Johnson's strong night paces Bengals past Falcons

Published: Aug 08, 2013 at 04:13 PM

ATLANTA -- Giovani Bernard ran for a touchdown, and Josh Johnson directed two second-quarter TD drives as the Cincinnati Bengals cruised to a 34-10 preseason-opening win over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night.

Bernard, a second-round draft pick from North Carolina competing for a significant share of the Bengals' carries, played behind returning starter BenJarvus Green-Ellis and had 10 carries for 28 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown run. He added three catches for 16 yards.

Johnson, up against John Skelton for the backup job behind Andy Dalton, made big plays with his arm and legs. Johnson passed for 100 yards, including a 21-yard score to Brandon Tate, and ran for 64 yards.

Dane Sanzenbacher had a 71-yard punt return for a touchdown and a 36-yard scoring catch from Skelton.

New Falcons running back Steven Jackson found little blocking as he had five carries for just 8 yards.

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