CLEVELAND (WKRC) – The Bengals found a way to wipe out a lengthy losing streak in Cleveland thanks to a second straight outstanding performance by the defense and just enough offense in the second half.

Joe Burrow threw two second half touchdown passes and the defense posted a shutout for the first 28 minutes of the second half to help the Bengals pull away from a 7-6 halftime lead for a 21-14 win on Sunday at Huntington Bank Field.

The win snapped a six-game losing skid in Cleveland and was the second straight overall for the Bengals, who improved to 3-4 on the season. Cleveland fell to 1-6.

It was also the first win in Cleveland for Burrow, who had been 0-3, and head coach Zac Taylor, who had been 0-5.

Browns starting quarterback Deshaun Watson left the game with 1:22 left in the first half after suffering an Achilles injury on a non-contact play.

The Bengals lost left tackle Orlando Brown late in the first half due to a right knee injury, and after initially being listed as questionable to return he was downgraded to doubtful early in the second half and didn’t re-enter the game.

They also lost safety Geno Stone late in the game as he was carted off with a left leg injury.

The Bengals finished the game with 12 first downs and 223 yards total offense.

Burrow completed 15 of 25 passes for 181 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions for a passer rating of 108.9.

The Bengals rushed for 59 yards on 25 carries.

The Browns finished the game with 18 first downs and 336 yards total offense.

Watson completed 15 of 17 passes for 128 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions for a passer rating of 98.0. Dorian Thompson-Robinson replaced Watson and completed 11 of 24 passes for 82 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions for a passer rating of 19.8. Thompson-Robinson suffered a finger injury in the fourth quarter that knocked him from the game. Jameis Winston came into the game as the emergency quarterback with 3:43 remaining and completed 5 of 11 passes for 67 yards and one touchdown for a passer rating of 95.6.

The Browns rushed for 77 yards on 21 carries.

The Bengals led 7-6 at halftime and the Browns drove to the Bengals 35 on the first possession of the second half, but on 4th-and-2 Thompson-Robinson’s pass intended for running back Nick Chubb fell incomplete.

The Bengals responded to the stop by driving for a touchdown in only five plays with the score coming when Burrow hit wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase on an 18-yard touchdown pass that increased the lead to 14-6 with 7:56 left in the third quarter.

The big plays on the drive were a 22-yard run by running back Chase Brown and a 19-yard catch-and-run by running back Zack Moss.

Two possessions later, the Bengals increased their lead to 21-6 when Burrow hit wide receiver Tee Higgins for a 25-yard touchdown with 1:30 left in the third quarter. Higgins caught the pass at the Browns 19, broke a tackle attempt by cornerback Cameron Mitchell and raced into the end zone.

The Bengals had a chance to increase the lead to 24-6, but Evan McPherson’s 50-yard field goal attempt went wide right with 3:43 remaining.

Cleveland then drove from there to pull within 21-14 with 1:27 left on an eight-yard touchdown pass from Winston to David Njoku. The Browns then added the two-point conversion.

Cleveland attempted an onside kick after that touchdown, but Mike Gesicki recovered it for the Bengals.

The Bengals jumped out to a 7-0 lead 12 seconds into the game after Charlie Jones returned the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown.

Jones was the lone kickoff returner deep with tight end Drew Sample lined up about 10 yards in front of him, and Sample threw the key block that sprang Jones.

It marked the first time a Bengals player returned a kickoff for a touchdown since Brandon Wilson did it against the New York Giants on Nov. 29, 2020.

Both offenses sputtered for much of the remainder of the first half.

The Browns pulled to within 7-6 on Nick Chubb’s one-yard touchdown run on 4th-and-goal with 56 seconds remaining in the first half. It capped a 12-play, 78-yard drive and the TD came six plays after Watson suffered his injury. Dustin Hopkins missed the extra point after earlier in the first half missing a 49-yard field goal.

The Bengals finished the first half with five first downs and 86 yards total offense.

Burrow completed 8 of 15 passes for 81 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions for a passer rating of 69.0 in the half. He was sacked three times for losses of 17 yards.

The Bengals rushed for 22 yards on six carries in the half.

Cleveland finished the first half with nine first downs and 142 yards total offense.

Watson completed 15 of 17 passes for 125 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions for a passer rating of 98.0. Thompson-Robinson went 0 for 1 after replacing Watson.

The Browns rushed for 27 yards on 16 carries.

NOTEWORTHY: The Bengals on Saturday activated cornerback DJ Ivey to the roster from the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list and elevated center Trey Hill from the practice squad to the active roster. Hill is classified as standard elevation. As a practice squad player being elevated to the active roster automatically will revert to the practice squad on Monday. … Defensive end Sam Hubbard recorded his first career interception in the third quarter. It came after a pass from Thompson-Robinson ricocheted off the hands of wide receiver Cedric Tillman.

INACTIVES: Here are the players that each team placed on the inactive list 90 minutes prior to kickoff in order to get down to the 48 player game day roster limit:

Bengals: WR Trenton Irwin, DE Cedric Johnson, T Andrew Stueber, DT Lawrence Guy, TE Tanner McLachlan, DT Jay TufeleBrowns: QB Jameis Winston, CB Kahlef Hailassie, S Ronnie Hickman, RB Jerome Ford, LB Nathaniel Watson, DT Quinton Jefferson