Offense Opens with 71-Yard TD March
Cincinnati won the coin toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff, allowing for the offense to compile a 10-play, 71-yard drive ending in a 12-yard touchdown pass from Burrow to tight end Tanner Hudson.
The Bengals initially had found the end zone two plays earlier, as Burrow escaped the pocket and hit Ja'Marr Chase for what appeared to be an early score. Cincinnati was flagged for holding on the play, however, backing up the offense to first-and-goal from the Eagles' 21-yard line. It proved to be a speed bump in an otherwise efficient drive, as Burrow connected with Charlie Jones for a quick nine-yard pickup before the touchdown toss to Hudson.
Thursday marked the second straight preseason opener in which Burrow engineered an opening-drive touchdown. In the 2024 preseason opener against Tampa Bay, he completed five of seven passes for 51 yards and finished it off with a scoring pass to Tee Higgins, in what was both players' only action of the preseason.