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The Bengals Are Finally Coming Back to Houston
The Bengals are coming!
The Bengals are coming!
Ring the alarm bells because the Bengals are coming to Reliant Stadium for a game in front of a full Stadium crowd for the first time since 2016. These two teams seemed to make a habit out of playing one another throughout the 2010s. 2011 twice. 2014. 2015. 2016. 2017. Then, they met in the COVID season of 2020 and last met in the Queen City in 2023. Finally, in 2026, the Bengals return to play a Texans squad still smarting from a loss to the Buffalo Bills in week one.
These Bengals are led by one of the best QBs, executing one of the most dangerous offenses, highlighted by arguably the best WR in the NFL. QB Joe Burrow has been throwing the pigskin to WR Ja'Marr Chase since 2019 when the two led LSU to a national Championship. They carried that connection forward to the Bengals and lit up scoreboards in the process. They did last week as well, knocking off Tampa Bay in Cincinnati, scoring 33 points in the process. The difference from 2023, though, is that the Texans will finally face Chase AND Tee Higgins, together. Those two form one of the best WR combinations in the league and it might not even be close.
But, this Cincinnati defense showed how different it was last week, generating four turnovers against the Bucs. They yielded well under 300 yards and one of the main reasons for that was IDL Dexter Lawrence II. When Sexy Dexy asked for a trade from the New York Giants this offseason, I just hoped that he would stay out of the AFC South. That said, it wasn't much better when the Bengals decided to add him to their roster. He's the best BIG interior game wrecker I've seen since Vince Wilfork. He can alter everything this Texans defense wants to do by just lining up in the middle. My goodness, what a nightmare.
After a loss in week one, the Texans need a win to set the 2026 season straight. Before Sunday arrives, let's get to Know the Texans' Week 2 Foe — The Cincinnati Bengals.
Cincinnati Bengals 2026 Schedule (1-0)
- Week 1 – W Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Week 2 – @ Houston Texans
- Week 3 – @ Pittsburgh Steelers
- Week 4 – Jacksonville Jaguars
- Week 5 – @ Miami Dolphins
- Week 6 – BYE WEEK
- Week 7 – @ Baltimore Ravens
- Week 8 – Tennessee Titans
- Week 9 – @ Atlanta Falcons
- Week 10 – Pittsburgh Steelers
- Week 11 – @ Washington Commanders
- Week 12 – New Orleans Saints
- Week 13 – @ Cleveland Browns
- Week 14 – Kansas City Chiefs
- Week 15 – @ Carolina Panthers
- Week 16 – @ Indianapolis Colts
- Week 17 – Baltimore Ravens
- Week 18 – Cleveland Browns
Bengals Offense by the Numbers (2026 regular season)
- Rushing yards per game: 106.0 ypg (19th in the NFL)
- Passing yards per game: 245.0 ypg (9th)
- Total offense per game: 351.0 ypg (15th)
- Turnovers lost: 1 (1 INT, 0 fumbles lost)
Expected Bengals Starting Offense for Week 2
- QB – Joe Burrow
- RB – Chase Brown
- WR – Ja'Marr Chase
- WR – Tee Higgins
- WR – Andrei Iosivas
- TE – Mike Gesicki/Drew Sample
- LT – Orlando Brown Jr.
- LG – Dylan Fairchild
- C – Ted Karras
- RG – Dalton Risner
- RT – Amarius Mims
Other key offensive pieces
- QB – Joe Flacco
- RB – Samaje Perine
- TE – Erick All
- TE – JACK ENDRIES
Italics — Rookie · ALL CAPS — New to team in 2026
Keys to Winning vs. the Bengals Offense
1. Joe Schiesty…again
Why is it so hard to stop Bengals QB Joe Burrow? Well, if you keep him from throwing downfield, he'll spread the wealth in the short to intermediate game. If you take that away, he'll throw to Ja'Marr Chase repeatedly. If you take that away, he'll get Tee Higgins involved heavily. If you take that away, he'll use his backs on screens and checkdowns. If you heat him up, he'll throw hot all day. If you drop eight, he'll take checkdowns for five to seven all day. If you think you have him sacked, he can escape and scramble/throw for big gains. If you rattle him, he'll transform into his alter ego Joe Cool. He has battled injuries for the past few years and had some back tightness after the week one win over Tampa Bay. But, that doesn't faze anyone in the slightest because he's going to play. He threw at least two of the prettiest passes I've seen in my life in the last matchup between these two teams in 2023. And, he still has those clubs in his bag and he's honed them in his seven years in the NFL.
2. It's as easy as 1…
In the offseason when the lists fly from radio voices, national media and relatives at a cookout, invariably, the conversation turns to wide receivers. A list worth its salt will ALWAYS mention Bengals WR Ja'Marr Chase in the top two and, regularly, in the top one. He's that damn good. Healthy, he's a MASSIVE issue and he has all the traits. Size. Speed. Toughness. Ball Skills. Confidence. Route running. Connection with Burrow. He has it all. No team can truly "Double #1" because Tee Higgins and the rest of the Bengals receivers can EAT as well. The Buccaneers limited Chase's impact (two catches for 12 yards); however, the focus on #1 allowed TE Mike Gesicki to rack up five catches for 78 yards and a TD. Furthermore, Higgins had 59 yards on three catches. In fact, the TEs and RBs combined for 16 of Burrow's 25 completions as the Bucs focused so much on Chase. However, Chase will get opps on Sunday and the last time we saw this Texans secondary, Bills WR D.J. Moore had a strong day. Chase will be ready for plenty more than just four targets on Sunday.
3. One House, Two Houses, Red House, Blue House
There are large individuals in every NFL locker room. LARGE. But, there may not be a pair of offensive tackles in the league bigger than the Cincinnati Bengals' "houses" out on the edge of Orlando Brown Jr. (6-8, 350 lb.) and Amarius Mims (6-8, 350 lb.). When I first put on the film of the win over Tampa Bay, I was struck immediately by how damn big those two are. Mims put on a darn clinic slowing down rookie Rueben Bain Jr. and his power. Mims' length frustrated the rookie who uses his bull-in-a-china-shop power to dominate on the edges. Brown just toyed around with the Bucs edge rushers on the other side, engulfing smaller rushers constantly and eliminating their rushes with his size and length. The Bills put such a focus on stopping Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter out on the edges, but they didn't have guys the size of these two Bengals OTs. The Bills didn't let the Texans talented DE duo live in one-on-one situations, but the Bengals might. If they do, the Texans duo has to burn those houses down and get in the face of Burrow throughout the day.
Bengals Defense by the Numbers (2026 regular season)
- Rushing yards allowed per game: 89.0 ypg (10th in the NFL)
- Passing yards allowed per game: 193.0 ypg (17th)
- Total yards allowed per game: 282.0 ypg (12th)
- Turnovers generated: 4 (0 INT, 4 fumble recoveries — Bengals are +3 in TO margin)
Expected Bengals Starting Defense for Week 2
- Edge – Myles Murphy
- DT – JONATHAN ALLEN
- NT – DEXTER LAWRENCE II
- Edge – BOYE MAFE
- LB – Demetrius Knight Jr.
- LB – Barrett Carter
- Nickel – Jalen Davis
- CB – DJ Turner II
- S – Jordan Battle
- S – BRYAN COOK
- CB – Dax Hill
Other key defensive pieces
- Edge – Shemar Stewart (missed Week 1 with a knee injury)
- Edge – CASHIUS HOWELL
- DT – B.J. Hill
- NT – T.J. Slaton Jr.
- S – KYLE DUGGER
Italics — Rookie · ALL CAPS — New to team in 2026
Keys to Winning vs. the Bengals' Defense
1. Sexy Dexy
It's an image seared in my brain. I saw it in person, but when I saw a zoomed-in replay on the MetLife video board, I knew it would stay with me forever. The Texans traveled to New Jersey to take on the Giants in 2022. It was not a great Texans squad at the time, but it was one that certainly played hard. Early in the game, Texans RB Dameon Pierce took a handoff and was tackled for a short loss. By his own offensive guard. Seeing the play live, I thought I saw what I thought I saw. Then, I looked up to the video board and confirmed it. Giants star DT Dexter Lawrence II had tackled Pierce without even touching him. He did it tossing a Texans OL INTO Pierce. The power with which he propelled said OL into the backfield was enough to knock Pierce on his wallet for a two yard TFL. It was as impressive a physical feat as I could remember, then Lawrence proceeded to turn the game into a showcase of, well, him. Five tackles (one with an OL), one sack, one TFL and FIVE QB hits. That was four years ago, and not much has changed, other than the fact that the Texans will face him this weekend as a member of the Bengals. He's so powerful that no OL can handle him one-on-one; they ALL demand help. If a team doesn't want to focus on slowing Lawrence, he can wreck the game from the interior in a blink. The Texans can't allow Lawrence to do such a thing. The Texans OL interior did play well on Sunday, but doing so against Lawrence is going to take a completely different kind of effort.
2. Young Gunz
The Bengals did a wonderful job resetting the defense after a difficult 2025. They brought in Lawrence and signed Jonathan Allen, an unrestricted free agent out of Minnesota. They also added edge rusher Boye Mafe in FA from Seattle. Then, in the secondary, they added former Chiefs starting safety Bryan Cook. What the Bengals didn't do was add anyone at the linebacker position, trusting the position to a couple of 2025 Draft picks, who started a total of 26 times as rookies — Demetrius Knight Jr. and Barrett Carter. Now, when it comes to athleticism, these two have few equals. They can fly, but they are snack sized (like Buffalo's LB crew). Yet, I was struck by the fact that the Bengals didn't make any additions at linebacker last offseason, allowing this youthful duo to run the show together again. They both played very well against Tampa Bay, but the Texans have to find ways to exploit the two Bengals starting LBs.
3. How the tables Turner-ed
Early in his career, Bengals star cover corner DJ Turner II was nothing but a fast guy with a great Combine 40-time. He ran 4.26 at the 2023 Combine, solidifying a day two selection with the Bengals. But, he struggled early in his career to play up to that potential. But, after two rough seasons, he hit the ground running with new Bengals DC Al Golden last year and hasn't looked back. He became one of the better young CBs in the AFC and took on the challenge of covering every great receiver in the league. He just looks completely different than the man who the Texans faced back in 2023 as a rookie. Regardless of who is in the Texans receiving corps for this game, Turner II is going to play a role in slowing them down. Be cognizant of where he is and show some caution throwing at him because he is a ball magnet who can change the game with a big play when the ball is in the air.
Texans All-Access airs weeknights on 95.7 The Fan with Marc Vandermeer and John Harris. Subscribe on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
