NFL

Arizona Cardinals at Cincinnati Bengals

· National Football League
1-0, 1-0 Away
Final
36 - 23
0-1, 0-1 Home

Cardinals beat Bengals 36-23 in preseason opener

The most encouraging sight for the Cincinnati Bengals in their preseason opener might have been quarterback Joe Burrow running warmup sprints with his teammates before the game.

The Bengals star, who had an appendectomy on July 27, is expected to be ready for the regular-season opener Sept. 11. He watched from the sideline with the rest of the starters from both teams in a predictably sloppy preseason opener won by the Arizona Cardinals 36-23.

Jonathan Ward, trying to win a spot in a crowded Arizona backfield, ran for a pair of 1-yard touchdowns in the second quarter.

Trace McSorley and Jarrett Guarantano, in competition to be the third-string quarterback, shared the snaps for the Cardinals. McSorley, who was signed midway through the 2021 season, threw for 163 yards and a touchdown to Andre Baccellia.

Guarantano, an undrafted free agent, was 7 for 10 for 54 yards and tossed a short touchdown pass to Jontre Kirklin.

“Any time you can play a clean game with substitutions, penalties, no turnovers, I thought that was what we wanted out of it," Arizona coach Kliff Kingsbury said. "Long way to go. A lot of stuff we’ve got to get better at.”

The highlight for the Bengals was a late 11-play, 94-yard drive directed by undrafted free agent quarterback Drew Plitt and punctuated by a 25-yard TD pass to Kendric Pryor.

The Bengals lost Brandon Allen, who backed up Burrow last season, early in the game with a concussion. That left third-stringer Jake Browning to direct Cincinnati the rest of the way, going 13 for 24 for 190 yards. Plitt, signed when Burrow had surgery last month, completed all six of his pass attempts for 76 yards.

It was a messy affair for the Bengals' rookies and back-ups. They were flagged for 11 penalties that cost them 104 yards. That included a 60-yard run by running back Chris Evans that was erased by a holding penalty. Cincinnati rushed for only 62 yards in the entire game.

“We all have a lot to learn from that first experience,” said Jackson Carman, a second-year offensive lineman competing to start at left guard. “There’s always stuff you have to learn.”

Keaontay Ingram also had a 1-yard touchdown run for Arizona (1-0).

Trent Taylor added four catches for 74 yards for Cincinnati. Jacques Patrick ran for a 1-yard TD in the fourth quarter.

MONEY MAC

Evan McPherson picked up where he left off in his terrific rookie season in 2021, booting field goals of 23, 58 and 56 yards for Cincinnati.

NEXT QB UP

Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray was out with a wrist injury and backup Colt McCoy has a sore arm, so McSorley and Guarantano both got ample opportunity to audition.

“It was good to get both those guys out there and getting them playing some meaningful snaps,” Kingsbury said.

INJURIES

Bengals: Allen went out after playing the first series. It's not clear how long he'll be out. ... TE Mitchell Wilcox left in the first quarter with an ankle injury and didn't return. ... CB Cam Taylor-Britt, a second-round draft pick in the spring, has a core muscle injury, but further details weren't provided.

Cardinals: Baccellia suffered an ankle injury in the first half and didn't return.

BATES STILL MISSING

Bengals S Jessie Bates III is still missing from training camp. Bates was frustrated with efforts to sign a long-term contract, and the team put the franchise tag on him for the season. If anyone has an indication when or if he'll report, they aren't saying.

“Whenever he gets here, he’ll be ready to go," coach Zac Taylor said Friday.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: Host Ravens on Aug. 21.

Bengals: At Giants on Aug. 21.

How can I watch Cardinals vs. Bengals?

  • TV Channel: Cardinals at Bengals 2021-22 NFL, week 2 is broadcasted nationally on .
  • Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.
    In Canada, viewers can watch Cardinals vs. Bengals on DAZN.

Scoring Summary

ARI TD 1st Period 11:08 Andre Baccellia 4 Yd pass from Trace McSorley
ARI FG 1st Period 1:48 Matt Prater 27 Yd Field Goal
CIN FG 2nd Period 13:37 Evan McPherson 23 Yd Field Goal
CIN FG 2nd Period 9:49 Evan McPherson 58 Yd Field Goal
ARI TD 2nd Period 6:33 Jonathan Ward 1 Yd Run (Matt Prater Kick)
CIN FG 2nd Period 3:58 Evan McPherson 56 Yd Field Goal
ARI TD 2nd Period 1:29 Jonathan Ward 1 Yd Run (Matt Prater Kick)
ARI TD 3rd Period 10:50 Jontre Kirklin 5 Yd pass from Jarrett Guarantano
ARI TD 3rd Period 2:40 Keaontay Ingram 1 Yd Run (Matt Prater Kick)
CIN TD 4th Period 7:33 Jacques Patrick 1 Yd Run (Evan McPherson Kick)
CIN TD 4th Period 1:14 Kendric Pryor 25 Yd pass from Drew Plitt (Evan McPherson Kick)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/ari.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originARI https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/cin.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originCIN
23 1st Downs 16
11 Passing 1st downs 11
9 Rushing 1st downs 4
3 1st downs from penalties 1
6-11 3rd down efficiency 8-16
0-0 4th down efficiency 0-0
63 Total Plays 64
310 Total Yards 339
4.9 Yards per Play 5.3
12 Total Drives 11
198 Passing 277
20-32 Comp-Att 22-33
5.7 Yards per pass 7.7
0 Interceptions thrown 0
3-19 Sacks-Yards Lost 3-18
112 Rushing 62
28 Rushing Attempts 28
4.0 Yards per rush 2.2
5-6 Red Zone (Made-Att) 1-2
2-20 Penalties 11-104
0 Turnovers 1
0 Fumbles lost 1
0 Interceptions thrown 0
0 Defensive / Special Teams TDs 0
27:47 Possession 32:13

Game Information

Paycor Stadium

Location: Cincinnati, OH
Attendance: 60,760 · Capacity:

2023 NFC West Standings

TEAM W L PCT T PF PA
San Francisco 12 5 .706 0 491 298
Los Angeles 10 7 .588 0 404 377
Seattle 9 8 .529 0 364 402
Arizona 4 13 .235 0 330 455

2023 AFC North Standings

TEAM W L PCT T PF PA
Baltimore 13 4 .765 0 483 280
Cleveland 11 6 .647 0 396 362
Pittsburgh 10 7 .588 0 304 324
Cincinnati 9 8 .529 0 366 384
Full Standings

NFL News

Michael Penix Jr. says he answered a lot of questions at UW pro day

Michael Penix Jr. says he answered a lot of questions at UW pro day

Michael Penix Jr. talks about his performance at Washington's pro day.

Washington's Michael Penix Jr. shows off speed at pro day

Washington's Michael Penix Jr. shows off speed at pro day

Washington's Michael Penix Jr. ran a sub-4.6 second 40-yard dash in front of more than 100 NFL representatives at his pro day Thursday.

See why Washington WR Rome Odunze has NFL scouts excited

See why Washington WR Rome Odunze has NFL scouts excited

Check out the top moments from Rome Odunze during his dominant career at Washington.

Jets owner calls report on argument with Saleh 'absolutely false'

Jets owner calls report on argument with Saleh 'absolutely false'

Jets owner Woody Johnson used social media Thursday to rebut a claim by an NFL Network host that he and coach Robert Saleh engaged in a "very heated conversation" earlier this week.