Dolphins beat Bengals 22-20 on OT safety

Joe Reedy | USA TODAY Sports

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Bengals suffered two huge losses on Thursday night at Sun Life Stadium.

Their four-game winning streak was snapped midway through overtime when Cameron Wake sacked Andy Dalton in the end zone for a safety as Miami prevailed 22-20. Cincinnati (6-3) had rallied from a two-touchdown deficit and took a 20-17 lead with a minute, 24 seconds remaining on a Mike Nugent 54-yard field goal, but the Dolphins would send the game into overtime on Caleb Sturgis' 44-yard field goal.

The other loss though was more crushing as Geno Atkins appears lost for the season after an ACL injury to his right knee during the second quarter. Atkins was on crutches after the game. Marvin Lewis said in his postgame press conference he wasn't sure if Atkins had an MRI yet.

"It sucks because he's one of the best," Domata Peko said. "He is a big part of our defense. You never want to see anybody go down. We'll keep him in our prayers and Bengals Nation please keep him in your prayers also. In this league it's the next man up, so Brandon Thompson has to be ready to play a lot more and we have to move on."

The injury to Atkins happened with 4:45 remaining in the second quarter on a 3-yard carry by Lamar Miller. During the play, Atkins appeared to plant his right leg and then got twisted the other way. While on the ground, he quickly took his helmet off and was later assisted to the sidelines by Alex Smith and Jermaine Gresham. Atkins, who grew up in nearby Fort Lauderdale and had over 40 family members and fans in the stands, was then carted off to the locker room and waved to them.

With Leon Hall lost for the year due to an Achilles and Rey Maualuga out for as many as four weeks due to an MCL injury, the loss of Atkins is the Bengals worst nightmare. They already came into the game light at defensive tackle with Devon Still missing his second straight game due to an elbow injury. Thompson took Atkins' place the rest of the game.

"It was hard but I feel like we did a good job as a defensive line filling in and doing the best we could to stop the run," said Thompson, who had two tackles. "Right now we're kind of thin but we have to keep working and do what we have to do to make it. I've been preparing since I've been here and now it's time to step up."

Midway through overtime, Wake blew past right guard Kevin Zeitler to sack Dalton, marking the third time in NFL history an overtime game has ended on a safety. Dalton thought he was out of the end zone when sacked but the rule is that the entire ball has to be out of the end zone.

"You just have to do whatever you can to get to the quarterback," Wake said. "It couldn't have come at a better time. How much better could it have been than to have a D-lineman seal the deal?"

Said Dalton of the play: "It was tough. I don't know exactly the rule, if it's a foot, or if it's the ball, or what it is but from the replay I thought it was out. I don't know, I'm not an official and I don't know how they judge that."

"I don't think anyone expected the game to end on a safety," Miami quarterback Ryan Tannehill said.

The safety was the epitome of what was the biggest rollercoaster of Dalton's career. He became the first Bengals quarterback to have four straight 300-yard games, as he completed 32 passes on a career-high 53 attempts for 338 yards, but he also had three interceptions and a fumble.

Dalton's second interception was returned 94 yards by for a Pick Six by Brent Grimes, who jumped the route on a pass intended for Marvin Jones to give Miami a 17-3 lead midway through the third quarter. After having no red zone interceptions four weeks ago, Dalton has thrown two in the past four games.

The Bengals appeared to tie the game at 10 earlier in the drive but a 50-yard touchdown pass from Dalton to Jones was nullified by a holding call on Jermaine Gresham.

"I had the look, the ball just slipped out of my hand. I know that's not an excuse but the ball honestly did," said Dalton of the Pick Six. "I put it behind him. The one spot you can't throw that ball and that's exactly what happens when you throw the ball behind him. Grimes made a great play on it and took it for a touchdown. It's unfortunate that it happened right there, it's all on me, we had a good scheme and the play was the right play call but I just missed it."

Dalton's first interception, which happened late in the first half on a pass intended for A.J. Green, led to a Sturgis 37-yard field goal to give Miami a 10-3 lead at the half. The last pick was off of Mohamed Sanu's hands but was deep in Miami territory.

Even with all the turnovers, the Bengals nearly won, due in large part to a pair of Giovani Bernard touchdowns and having the ball for nearly 22 minutes in the second half as they outgained Miami 297-101. The South Florida native, who had 79 yards on nine carries before leaving with a rib injury, had a 3-yard touchdown after the Pick Six and then tied the game on a 35-yard run where he broke five tackles.

The 163 yards rushing by the Bengals was their third-highest this season as BenJarvus Green-Ellis added 72 yards on 21 carries. Green had his fourth-straight, 100-yard receiving game with a career-high 11 receptions for 128 yards.

Miami's Ryan Tannehill was 20 of 28 for 208 yards but the catalyst of the offense was the running game. They averaged 5.2 yards per carry as the Bengals allowed 157 yards, which is the second-most they've allowed this season. Lamar Miller became the second opposing back to go over the century mark against Cincinnati with a career-best 105 yards on 16 carries. Most of those yards though came in the first half.

"You never want to lose four games in a row," Dolphins coach Joe Philbin said, "and we had an excellent football team coming in town. It was time for us to step up and we had to make a decision — what are we going to be? And I thought they answered the bell pretty well tonight."

"We are really missing Rey Maualuga today. It shows how much he means in the run game for us," Peko said. "He plays down hill, he likes coming down and busting people in the mouth."

The Dolphins (4-4) should have had a 20-3 lead at halftime. After Wake forced a Dalton fumble and recovered it at the Bengals 25, Sturgis was wide left from 34 yards after the drive stalled. In the second quarter, Miller appeared to be off to the end zone for a 52-yard touchdown but Carlos Dunlap tomahawked the ball away from Miller near the goal line. Adam Jones recovered the ball in the end zone and returned it to the Bengals 41.

The Bengals only good drive in the first half led to a Nugent 31-yard field goal three minutes into the second quarter for the first points of the game. On a pair of third-and-10's Dalton had completions to Green for 17 and 18 yards to keep it alive.

Joe Reedy also writes for The Cincinnati Enquirer. Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.