IN GAME THREAD Texans vs Bengals

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Jadeveon Clowney ruled out for Bengals-Texans


Jadeveon Clowney is perhaps one of the most notable players on the entire Houston Texans roster, solely based on the fact that his team selected him with the first overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. While some have already called Clowney a bust (he?s not a bust yet?give him time), his inability to stay on the football field has concerned many.

Clowney will miss Monday night?s matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals due to a back injury, leaving John Simon as the likely fill-in starter at outside linebacker. The Texans will also be missing cornerback Kareem Jackson, who suffered an ankle injury in Week 6 and has yet to fully recover.

Notable players on the Texans who are designated as probable include Nate Washington, Duane Brown, Akeem Dent, Bernardrick McKinney, Derek Newton, Chris Polk and Cecil Shorts.


On the other side, right tackle Andre Smith will miss Monday night?s action for the Bengals. Eric Winston will likely start in his place, although a new backup tackle could make his way onto the roster very soon.

Notable Bengals marked as probable include Rey Maualuga, Vontaze Burfict and Kevin Zeitler. These four players are actually the only players on the Bengals roster who are dealing with any kind of injury; the Bengals have been extremely healthy this season.
 
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Hoyer, Texans face big challenge in undefeated Bengals


In his seventh NFL season, Brian Hoyer is thrilled to get his first start in a Monday night game when the Houston Texans visit Cincinnati.

"As a kid, you remember (the Monday Night Football theme song)," he said. "That's the kind of thing you want to do when you're in the NFL."

It will be a challenge for the quarterback who was benched earlier this season as he leads an inconsistent Texans team that is looking to hand the 8-0 Bengals their first loss.

Houston is coming off its bye week after wrapping up a 3-5 first half of the season that was marred by on and off-the-field problems at quarterback.

Hoyer won the job out of camp, but was benched in the season opener after struggling early in that game. Ryan Mallett took over, but he didn't play well either and Hoyer earned the starting job back in Week 6.

The Texans have gone 2-1 since he became the starter again. And now he doesn't have to look over his shoulder anymore since Mallett was released on Oct. 27, two days after he missed the team's charter to Miami.

Despite that, Hoyer isn't changing his approach to the job. He's had too many ups and downs in his NFL career to get comfortable regardless of the situation.
Coach Bill O'Brien said Hoyer and the rest of the offense have benefited from not alternating between quarterbacks in practice since Mallett was released. Houston signed T.J. Yates when Mallett was let go, but he doesn't take snaps with the first team in practice.

"Because of the ability now to get all the reps which, he's able to get most of the reps in practice, you see much better chemistry between him and the receivers with the offensive line, with the running game, with how the plays are called, all the different things that go into that," O'Brien said. "I think that that's what you see the most."

Receiver DeAndre Hopkins, who is third in the NFL with 870 yards receiving, agreed that Hoyer's increased workload has helped improve the rapport between him and the receivers.

"Tremendously," Hopkins said. "We work a lot after practice also to help that. Hoyer does a great job of working with guys, not just the guys that are starting, but the rookies, too."

Hoyer has played well since returning as starter, throwing eight touchdown passes with just one interception. The Texans have had some trouble protecting him though, and he's been sacked seven times in the past two games combined.
 
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Entering the Bengals' Monday night matchup with the Texans, here's a look at three keys for the Bengals to stay undefeated - and predictions from both Enquirer Bengals beat writers Paul Dehner Jr. and Jim Owczarski.

Three Keys

Keep Texans' run game down: Houston desperately seeks to energize its run game, and spent much of the bye week focused on the task. The Texans rank last in yards per carry and without Arian Foster have been generally lost. Brian Hoyer alone won't be able to keep up with the Bengals' offense so, assuring the Texans don't find chunks on the ground - as many teams have on the Bengals this season - frustrating the Houston offense should be containable.

Avoid third down: Give the Texans third and long and their disruptive front seven, led by J.J. Watt, will eat you alive. There's a reason they lead the NFL in third down defense. Doing damage on first and second down has been the game plan for most teams this year. At the very least, staying out of third-and-long should be on the mind. Keeping the run option out there slows the pass rush and should keep drives moving.


Can Bengals re-create magic against J.J. Watt?

Start fast: Take one look at the Dolphins' blowout of the Texans when Miami jumped out to a 35-0 lead 17 minutes into the game and it's easy to see the ability to take control. Toss in the fact the offense lacks explosion outside of DeAndre Hopkins and Brian Hoyer spends most of his time checking ball down and an early lead would be tough for the Texans to overcome. This season, the Texans have been outscored 138-49 in the first half. In the second half, they've actually outscored opponents 125-67.


Advanced Analytics: Defending DeAndre Hopkins



The recipe for beating the Bengals right now involves keeping this offense off the field with a dominant running game and chasing Andy Dalton in the pocket. The Texans' front seven have the ability to make half the equation happen, but there's little reason to believe the Texans will all of a sudden start running the ball as they did in Arian Foster's prime. That's just not been the case this season. Over the last five games, they haven't averaged better than 3.2 yards per carry once. Those failures play right into the hands of Geno Atkins (6.0 sacks) and Carlos Dunlap (8.5) in third-and-long situations. The Bengals' defense should shine and the offense will make enough plays early to take the drama out of this one by the time the fourth quarter starts. Bengals move to 9-0 and set a new franchise mark for consecutive victories.



Key matchup: Bengals must keep Texans' run game down



Simply, the Houston Texans aren't good enough to beat the Cincinnati Bengals. While Brian Hoyer may have a short history of success against the Bengals from his days in Cleveland, and while it's unlikely that J.J. Watt will get shut out for the second straight year in the sack column, the Bengals are just the better team. Hoyer and the Texans' dink-and-dunk offense may put together a couple of long drives that put some points on the board and keep Andy Dalton and his offense off the field for some time ? much like Johnny Manziel did early last week ? it won't be enough. The Texans' offensive line is in shambles, they have no running game to speak of and no receivers outside of DeAndre Hopkins that really scare you. And while their defense is better than that, they struggle to prevent teams from running the ball at will. The Bengals should (finally?) put the "prime time" storyline to bed for good with their third straight victory under that spotlight.
 
whodey

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Texans to Bengals is like the giants to the patriots. Always struggling to move the ball versus these fucks
 
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YEAH, they are booo-OOOOing an undefeated team in Cincy, the game is not over yet,UN-real did they think they were the 1972 Dolphins?
 
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