Bengals News (11/7): Just what Cincinnati needed

Joe Mixon's Record Day Opens Up Bengals Offense
If the impeccable impromptu timing of Sunday's celebrations are any indication, from Joe Burrow's Inquiring Photographer to the defense's homage to "Remember the Titans," the Bengals look to be in step and choreographing another playoff run. On one of summer's last-gasp-70-degree days in front of the fourth largest crowd in Paycor Stadium history, Burrow hoped the 66,160 had seen their winter's breath because when they return from the bye in two weeks it's for a Thanksgiving Week Sunday nighter in Pittsburgh.

Bengals Notes From Win Over Panthers: Joe Mixon, Jessie Bates III
And that's just what Bengals running back Joe Mixon did after he scored his fifth touchdown Sunday in the 42-21 win over the Panthers at Paycor Stadium. After freezing cornerback Jaycee Horn when he jumped cut to the left edge on his 14-yard touchdown run on the first series of the third quarter, Mixon stood in the end zone and counted them out.

Everything Zac Taylor, Joe Burrow, and Joe Mixon Had to Say After Beating the Panthers
"Great. He ran hard, a lot of yards after contact, finished off a lot of runs there, had some big ones for us. So, really happy that he had the day that he had. Franchise-record five touchdowns; had that great catch there with three seconds left in the half, I think it was. So, really tremendous job by him. Great job up front by those linemen, and great job on the perimeter by the receivers, the tight ends, and the run game. Awesome job — that's exactly what we needed. Based on the plan that we had and the run game, everybody stepped up to the plate and delivered, and allowed Joe (Mixon) to have the day that he had."

Joe Mixon Jolts Panthers With Bengals-Record Five TDs In 42-21 Victory
While running back Joe Mixon made history Sunday at Paycor Stadium with a franchise-record five touchdowns, the Bengals repeated history in Sunday's 42-21 walk-over against the Panthers and go into the bye at 5-4 like they did last season.

Dax Hill injury creates more depth concerns for Bengals defense
Against the Panthers, starting boundary corner Eli Apple had just returned from a nagging issue and depth piece Tre Flowers continues to battle one. Second-round pick Cam Taylor-Britt has struggled in each of the last two weeks when asked to step into playing time on the boundary.

Report: Panthers Fire Multiple Coaches Following Loss to Bengals
The latter's unit got destroyed to the tune of 241 rushing yards on 6.2 yards per carry. Cincinnati's dormant run game found plenty of life, led by Joe Mixon's 153 yards and four touchdowns.

Top NFL week 9 Twitter trolls include Jets, Jags, Bengals
The Bengals only reached the end zone once after halftime, but their first half efforts easily carried the team to a win. It was the Joe Mixon show as he finished with five touchdowns, becoming the first NFL player with 150-plus yards and four or more touchdowns from scrimmage in the first half of a game since Shaun Alexander did it in the 2002 season.

Around the league

Late rally vs. Rams could be reminder Tom Brady, Buccaneers needed to save season
But there were 44 seconds left against the Los Angeles Rams and the offense had the ball and it almost felt like a surprise to see Tom Brady was standing in that huddle, too. His travails, personal and professional, had been the throughline of this mystifying first half of the Bucs' season, and even the Tampa Bay fans, who had booed the offense with each failed play on Sunday, might have momentarily forgotten that there remains, even now, no quarterback anybody should want more at such a moment. He is, after all the early struggles, still Brady. And he is still here. He just needed to show them. And perhaps himself.

2022 NFL season, Week 9: What We Learned from Sunday's games
By air or ground, Patrick Mahomes delivers. Songs might one day be written about the magic in Mahomes' arm, but his legs might well have earned him a ballad or two on Sunday night. The game swung on Mahomes' roller coaster of a run on third-and-17 with 7:11 left in the fourth quarter. Trailing 17-9, Mahomes converted on a ridiculous 20-yard scramble. Seven plays later, Mahomes' educated feet ushered him to a 14-yard touchdown run and then a game-tying two-point run. On a day in which Chiefs running backs combined for 19 yards on 13 carries, Mahomes' scrambling equated to eight points and a team-high 63 yards. His 446 yards passing also played a significant role in the Chiefs prevailing, of course, but it was his legs that were most clutch on this evening. It is an absurdly arduous task to shut down Mahomes for a full game. The Titans were borderline outstanding in their efforts to corral him, but somehow, Mahomes found a way to victory.

Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill on record-setting start to season: 'I'm like a kid in a candy store'
The Dolphins WR leads the NFL with 76 catches and 1,104 yards, the most receiving yards in a player's first nine games in a season in the Super Bowl era (Calvin Johnson, 1,083 in 2013). He's on pace for 2,085.3 receiving yards over a 17-game season. Johnson's NFL record of 1,964 was set in 2012 in 16 games. Hill is currently on pace for 1,962.67 yards in 16 games.

NFL stats and records, Week 9: Buccaneers QB Tom Brady passes Peyton Manning on path to 100,000 yards
After turning the ball over on downs at the Rams' 6-yard line with under two minutes remaining, it looked as though Brady and the Buccaneers were staring at a 3-6 start. Then, G.O.A.T. mode was activated. Brady led a six-play drive that resulted in a 1-yard pass touchdown to tight end Cade Otton. It was Brady's 55th career game-winning drive, breaking a tie with Peyton Manning for the most in NFL history. Brady also tied Manning for the most fourth-quarter comebacks all-time, banking the 43rd of his career.