Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow responded to the worst statistical game of his NFL career with some history.
One week after a shutout loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Burrow had the second-best passer rating of his NFL career as the Bengals beat the Miami Dolphins, 45-21. Burrow reached some milestones along the way.
In his 75th game, Burrow reached 20,000 yards. He became the fifth-fastest player in NFL history to reach the milestone. The only quarterbacks to that number in fewer games were Patrick Mahomes, Matthew Stafford, Andrew Luck and Dan Marino.
Burrow also became the third-fastest QB in league history to reach 150 touchdown passes, trailing only Marino and Mahomes.
“We just executed better at the end of the day,” said Burrow, who had a 146.5 passer rating on Sunday. “Tee (Higgins) set it off, set the tone for the day. Those two big plays early kind of set the tone for, number one, how the day was going and, number two, how they were going to play us. I think they had a plan, and then those two plays happened and they had to change their plan. That’s why Tee is who he is and why we value him so much, he just makes plays like that.”
Higgins reeled in a 35-yard catch followed by a touchdown catch in the first quarter, which was the beginning of the dominance on the day from the Bengals’ high-powered offense.
Just about every skill position player had his turn. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had another 100-yard game, running back Chase Brown had three touchdowns in the third quarter alone and Mike Gesicki made a contested touchdown catch against his former team. Blocking tight end Drew Sample made one of the biggest plays of the game, sneaking out of a block and making himself available on a third down check-down that resulted in a 27-yard gain that set up a go-ahead touchdown before halftime.
“I feel like we’ve shown this a million times over the years,” coach Zac Taylor said. “Unfortunately, this year we just haven’t been able to do it. But this is no surprise. I was walking off the field with Drew Sample and he said, ‘This is how I’m used to these games going, when we’ve got everybody on offense ready to roll.’ We’ve got another opportunity this week against Arizona to come back home and do it in front of our fans, and I expect our guys to respond the right way.”
When the Bengals were eliminated from the playoffs last week, after Burrow was picked off twice against the Ravens, Taylor faced questions about whether or not the Bengals were going to shut Burrow down for the season. Taylor decided to keep Burrow in the lineup, and a quarterback who has dealt with some frustration recently appreciated the decision.
Even though the 5-10 Bengals are eliminated from playoff contention, the game meant something to Burrow.
“I’m having fun playing football,” Burrow said. “Not playing football is not fun. Sitting in the locker room rehabbing all day, that’s not why you do it. This is why you do it right here.”
Since Thanksgiving, no defense has forced more turnovers than the Bengals. On what was an explosive day for the Bengals’ offense, the defense made its biggest impact with takeaways. A forced fumble by safety Jordan Battle, a pick tipped from cornerback Josh Newton to linebacker Barrett Carter and a pick by Jalen Davis were key to shutting down the Dolphins’ offense in the second half.
The Bengals’ pass rush. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson, defensive end Josh Ossai and defensive tackle Kris Jenkins Jr. are all dealing with injuries, which has forced backups into bigger roles. While defensive end Myles Murphy continued what’s been a strong season, the Bengals’ pass rush still was limited to four quarterback hits and no sacks on Sunday.
Slot cornerback Jalen Davis. After spending the first half of the season on the practice squad, Davis stepped into the starting lineup in November following a season-ending injury to Cam Taylor-Britt. Davis, the longest-tenured player on the Bengals’ defense, has been consistently strong against the run during his time in the lineup. Then on Sunday he had his first career interception.
WRs Andrei Iosivas and Mitch Tinsley. With Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins both in the lineup, the Bengals had their full complement of pass catchers. Iosivas and Tinsley combined for just one total catch and continued what’s been a quiet month for each of them.
Cornerback DJ Turner battled the flu and was limited to 45% of the snaps in the game. Tight end Cam Grandy suffered a clavicle injury. Defensive tackle Kris Jenkins Jr. landed on the injured reserve list last Saturday.
2: Ja’Marr Chase is the second-fastest player in NFL history to reach 500 catches. He’s also the first player in league history with at least 500 catches and 50 receiving touchdowns in his first five seasons.
100: Chase Brown had his seventh game of 100-plus yards this season, which beats former Bengals receiver A.J. Green’s record from 2013.
Cincinnati faces the Arizona Cardinals in what will be the Bengals’ only matchup against an NFC West opponent this season.
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Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, left, scrambles during the first half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump is gathering with top national security officials on Monday, a meeting that comes as the U.S. Coast Guard steps up efforts to interdict oil tankers in the Caribbean Sea as part of the Republican administration's escalating pressure campaign on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's government.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Navy Secretary John Phelan are scheduled to join Trump, who is vacationing at his Mar-a-Lago resort, for what the White House called a "major announcement." Trump plans to discuss a shipbuilding initiative at the event, according to a White House official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
But Trump's gathering of key members of his national security team also comes at yet another inflection point in his four-month pressure campaign on the Maduro government, which began with the stated purpose of stemming the flow of illegal drugs from the South American nation but has developed into something more amorphous.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has started evacuating the families of diplomats from Venezuela, according to a European intelligence official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information.
The official told The Associated Press the evacuations include women and children and began on Friday, adding that Russian Foreign Ministry officials are assessing the situation in Venezuela in “very grim tones.” The White House and Kremlin did not respond to requests for comment.
Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Yván Gil on Monday said he spoke by phone with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, who he said expressed Russia's support for Venezuela against Trump's declared blockade of sanctioned oil tankers.
“We reviewed the aggressions and flagrant violations of international law that have been committed in the Caribbean: attacks against vessels and extrajudicial executions, and the unlawful acts of piracy carried out by the United States government,” Gil said in a statement.
More than 10 vehicles with diplomatic license plates were parked Monday morning outside Russia’s embassy in Caracas. No people could be seen going in or out of the embassy. All vehicles had moved by early afternoon.
In the Caribbean, the U.S. Coast Guard on Monday continued for the second day to chase a sanctioned oil tanker that the Trump administration describes as part of a “dark fleet” Venezuela is using to evade U.S. sanctions. The tanker, the official added, is flying under a false flag and is under a U.S. judicial seizure order.
It is the third tanker pursued by the Coast Guard, which on Saturday seized a Panama-flagged vessel called Centuries that U.S. officials said was part of the Venezuelan shadow fleet.
The Coast Guard, with assistance from the Navy, seized a sanctioned tanker called Skipper on Dec. 10, also part of the shadow fleet of tankers that the U.S. says operates on the fringes of the law to move sanctioned cargo. That ship was registered in Panama.
Trump, after that first seizure, said the U.S. would carry out a “blockade” of Venezuela. Trump has repeatedly said that Maduro's days in power are numbered.
Last week, Trump demanded that Venezuela return assets that it seized from U.S. oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of a blockade against sanctioned oil tankers traveling to or from the South American country.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose agency oversees the Coast Guard, said in a Monday appearance on “Fox & Friends” that the targeting of tankers is intended to send “a message around the world that the illegal activity that Maduro is participating in cannot stand, he needs to be gone, and that we will stand up for our people.”
While U.S. forces targeted the vessels in international waters , a tanker that's considered part of the shadow fleet was spotted moving between Venezuelan refineries, including one about three hours west of the capital, Caracas.
The tanker remained at the refinery in El Palito through Sunday, when families went to the town’s beach to relax with children now on break from school.
Music played on loudspeakers as people swam and surfed with the tanker in the background. Families and groups of teenagers enjoyed themselves, but Manuel Salazar, who has parked cars at the beach for more than three decades, noticed differences from years past, when the country’s oil-dependent economy was in better shape and the energy industry produced at least double the current 1 million barrels per day.
“Up to nine or 10 tankers would wait out there in the bay. One would leave, another would come in,” Salazar, 68, said. “Now, look, one.”
The tanker in El Palito has been identified by Transparencia Venezuela, an independent watchdog promoting government accountability, to be part of the shadow fleet.
Area residents on Sunday recalled when tankers would sound their horns at midnight New Year’s Eve, while some would even send up fireworks to celebrate the holiday.
“Before, during vacations, they’d have barbecues; now all you see is bread with bologna,” Salazar said of Venezuelan families spending the holiday at the beach next to the refinery. “Things are expensive. Food prices keep going up and up every day.”
Meanwhile, the Defense Department, under Trump's orders, continues its campaign of attacks on smaller vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean that it alleges are carrying drugs to the United States and beyond.
At least 104 people have been killed in 28 known strikes since early September. The strikes have faced scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers and human rights activists, who say the administration has offered scant evidence that its targets are indeed drug smugglers and that the fatal strikes amount to extrajudicial killings.
Garcia Cano reported from El Palito, Venezuela, and Burrows reported from London.
The access ramp to the entrance of the Russian Embassy is under construction in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Children play at the beach near El Palito port in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
The El Palito refinery rises above a beach in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Evana, an oil tanker, is docked at El Palito port in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
