CINCINNATI — Running back Jeremy Hill often closed out victories at LSU with big fourth-quarter runs. On Sunday, with top rusher Gio Bernard injured and his team in a dogfight with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the rookie finished off the Cincinnati Bengals’ win in customary style.

Hill rushed for 154 yards and scored two touchdowns, including a 60-yard dagger in the fourth quarter, lifting the Bengals to a 33-23 victory over Jacksonville to extend their regular-season home unbeaten streak to 14 games at Paul Brown Stadium.

“I think he gives us a great explosiveness,” Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis said of Hill. “He can be a load to tackle. Basically he was untouched (on the 60-yarder).”

The Jaguars had trimmed the deficit to three points with eight minutes remaining when Hill broke a pair of tackles then sprinted down the right sideline to seal a victory for the AFC North-leading Bengals.

“Our fullback Ryan Hewitt did a great job blocking the linebacker,” Hill said. “I just had to set up the safety and make him miss. I gave him a little stutter-step to give myself some extra room to run.”

The Bengals (5-2-1) welcomed wide receiver A.J. Green back to the starting lineup after missing three games with a toe injury. Green had three catches for 44 yards and a touchdown.

“Anytime A.J.’s in there it’s nice,” said Bengals QB Andy Dalton, who passed for 233 yards with two touchdowns and two INTs. “Obviously there’s a transition, having not played in a few weeks. It was a good start.”

Jacksonville running back Denard Robinson ran for 94 yards and a touchdown, and receiver Allen Hurns had seven catches for 112 yards and two TDs, but it wasn’t enough to help the Jaguars (1-8) avoid their fourth straight loss to Cincinnati.

“When you look at the game and you see the film, we never quit at all,” Robinson said. “We just have to finish games. Finish drives, and finish games.”

Robinson, who has rushed for a combined 330 yards the past three games, found openings in Cincinnati’s 29th-ranked run defense, rushing for 47 yards in the first quarter, including a 39-yard run to help set up a 25-yard field goal by Josh Scobee to put Jacksonville ahead 3-0.

Cincinnati took the lead on a 19-yard pass from quarterback Andy Dalton to wide receiver Mohamed Sanu, putting the Bengals ahead 7-3. It was Dalton’s first touchdown pass since Oct. 12 against Carolina.

Sanu had four catches for 95 yards and a touchdown.

The self-induced errors continued for Jacksonville. On Sunday, they occurred on special teams.

Twice in the first half Cincinnati deflected punts by Bryan Anger, the second tip by Taylor Mays caused the ball to carom out of the end zone for a safety, making the score 12-3.

“The second half was very competitive, but our special teams unit did not perform very well,” said Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley. “We have to get those things corrected.”

The Bengals drove 62 yards in eight plays on their opening possession of the third quarter. A 2-yard touchdown run by Hill put them ahead 19-3.

Jacksonville fought back with a 40-yard TD pass from quarterback Blake Bortles to Hurns, who came back to catch the underthrown pass before cornerback Leon Hall could react, making the score 19-10.

Bortles passed for 247 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.

After Dalton’s 18-yard TD strike to Green, Bortles and Hurns hooked up again for an 18-yard TD. The two-point conversion pass was incomplete, making the score 26-16.

Dalton’s second interception of the game was a screen pass that bounced off left tackle Andrew Whitworth’s back and into the hands of linebacker J.T. Thomas III.

The turnover led to a 5-yard TD run by Robinson. But Hill iced the Bengals’ win moments later.

“In order to be a championship team you have to have championship thoughts,” Bradley said. “‘It’s OK to lose’ is not a championship thought. We’re upset and angry, that’s our mentality. There were signs of some good things happening, but not the level of play we want.”

What the Bengals said:

“I wouldn’t say there’s a lull. They made some plays. We have to be sound in what we do. We all know you have to play all four quarters, regardless of what goes on.” — Quarterback Andy Dalton, on whether the Bengals let their guard down with a 19-3 second-half lead against the Jaguars.

“Very frustrating. It’s the NFL, and any team can beat you on any Sunday. We have to catch interceptions and get fumbles. The score didn’t have to be that close.” — Safety George Iloka, on the Bengals dropping four potential interceptions.

What the Jaguars said:

“We had a turn deal on the outside. I was working to (wide receiver Cecil Shorts’) side. That should have been the end of it. I should have just thrown it over his head. I ended up trying to throw it out of the back of the end zone, but it didn’t come out as planned. That shouldn’t happen.” — Quarterback Blake Bortles, on his fourth-quarter interception.

“It was just a missed fit where someone kind of got out of their gap. It’s so gap-sound, it popped out real quick. Things like that happen sometimes. We’ve just got to bring him down and live to fight another day.” — Safety Johnathan Cyprien, on the game-clinching, 60-yard touchdown run by Bengals running back Jeremy Hill.

What we learned about the Bengals:

1. Special teams could be a weapon this season for Cincinnati. The kicking game certainly played a role in Sunday’s 33-23 win over Jacksonville. Punter Kevin Huber averaged 50.4 yards on five punts, including four placed inside the 20. Adam Jones averaged 19.5 yards on kickoff returns and 14.3 yards on punt returns, including a 31-yarder. The Bengals also blocked two punts. “In that phase, we helped field position quite a bit today,” coach Marvin Lewis said. “We didn’t cover kickoffs as well as we wanted (28.8-yard average). We keep pressure on people that way, and that’s a good thing.”

2. The Cincinnati Bengals hope running back Giovani Bernard isn’t out for an extended period with a hip pointer and clavicle injury. However, if he remains sidelined, rookie Jeremy Hill is more than capable of carrying the load. Hill rushed for 154 yards on 24 carries with two touchdowns. He averaged 6.4 yards per carry, bolstered by his game-clinching 60-yarder in the fourth quarter. Wide receiver A.J. Green’s return from a toe injury should help loosen up defenses as well, so quarterback Andy Dalton gradually is getting his favorite weapons back at his disposal.

–RT Andre Smith left with a sprained ankle in the second quarter. He did not return. Smith’s loss would be a significant one for the Bengals, who have a short turnaround before Thursday’s game against AFC North rival Cleveland. “I just got rolled up on,” Smith said.

–WR A.J. Green returned after missing three games with a toe injury and looked good, catching three passes for 44 yards and an 18-yard touchdown. “We’re getting back into it with him,” said QB Andy Dalton. “There’s going to be a little bit of a transition since he hasn’t played in a couple weeks. I thought the timing was good. He was in the right spots.”

–RB Jeremy Hill rushed for 154 yards, the most for a Bengals running back since Cedric Benson ran for 189 yards on Oct. 25, 2009, against Chicago. Hill had 24 carries and two touchdowns Sunday, including a 60-yard game-clincher in the fourth quarter. “We challenged him,” QB Andy Dalton said. “We knew he would see a lot of carries with Giovani Bernard being out. I thought he came in and answered the call and played well. Even if you take away the 60-yard (TD) run, he still had a pretty good day. That’s why we picked him.”

What we learned about the Jaguars:

1. The emergence of Denard Robinson is igniting Jacksonville’s running game, which has produced 455 yards the past three weeks. On Sunday, Robinson rushed for 47 yards in the first quarter, including a 39-yard run, and he finished with 94 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. The Jaguars won once in the three-game stretch and are still reeling at 1-8, but the consistent running game is taking pressure off quarterback Blake Bortles.

2. Bortles, who has an NFL-leading 13 interceptions, needs to limit mistakes. He played well at Cincinnati, going 22 of 33 for 247 yards and two touchdowns. However, he also threw a critical interception in the end zone with his team driving in the fourth quarter. When asked if he thought he played well, Bortles said, “No. There were a lot of plays left out on the field.” It is apparent that Bortles is gaining confidence, despite the interceptions, since taking over for Chad Henne.

–QB Blake Bortles has played well in flashes this season, but he needs to limit mistakes. With a chance to get the Jaguars back in the game in the fourth quarter in Cincinnati, Bortles fired an interception in the end zone while attempting to throw the ball away. He finished with 247 passing yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Bortles now has a league-leading 13 interceptions on the season.

–RB Denard Robinson rushed for 94 yards and a touchdown Sunday. He has rushed for 330 yards the past three games, providing a major boost for the offense. “He’s been hot, and we’ve been riding him,” QB Blake Bortles said. “It’s been really good for our offense.”

–WR Allen Hurns has five touchdown catches this season, tying a franchise rookie record, last accomplished by Matt Jones in 2005. On Sunday, Hurns had seven catches for 112 yards and two touchdowns. “He had a great day,” Jaguars coach Gus Bradley said. “The competitiveness was very apparent in him.”