The 3-5 Texans versus the 8-0 Bengals. ESPN's Monday Night Football!

This may be the only thing to be excited about in case the Texans are blown out on Monday Night Football against the undefeated Bengals tomorrow night. But you never know. J.J. Watt may have a big game. He's had a few dominating performances against Andy Dalton (mostly in the playoffs). The Texans defense will likely have to force a few turnovers just to keep the game close.



There's a lot of NFL history with Houston and Cincinnati when they used to play in the same division (AFC Central). Also the last time the Bengals won a playoff game was against the Houston Oilers back in 1991. And of course the Houston Texans have contributed to that long playoff skid by defeating the Bengals in back-to-back wild card games in 2011 and 2012.

That crowd atmosphere at Cincinnati should be electric and loud. Even though they are playing a team with a losing record. I'd actually be thinking about a major upset in this game if injury-prone Arian Foster wasn't out for the season. But without any consistent running game, and a starting quarterback who isn't any good, the Texans offense versus the Bengals defense is a terrible matchup.

As long as DeAndre Hopkins can "get his" in this game and have another monster game just to keep pace for the 2015 NFL lead in receptions and receiving yards. And J.J. Watt has a two or three-sack game just to keep his NFL record attempt of "three 20-sack seasons" alive, that's probably all we can hope for. Maybe Andy Dalton will force a screen pass and J.J. Watt's big hands will snag it mid-air and he'll take it back to the house for a pick six.

The Houston Texans are pretty much playing for the sexy stats even in losses.
An unexpected win and 4-5 record would keep them alive in the AFC playoff race.

I wish Bill O'Brien well if this report is true. Perhaps he's just trying to create leverage to have more power.
He has clashed with GM Rick Smith. A guy that probably should have been fired a few years ago...
Texans owner Bob McNair just doesn't have a clue. He's stuck with a really bad GM for way too long.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/11/15/report-bill-obrien-interested-in-maryland-job/

Bill O'Brien may have some serious interest in leaving the Houston Texans after his second NFL season as head coach, and taking over the Maryland Terrapins' job. Would he really leave this soon? I know he loved his time coaching Penn State and he seems better suited to coach college kids. He's an excellent teacher for young men.

I don't want to see the Houston Texans searching for coach number four in franchise history this soon. He had a successful 9-7 rookie year. 3-5 so far in year two. He's done all that playing five different quarterbacks. None of which were any good: Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ryan Mallett, Tom Savage, Case Keenum and Brian Hoyer. Not to mention no Arian Foster for most of those games. He's had no good running game to work with either.

We'll see what happens. For now the Houston Texans have to focus on tonight's game against the Bengals on the road.
They're going to be blown out, 59-13 is my guess, if they don't have the right mentality. All these rumors can't help.

A big key to tonight's game, just to keep the game close, will be if the Texans defense can slow down the Bengals high-powered offense. Brian Cushing hasn't been the same elite inside linebacker he was before two major knee injuries. He used to be good in pass coverage against opposing tight ends prior to that. He has to find a way to slow down Tyler Eifert, who has looked a lot like Rob Grownkowski lately.

Our pass rush has to dominate and our run defense has to look good.
Watt and Wilfork have to destroy every Bengals O-Lineman trying to block them.
Jadeveon Clowney is out, but Whitney Mercilus has played better than Clowney.

Maybe, just maybe, the Texans will only lose by 10 points or less and keep it close. I doubt it though.
Even if I tried to jinx the Bengals and bet on them I doubt it would do any good. The Texans are a zoo right now.

Not the real Madmartigan. No mention of Dalton being from TCU or Katy, Texas

I watched Andy Dalton play with the Katy Tigers when he was in high school.
It's amazing. T.J. Yates is now 3-0 against Andy Dalton and the Bengals.
1-0 in the playoffs. Both regular-season wins came at Cincinnati. Should have never let him go.

I hope he starts the rest of the way even if Brian Hoyer is good to go with his concussion in the next game.





The Texans tight ends have been the least productive in the NFL for the past two years.
With T.J. Yates tonight, they made some nice catches. It was a nice surprise to see that.

Brian Cushing is finally looking like the All Pro Cushing before his two major knee injuries.
I thought Cushing played his best game tonight in four years. Watt and Mercilus are flying around on defense.

DeAndre Hopkins is already a top five wide receiver in the game. Probably top three based on his stats this year.
He's played with six different quarterbacks in two years!!! Most elite WRs have stability at the QB position.

At 4-5 and tied with the Colts in first place. It's going to be interesting. The Colts won in Houston earlier this season so they own the tiebreaker right now. The Texans have to do what they've never done before. Beat the Colts at Indianapolis (0-13 all time). The Texans play at Indy on December 20.

It's just too bad Arian Foster is out for the season. If the Texans had "any running game" they'd probably win 10 games and win the AFC South in 2015. I'm not sure if they can continue to gut out 10-6 wins against good teams. The defense will likely play good the rest of the way but this good? I don't know if they can keep it up.

No touchdowns allowed in the last 10 quarters for the Texans defense.
That was after they had allowed 48 points to the Falcons and 44 points to the Dolphins.

It's hard to believe it's the same Texans defense. The major difference is the linebackers are starting to play well. Brian Cushing, Whitney Mercilus, John Simon and the rookie Benardrick McKinney have all up'd their game to another level. They've done better without Jadeveon Clowney believe it or not. And the rookie Kevin Johnson is playing like a solid cover corner. He's going to be a good one for many years to come with more experience.


I sure hope he stays. 9-7 and now 4-5 playing six different quarterbacks. That's no easy task.
Nick Saban once said he wasn't leaving the Miami Dolphins for Alabama and he did. You never know.

A lack of running game on offense. Man. That's the only thing that may cost the Texans a trip to the playoffs. T.J. Yates is good enough to make the necessary throws. We have enough weapons at wide receiver and tight end. The O-Line is playing better every week. The Defense is playing great and the special teams has done well.

Is Ray Rice not worth an invite for a workout at the very least? Is he that washed up already? I know the Texans would never sign him but it's a shame if this team just had any running game, it doesn't even have to be good just decent enough, they would probably make the playoffs. Blue, Grimes and Polk aren't that good. Of the three I think Polk has the most promise. He looked the best out of the bunch against the Bengals tonight.

Andy Dalton is better than that. Trust your talent and win a playoff game.
It was a witty joke that J.J. Watt made but it wasn't meant to be malicious.



He was starting to become an elite quarterback this season and just had one bad game.
The problem is he also has those "one bad games" in the playoffs every time as well.

Even if the Bengals had gone 16-0 they would still have to win a playoff game to prove they're legit.

The Lions had finally won a game at Lambeau Field since 1991.
The Bengals haven't won a playoff game since 1991. Streaks can end.
I'm not saying the Bengals will finally end their drought but anything can happen.

I'd love to have Andy Dalton quarterbacking the Texans even though T.J. Yates has out-played him in three head-to-head meetings.

I think coaching plays a big part in playoff success as well. It's not all about the talent.
Marvin Lewis can't seem to coach the Bengals to a playoff win. That's just a fact right now.

ESPN First Take's YouTube page took down that segment talking about the Andy Dalton and J.J. Watt "war of the words."
Apparently the NFL league office complained about the content because of the sensitivity. So YouTube complied of course.

Come on, everybody already had seen it. Much to do about nothing. Neither player was fined.
Football post-game comments are best when they happen in the spur of the moment.

The NFL Is the no-fun league! All of their official highlight videos on YouTube can't even be embedded. Unlike the NBA. MLB and NHL.



The Texans versus Jets game on Sunday is going to feel bittersweet to me. I sort of miss Ryan Fitzpatrick, the Harvard grad.
But I have confidence in T.J. Yates despite not having a good running game. He isn't afraid to sling it down the field.

The Texans Defense, no Touchdowns allowed in 10 quarters, is looking stronger than ever. Jadeveon Clowney will be back but likely off the bench. It would be dumb to bench Whitney Mercilus the way he's playing. Unless the plan is to play both at the same time in pass-rushing situations.

A lot of people are picking the Jets to win. And I can see why considering the Texans have no running game on offense. It's hard to win when you can't successfully run the ball. But as much as people like to say the Jets defense is so great the Texans defense has been playing better than any defense in the entire league over the past two games. They've been amazing the past 2.5 games (10 quarters).

I think the Texans can beat the Jets but it's only going to happen if the Texans defense continues to give up no Touchdowns. 10 straight quarters is pretty damn good. Let's see if they can make it 14 straight quarters after this game. Field goals won't beat you all that often, even for a team that can't run the ball effectively.

It's sort of funny how fans of the Colts, Texans and Jaguars all believe they can win the division. Neither team is any good but with a chance to host a wild-card game as the 2015 AFC South champions it's still fun to play for something. Normally four wins at this point in the year means you are already looking ahead to the 2016 NFL mock drafts.

I do hope the Texans beat the Jets and the Colts lose to the Falcons on Sunday. The Texans would be all alone in first place at 5-5. I don't know how that's even possible - watching the Texans earlier in the season they looked like a three-win team at best - but I would sure be amazed if that happens. The Texans are a team that is playing their sixth different quarterback, and fourth different running back, since the start of last season. You should be rebuilding in that scenario, not going 9-7 with a rookie head coach and now 4-5 so far in year two with a great chance to win a division title.

DeAndre Hopkins just burned Darrelle Revis for a 61-yard Touchdown.
Unbelievable! It was after a one-handed, 12-yard catch on Revis.

Texans lead 10-3 and it's almost halftime. And the Colts are down to the Falcons too.
The Houston Texans could be all alone in first place at 5-5 in another two hours. Knock on wood.

24-10 Texans. They're finding that chemistry in such a short time.
DeAndre Hopkins with 2 TDs today. Yates to Hopkins all day!

Hopkins is on pace for 130 receptions, 1,700 receiving yards and 14 TDs this year.
He's about to pass Andre Johnson's franchise record of 9 TD catches in a season.

J.J. Watt has two sacks so far. It's almost the end of the third quarter. I hope he gets a third and fourth sack.

I can't believe the Falcons lost that lead at home. Matt Ryan and that costly pick six throwing out of his own end zone in the fourth quarter. Even though the Texans and Colts are both 5-5, technically the Colts are still in first place because they beat the Texans in Houston earlier in the season.

Sunday, December 20: The Texans play at Indianapolis. They may have to win that game to realistically have a good chance to win the AFC South. Otherwise the Colts will be golden owning the tiebreaker. It will be tough for the Texans to finish at least one full game ahead if they lose twice to the Colts.

And the Houston Texans are 0-13 at Indianapolis and haven't won their before. So that December 20 game seems like an impossible challenge. But for now the Texans have to focus on beating the New Orleans Saints this Sunday and reaching a 6-5 record.

It's going to be tough to keep on winning without any reliable running game on offense but we'll see. The Texans haven't had a 60-yard rusher in the past seven games. At some point not being able to run the football effectively is going to be this team's downfall.

I keep waiting for Alfred Blue to have a monster game like he did against Tampa Bay back in Week 3 but he's been awful since then. But DeAndre Hopkins is carrying the team on his back offensively, and J.J. Watt is inspiring the defense to play much better than they played during the first two months of the season.

I don't know if that's going to be enough to make the playoffs but it would be fun to pretend it is.

you know your team's defense is overrated when they cannot get to or rattle and get beat up on by tj yates

not sure if the he looked good or the defense looked bad, but either way yates looked good today.

since the jets cannot get their own heads out of their ass for yet another year, at least a team won that has a shot at making the playoffs.

GJ houston, the better team won today.