Burrow powers Bengals past the Falcons in Madrid for their 4th straight win

MADRID (AP) — Joe Burrow threw for three touchdowns and rushed for another and the Cincinnati Bengals' offense kept rolling to defeat the Atlanta Falcons 34-17 in Madrid on Sunday for their fourth straight win.

Ja’Marr Chase had eight receptions for 142 yards in the first half, and Tee Higgins added two touchdown catches at Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Chase finished with 10 catches for 155 yards and a touchdown.

After his 47-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter, Chase celebrated with Higgins in bullfighting style, with Higgins mimicking a bull by putting his hands on his head and Chase playing the matador with an imaginary cape.

Burrow appeared to celebrate one of the touchdowns by imitating a celebration by Brazil soccer great Neymar, who used to play for Barcelona, holding his hands beside his helmet and wiggling his fingers.

The Bengals (6-2) have scored 30 points or more in four straight games for the first time since 1997. It was the second consecutive defeat for the Falcons (3-6).

Burrow, who completed 24 of 29 passes for 271 yards Sunday, had thrown five touchdown passes and rushed for another in overtime in the team’s 43-36 win over the Tennessee Titans last week.

“Joe’s playing at an unbelievably high level right now,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said. “It’s difficult to not put the ball on his hands, given how everybody’s playing around him as well. So we just gotta keep this momentum going.”

The Bengals failed to convert on third down only once in the first half and didn’t punt until their first drive in the second half.

The Bengals scored on every possession before halftime, with three touchdowns and a field goal in the final seconds of the half.

Playing under the closed roof of the Bernabeu, Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. played better than in the rain in a 16-0 loss to the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay last week, but threw a late interception to go along with his opening-drive touchdown to tight end Charlie Woerner. Penix was 20 of 31 for 162 yards with a touchdown and interception and added 50 yards rushing.

Running back Bijan Robinson had 42 yards on three carries on the Falcons' first drive. He ended with 100 yards rushing and a touchdown on 19 carries and 47 yards receiving on six receptions.

“We were not good enough, we have to do better,” Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski said. “We just were not at our best. And if you’re not at your best versus a good team, you’re not going to win.”

It was the second NFL regular-season game in Madrid after the Miami Dolphins beat the Washington Commanders 16-13 in overtime in last year’s inaugural game in the country. It was the seventh game in a record nine-game schedule outside the U.S. for the NFL this season. The remaining games will be played in Munich, Germany, and Mexico City.

A crowd of 78,660 people was on hand on Sunday in the Spanish capital. Bengals fans appeared to outnumber Falcons supporters.

The lights at the Bernabeu suddenly went out just as the Bengals were taking a snap inside the final two minutes, prompting the down to be replayed.

Early in the game, some Bengals defensive players appeared to change into longer spikes after the first drive to adjust to the grass at the Bernabeu.

Falcons edge rusher James Pearce Jr. returned from an eight-game suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy but had limited play. He spent time in the blue medical tent early in the second half. Pearce had a back issue in Friday’s practice and had been listed as questionable ahead of the game.

Before kickoff, a moment of silence was held in tribute to the victims of the high-speed train crash that killed 69 people in central Spain on Oct. 28, including four Americans.

Spain’s World Cup trophies for both the women’s and men’s soccer teams were displayed on the field, with national team players on hand as well.

Former Real Madrid and Brazil soccer great Roberto Carlos sounded the train horn in the Falcons' traditional pregame celebration. The halftime show featured Colombian music star Manuel Turizo.

Bengals: host Steelers on “Sunday Night Football” on Nov. 15.

Falcons: host Kansas City on Sunday.

See AP’s full NFL coverage here

Atlanta Falcons tight end Charlie Woerner (89) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during an NFL football game in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Cincinnati Bengals tight end Mike Gesicki (88) goes airborne after a challenge from Atlanta Falcons cornerback Mike Hughes (21) during an NFL football game in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'marr Chase (1) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during an NFL football game against Atlanta Falcons in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) celebrates scoring a touchdown during an NFL football game against Atlanta Falcons in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) passes the ball during an NFL football game against Atlanta Falcons in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Saudi Arabia said it intercepted incoming missiles targeting the kingdom's capital and other regions on Sunday, with falling debris damaging a building belonging to the state-owned oil giant Aramco in Riyadh’s financial district.

Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates said it rescued 22 crew members after a fire broke out aboard a cargo ship in the Sea of Oman, as risks to commercial shipping in the region remain high. And in Israel, opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot formally got the first chance to form a new government.

Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Sunday. Read our full coverage here.

Witnesses in Riyadh said they heard a loud explosion Sunday morning and described damage across multiple floors of an Aramco building in the King Abdullah Financial District. The witnesses spoke on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.

The Saudi-led coalition said its air defenses intercepted two ballistic missiles and two cruise missiles targeting Riyadh and other regions early Sunday, accusing the Iran-backed Houthis of launching the weapons.

The Saudi Energy Ministry said there were no casualties at the Aramco facility. The coalition also said it intercepted a ballistic missile overnight targeting Saudi Arabia’s southern region, which borders Yemen and has repeatedly come under Houthi attacks.

The Houthis' military spokesperson, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, claimed in a statement Sunday that they had hit Riyadh’s financial district and other targets in response to attacks in recent days on a village and a market in Yemen, which he said left dozens dead or wounded and blamed on Saudi Arabia.

— By Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut

The UAE National Guard said the crew members — all of Arab nationalities — were in stable condition after receiving first aid following a rescue when their cargo ship caught fire in the Sea of Oman.

The National Guard did not identify the vessel nor specify the cause of the fire.

The British military organization that monitors maritime security incidents said Sunday that a tanker caught fire on Saturday northwest of Khasab, Oman, prompting the evacuation of its crew. It was unclear whether it was the same incident.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Sunday evening formally gave opposition politician Gadi Eisenkot the first chance to form the next government.

While complex coalition negotiations still lie ahead, this is a significant step in the former military chief’s effort to oust Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, after elections held in a deeply divided country scarred by the Hamas-led attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, and the multifront wars they triggered.

The announcement doesn’t guarantee that Eisenkot will become the next prime minister. He has up to six weeks to form a coalition government. The Oct. 27 election gave neither his bloc nor Netanyahu’s a clear majority in parliament.

The president told CNN in a phone interview on Sunday that as long as the U.S. continues to see progress in negotiations with Tehran and they sign a “strong agreement,” it’s “highly unlikely it’s going to be necessary” to resume strikes.

The president said, however, that the U.S. had identified infrastructure targets, including 38 bridges, that it would strike if military action resumes.

The region has been on edge over the possibility of a renewed all-out war.

Iran hanged three men Sunday in Karaj who were convicted of armed riot, damage to public properties and cooperation with Israel and the United States during nationwide anti-government protests in January, state TV reported.

Iran has hanged more than two dozen people on similar charges in various cities. International rights groups say political prisoners in Iran are tried in secretive courts without due process.

The protests, some of the largest ever held against the Islamic Republic's government, were largely stamped out when the United States and Israel went to war with Iran on Feb. 28.

An Israeli strike on Sunday killed two Palestinians, a man and woman, in Muwasi, a tent camp area on Gaza’s coast, said health officials at Nasser hospital.

Israel’s military said it had struck a “Hamas terrorist” in the area.

Sunday’s strikes came more than a year after a ceasefire deal was reached between Israel and Hamas, yet Israel still launches near-daily strikes on the enclave.

Ahmed Haroun, a senior security official during the rule of longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir, was detained in Sudan’s eastern province of Kassala, according to two lawyers on his defense team. Haroun is wanted by the International Criminal Court over atrocities related to the Darfur conflict in the early 2000s.

The lawyers, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to brief the media, said Haroun’s precise whereabouts were unknown.

__By Samy Magdy in Washington.

The State Department said Sunday that it had declared Ibrahim Charara, Lebanon’s consul general in Detroit, “persona non grata” after reviewing posts from up to five years ago celebrating the 1983 Hezbollah attack on the Marine barracks in Beirut. The posts were first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.

“Anyone in the United States who celebrates or justifies terrorist attacks has no place in our country,” the department said.

This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.

Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar ("Straight") party, waves an Israeli flag onstage following the release of the first exit poll results in Israel's general election in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

This image taken from video released by Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026, shows a man watching smoke rise following what the channel described as an airstrike by Saudi-backed government forces on a town near Sanaa, Yemen. (Al-Masirah TV via AP)