Taking a look at the top 3 takeaways from the Houston Texans' loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Houston Texans fell to the Cincinnati Bengals 20-6 on Sunday afternoon in a game where the Bengals had control for most of the game.
Both defenses made some plays, but ultimately, Joe Burrow and the Bengals offense did just enough to get the win.
With that in mind, let's take a look at the top three takeaways from this game.
1. Run Game Was Ineffective
One of the biggest takeaways from this game was the fact that the Texans' run game was ineffective and really could not get anything going, with the offensive line struggling to find open lanes.
For the game, Houston ran the ball 18 times for 60 yards and averaged 3.3 yards per carry. The element of this that was really interesting was the fact that running backs David Montgomery and Woody Marks combined for 14 carries for 18 yards.
The fact that the Texans' running backs could not find lanes on the ground was not a good sign for Houston, because it then forced quarterback CJ Stroud to throw the ball 55 times and put a lot of pressure on him as well as the passing game overall.
Heading into next week, the Texans must figure out a way to be much better on the ground, otherwise, the offense could have another tough week.
2. Defensive Front Was Dominant
While this was a tough game for the Texans overall, there were some positive takeaways with one them being that the defensive front was dominant.
On Sunday afternoon, the Texans put a lot of pressure on Burrow as they sacked him five times and hit him a total of 10 times. The great part of this for Houston was the fact that the pressure came from all over.
The players who got in on the pressure included defensive ends Will Anderson Jr., Danielle Hunter, Logan Hall, Sabastian Harsh as well as defensive tackles Mario Edwards Jr. and Sheldon Rankins. Across the board, Houston did a great job when it came to generating pressure.
Moving forward, if the Texans can continue to generate pressure like that, this team should be in a great position to be able to create havoc on opposing quarterbacks and stack up wins to get back on track after a 0-2 start during this 2026 season.
3. CJ Stroud May Have a New Top Option
The final takeaway is the fact that Stroud may have found a new top option with Nico Collins out of the lineup in the form of tight end Dalton Schultz.
In this game, Schultz got open consistently and was a great target for Stroud as he totaled 12 receptions for 140 yards on 14 targets while averaging 11.7 yards per reception. Throughout the game, Stroud and Schultz seemed to be on the same page which was a key reason why the Texans moved the ball when they did.
With Collins out of the lineup this past week and potentially next week, Stroud needed to find someone he could rely on in the passing game and it appears that Schultz is that option with his ability to get open over the middle and make catches on a consistent basis.
As the Texans head into Week 3, if Collins is still out, Stroud may need to look to Schultz as the top target in the offense once again, which could result in another productive day for Stroud and Schultz through the air.
