joe Burrow finished the day 14 of 23 for 113 yards.

NOTES

Turner Secures Win With First Career INT

Cornerback DJ Turner II came through with the first interception of his NFL career late in the fourth quarter, as he picked off a Joe Flacco pass at the Cleveland 47-yard line to essentially seal the Bengals' win. The play came with 1:24 remaining and the Bengals holding onto a 17-16 lead.

Turner made his first appearance since suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in Week 11 of the 2024 campaign. Sunday marked his 19th career start.

Chase Brown Finishes 12-Play Opening March

Cincinnati received the opening kickoff and conducted a 12-play, 68-yard drive punctuated by a five-yard rushing touchdown from Chase Brown to take an early 7-0 lead. The Bengals ran the ball seven times during the drive and attempted five passes, with Burrow completing four of those for 38 yards.

The offense went three-for-three on third downs during the drive, with two of those being a third-and-one pickup by Brown to keep the chains moving. The other conversion was a seeing-eye dart from Burrow to receiver Tee Higgins for a 13-yard gain.

The possession marked the first time Cincinnati scored a touchdown on its opening drive of a season opener under Zac Taylor (2019-present). It also was the Bengals' longest touchdown drive at any point in a season opener since 2013, when Cincinnati went 12 plays in the third quarter at Chicago.

Burrow to Fant Puts Bengals Back in Front

Burrow drew in the Browns' defense on a play-action fake and hit tight end Noah Fant for a one-yard touchdown on third-and-goal to regain the lead for Cincinnati late in the second quarter. The score capped off an eight-play, 54-yard drive that was set up by receiver Charlie Jones' 23-yard punt return.

Fant has a receiving touchdown in each of his last two games played, as he also found the end zone in Week 18 of last season while playing for Seattle. Prior to last year's finale, however, his most recent touchdown came in Week 16 of the 2022 campaign (32-game drought).

Battle's Pick Sets Up Go-Ahead Field Goal

Safety Jordan Battle notched Cincinnati's first takeaway of the season late in the third quarter, when he came up with an impressive interception at the Cleveland 34-yard line. The pick set up Evan McPherson's first field goal of the year, a 35-yarder that regained the lead for the Bengals, 17-16.

The play marked Battle's third career interception, and all have come against the Browns. His first career pick was in Week 18 of his 2023 rookie campaign, then he followed up with his second in Week 16 of last year.

Battle also finished with 12 tackles, which marked a single-game career high for him and led all players on the afternoon.

Extra Points

· Right guard Lucas Patrick sustained a right calf injury in the second quarter, leading to Dalton Risner lining up at that spot for the remainder of the game. Risner joined the Bengals as a free agent on Aug. 28. Sunday marked his 88th career game played.

· All-Pro defensive end Trey Hendrickson notched his first sack of the 2025 campaign when he brought down Flacco for a six-yard loss in the third quarter. The sack pushed Cleveland into a second-and-16, and set up Jordan Battle's interception on the following play.

QUOTES

"I thought the defense did a great job rising up there on the last several possessions of the game. We weren't putting them in great spots, and they just rose up. They got two turnovers, so to be able to win the turnover battle the way that we did -- that's a key stat in winning Week 1. We knew there was going to be adversity. There's always adversity in Week 1. There's always adversity when we're on the road at Cleveland. It's never simple. So for our guys just to find a way to win it there at the end, I'm proud of them. The best outcome of this game was 1-0. Forget about the stats, forget about the score, forget about how it played out. The best outcome it could've been was 1-0." - Head Coach Zac Taylor, on the result and the defense's performance

"We found a way to win. We didn't win any of these games last year, and so usually when you can win a game like this, that's a recipe for success and means you're going to be a good team if you can find a lot of different ways to win. We did today." -- Quarterback Joe Burrow, on opening the season with a one-possession win

"I believe that 100 percent. We started fast every single day, and we started with competition. Starting practice early, getting on the field early. I think that helped us get that fast start today. We went down and scored on our first drive. I think the main thing going forward is being more efficient offensively. Converting those big third downs, and just being better overall. We left a lot of meat on the bone out there." - Halfback Chase Brown, on how training camp prepared the team for Week 1

"Good to see that, honestly. Worship my defense right now. I've been congratulating them since a minute and twenty seconds left on the clock. Nothing but praise to those guys. Can't say anything more than just a hell of a job today." - Wide Receiver Ja'Marr Chase, on the defense's performance

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