SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Jeremy Hill ran for a pair of 1-yard touchdowns to back AJ McCarron's first career start, and the patchwork Cincinnati Bengals clinched a fifth straight postseason berth by beating the San Francisco 49ers 24-14 on Sunday.
As Andy Dalton watched from the sideline with a large cast over his broken right thumb, McCarron threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Kroft just before halftime as the Bengals (11-3) forced three second-quarter turnovers by San Francisco (4-10) to take command.
Vontaze Burfict and Adam "Pacman" Jones each made interceptions on balls that deflected off the hands of tight end Vance McDonald.