Bengals vs. Colts final score: Indianapolis tops Cincinnati 26-10

The “Andy Dalton can’t win a playoff game” narrative will continue after the Indianapolis Colts topped the Cincinnati Bengals in an AFC Wild Card game Sunday.

The Cincinnati Bengals keep getting to the playoffs … and keep losing once they get there.

The Bengals were eliminated in the Wild Card round for the fourth straight year, dropping a 26-10 decision Sunday to the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.

With the victory, the Colts advance to a Divisional Playoff next Sunday against the second-seeded Denver Broncos in the Mile High City.

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Cincinnati, which played without top wide receiver A.J. Green because of a concussion, hung around with the Colts for a half, trailing 13-10 at intermission after Mike Nugent made a career-long and Bengals’ postseason-record long 57-yard field goal with 10 seconds to go in the second quarter.

The Colts, who never trailed, got 376 yards passing from Andrew Luck, who also threw for a touchdown.

Daniel Herron had a strong game for Indianapolis, as well, rushing for 56 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries and hauling in 10 passes for 85 yards. But it was Herron’s fumble that helped the Bengals stay close.

Herron had the ball stripped by Darqueze Dennard late in the first half. Reggie Nelson made the recovery and returned it to near mid-field, helping to set up Nugent’s booming kick.

Herron opened the scoring with a 2-yard touchdown run on the game’s first possession.

Cincinnati tied it late in the first quarter on a 1-yard run by Jeremy Hill—who had 47 yards on 13 carries.

Indianapolis took a 13-7 lead in the second quarter on a pair of field goals by Adam Vinatieri.

The Colts pulled away in the third period, getting into the end zone on this 36-yard pass from Luck to Donte Moncrief.

How Luck managed to throw that pass at all is amazing, much less to throw it that accurately to Moncrief.

T.Y. Hilton shook off a couple of early drops to catch six passes for 103 yards for Indianapolis.

Without Green, Andy Dalton—who has taken Cincinnati to the playoffs in each of his first four NFL seasons, but is 0-4 once he gets there—had to rely on players like Ryan Hewitt and Rex Burkhead in the passing game.

Geovani Bernard had eight catches for 46 yards and Mohamed Sanu, expected to step up in Green’s absence, managed just three receptions for 31 yards.

Brandon Tate was targeted five times and finished without a catch.

Dalton was 18-for-35 for 155 yards and lost a fumble.

The Bengals’ defense was ripped up for 482 total yards, but held Indianapolis out of the end zone three times in four red-zone possessions to help Cincinnati stay in the game.

The Bengals are now 0-7 all-time on the road in the playoffs. The franchise’s last postseason win was in a 1990 AFC Wild Card game against the Houston Oilers on Jan. 6, 1991.

Coach Marvin Lewis is now 0-6 in the playoffs in 11 seasons as coach in Cincinnati.

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