Playing the Bengals brings back a cornucopia of memories, including four straight wins at their place.
Of course we'll never forget the 2011 thriller that clinched the division for the first time.
And we'll always cherish the 2015 Monday Night Football upset against a then 8-0 Bengals team, as Houston limped in at 3-5 but danced out
with a 10-6 victory.
Then there's the huge home win on Christmas Eve of 2016. A missed field goal at the buzzer clinched the Texans' second straight division
title.
Oh, and the Texans beat the Bengals in the Wild Card round in '11 and '12 for their first two playoff triumphs. Back then it was Andy Dalton vs Matt Schaub or T.J. Yates.
The era has flipped. It's now Joe Burrow vs C.J. Stroud and it's suddenly a must-see match-up, nationally. Stroud is re-writing the record book and Burrow is getting back into Super Bowl form after being slowed by a calf injury earlier this season.
The AFC North is loaded. All four teams would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. Cincinnati has the Ravens and Pittsburgh after this one.
So **here’s what they said** about the Texans this week.
The Texans are a top four passing team. The running game hasn't materialized as planned. But that doesn't mean there haven't been some bright spots. Devin Singletary is still looking for his first rushing TD. Yet he's thrown for one and had a pitch to Stoud on a wild play last week. Sports Radio 610's Brandon Scott talked to the running back and **wrote about him for us**.
Finally, this is another big week for the head coach to not only keep his guys grounded and focused following a gigantic win, but he's got to navigate through a loaded injury report. John Harris and I had a great visit as DeMeco Ryans began the process of preparing for the Bengals.
After last week's epic battle it's anybody's guess how this week's tilt will play out. The Bengals are sharp and have been plus-2 in turnover margin in their big wins over San Francisco and Buffalo. The Texans are capable of beating anyone and will look to win back-to-back for the first time since weeks three and four.
