Burrow, Chase and Higgins dismantle Falcons 34-17 at Bernabéu as Bengals win fourth straight

Joe Burrow stood inside the Santiago Bernabéu on Sunday and turned a stadium built for soccer royalty into a showcase for what the Cincinnati Bengals' offense can do at its best. Burrow completed 24 of 29 passes for 271 yards and three touchdowns, added a rushing score, and walked off with a 34-17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons — Cincinnati's fourth consecutive win and their first-ever NFL regular season victory on international soil.

The game was the NFL's second at Real Madrid's Bernabéu and the seventh of a record nine international games the league is staging in 2026. A crowd of nearly 79,000 watched Bengals fans cheer Cincinnati to 6-2 on the season.

Atlanta struck first. Michael Penix Jr. floated a one-yard touchdown pass to tight end Charlie Woerner to cap the game's opening drive. The lead lasted as long as it took Burrow to get the ball. On Cincinnati's first possession, he launched a touch-perfect 47-yard strike to Ja'Marr Chase — and the Bernabéu erupted.

Chase was the story of the first half. He finished the opening two quarters with eight catches for 142 yards and a touchdown, and by the final whistle had logged 10 catches from 12 targets for 155 yards and a score. Tee Higgins, entering the weekend second in the NFL in receiving yards, caught two touchdowns. The Bengals led 24-10 at halftime after Evan McPherson added a 56-yard field goal.

Joe is playing at an unbelievably high level right now. It's difficult not to put the ball in his hands every play.— Zac Taylor, Bengals head coach

Atlanta's best answer came from running back Bijan Robinson, who finished with 100 rushing yards and a touchdown from 19 carries. Robinson capped an 11-play drive early in the third quarter with a one-yard score to make it 24-17. But the Bengals answered immediately. Higgins snagged his second touchdown of the day — caught with suction hands under tight coverage at the back of the end zone — to push the lead to 31-17, a drive notably powered by running back Chase Brown and the ground game.

Atlanta's afternoon was further undermined by discipline: the Falcons were flagged 12 times for 88 yards in penalties. Kicker Nick Folk missed a 38-yard field goal that could have trimmed the deficit. McPherson then converted a 43-yard kick to make it 34-17, and Barrett Carter's interception of Penix — on a pass intended for Robinson — ended any remaining doubt with four minutes to play.

Penix finished 20 of 31 for 162 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Drake London led Atlanta's receivers with five catches for 68 yards.

I loved playing in this stadium, putting on a show for the people of Spain. The plane ride back will be a lot more fun playing the way we did today. It was a huge bonding experience for us. Hopefully we can come back next year and do some more exciting things.— Joe Burrow, Bengals quarterback

The sky is the limit for us, we have so much potential.— Ja'Marr Chase, Bengals wide receiver

The Bengals' previous international outings had come in London. The NFL's international slate in 2026 still has games remaining in Munich and Mexico City. Cincinnati now hosts Pittsburgh on Sunday Night Football in Week 10; Atlanta, falling to 3-6, continues in the NFC South.

We just continually want to get better, and every week the offense has got better. They help the defense out a lot, because when they're doing their thing, we're getting off the field. It makes it easy for us. We love it when they're hot, and we hope they stay hot.— Dexter Lawrence, Bengals defensive tackle

Why it matters — The Bengals' four-game winning streak and 6-2 record — built on one of the NFL's most potent offensive trios — marks them as genuine Super Bowl contenders at the season's midpoint.

Reported by theguardian.com, sports.yahoo.com, cbssports.com, skysports.com, reuters.com, cincinnati.com