Chase ignites Bengals with pair of touchdowns in win over Texans

A mouth-watering AFC contest was anticipated in Houston as the Texans, who certainly didn’t disgrace themselves despite falling narrowly to Buffalo last week, hosted the Cincinnati Bengals, fresh of a comprehensive win against Tampa Bay, primarily courtesy of their defense, which hasn’t been a common road to victory for the team in recent years.

Similarly for Houston, the game script against the Bills was flipped on its head from what most expected, with the offense scoring 31 points but the league’s best defense looking paper thin at times, albeit against former-MVP Josh Allen and his array of highly-regarded talent.

The defenses set the tone early in the game, forcing 5 combined punts to begin the game, but it was the Texans who broke the game open first, getting down the field courtesy of an explosive catch-and-run by Dalton Schultz. Despite earning a 34-yard field goal attempt, a botched snap meant the game remained scoreless.

With 3 and a half minutes left in the first half, it took an all-time great catch from Ja’Marr Chase to break the deadlock, dragging both toes through the end zone to haul in a ball that would’ve landed a few yards outside the end zone.

The Texans worked their way into field goal territory for a second time on the back of Stroud’s composure, and this time they got a good kick away, finally getting on the board just before halftime.

After Evan McPherson booted through a 51-yard field goal, Houston’s third field goal attempt resulted in another unique outcome, with the usually reliable Ka’imi Fairbairn unable to make the distance from 58 yards out.

The league’s best quarterback-receiver duo earned its stripes yet again, as Burrow and Chase proved to be the point of difference between the sides, hooking up again for a touchdown to break the game open on the back of Cincinnati’s inspiring defensive performance.

The Texans only mustered a singular field goal for the rest of the game, which McPherson wiped out with another long-range effort of his own.

So unrelenting was Cincinnati’s defense, that they confiemed the result with a 4th down sack of Stroud, as the Houston offense ended the day with a red zone efficiency of 0-for-4, unable to cope with the heat brought by the Bengals from start to finish.

There should’ve been little doubt anyway as to whether this defense is the real deal after last week and the verdict is undoubted now. The Bengals’ defense is good enough to compliment their offense, which was on full display today. Burrow, Chase and Tee Higgins all made crucial plays when they had to, but even they have another level to go to.

Stroud threw for 353 yards in an attempt to inspire his side, but was unable to get it done when it mattered. The Texans’ defense improved from last week and ultimately were defeated by a couple of plays of individual brilliance. It’s early, but 0-2 is not where any team wants to be to open their season.

Touchdowns
Cincinnati: Chase 2
Houston: N/A

Top Performers
Cincinnati: Chase, Burrow, Higgins, Hill, Johnson, Allen, McPherson
Houston: Stroud, Schultz, Anderson Jr.

Injuries
Cincinnati: N/A
Houston: N/A

Crowd: TBC