The Bengals just didn’t have a good day yesterday in Houston.  Andy Dalton was pretty awful in his first playoff game.  He completed 27 of 42 passes for 257 yards with 0 TD passes and 3 INTs (one of his interceptions was returned 29 yards for a TD by Texans’ DE J.J. Watt).  He also carried the ball 3 times for 17 yards (5.7 ypc) in this game.  Brian Leonard led the way on the ground with 34 yards on 3 carries (11.3 ypc) and he also caught 6 passes for 36 yards (6.0 avg).  Cedric Benson pitched in with 7 carries for 14 yards (2.0 ypc) with 1 TD run yesterday.  Bernard Scott pitched in with 6 carries for 11 yards (1.8 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 29 yards (9.7 avg).  WR A.J. Green (5 rec, 47 yards) and Jermaine Gresham (5 rec, 46 yards) led the way for the Bengals in the passing game.  The Bengals rushed for 76 yards on 19 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 27 of 42 passes (64.3%) for 224 yards as they had possession of the ball for 30:17.

The Bengals just couldn’t stop Arian Foster yesterday (24 carries, 153 yards, 2 TD runs) and it was a huge reason for the loss yesterday.  LB Thomas Howard (6 tackles), safety Reggie Nelson (6 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) and DE Jonathan Fanene (6 tackles and 1 pass defensed) led the way for the Bengals in this game.  The Texans finished up with 188 yards rushing on 35 carries (5.4 ypc) and they also completed 11 of 20 passes (55%) for 152 yards in this game.  This was a bad end for a good season for the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Cincinnati Bengals and Houston Texans will meet up in the playoffs tomorrow in Texas.  The Bengals have won two of their last three games, but they lost last weekend against the Ravens in Cincy.  The Texans limp into the playoffs having lost their last three games of the regular season.  The Texans won the earlier matchup of these teams 20-19 in Cincinnati just four weeks ago.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Bengals have the ball:  The Bengals are likely going to try to be balanced in this game offensively.  The Texans are only giving up 96.0 yards rushing per game, but 4.1 yards per carry…..so Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott might be somewhat effective in this game.  The Bengals need to establish a running game or they could be in trouble.  The Bengals’ O-Line has been really solid pass blocking as Bengals’ QBs have only been sacked 25 times so far this year.  But, they will have a challenge on their hands as OLBs Connor Barwin (11.5 sacks) and Brooks Reed (6 sacks) love to blitz.  Former Bengals’ CB Johnathon Joseph will likely be locked up on WR A.J. Green.  That won’t stop Dalton from throwing to him though.  TE Jermaine Gresham and WR Jerome Simpson will likely be facing single coverage most of the day tomorrow, so don’t be surprised if one of those guys have a good game.  Opposing QBs only have a 69.0 QB Rating against the Texans, so Dalton is going to have to be careful tomorrow.

When the Texans have the ball:  The Texans have the best 1-2 punch at RB in the NFL in Arian Foster and Ben Tate.  The Texans are averaging 153.0 yards rushing per game and 4.5 yards per carry so far this year, so Foster and Tate are going to be a big challenge for the front seven of the Bengals.  The Bengals played pretty solid run D until last weekend when Ray Rice torched them.  If the Texans get a good running game going, look for rookie QB T.J. Yates to have plenty of time to throw the ball.  If the Bengals slow down their running game, look for them to be blitzing heavily in this game on passing downs.  Yates is going to have most of his regular weapons back in this game, including gamebreaking WR Andre Johnson.

PREDICTION:  TEXANS 23, BENGALS 16

The Bengals’ season ended with the big thud in the Jungle earlier today.  The Bengals just got too far behind to keep running the ball which they were doing very well which took them out of any kind of rhythm they had on offense.  Carson Palmer couldn’t get anything going throwing the ball as he completed 18 of 36 passes for 146 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT.  Cedric Benson had one of the best games of his career against the Jets’ solid D with 21 carries for 169 yards (8.0 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 3 passes for 12 yards (4.0 avg).  Laveranues Coles led the way in the passing game for the Bengals today with 6 grabs for 48 yards (8.0 avg) with a TD grab but he also lost a fumble early in the game in the red zone which the Jets recovered.  Chad Ocho Cinco was pretty much taken out of the game by Jets’ CB Darrelle Revis as he only caught 2 passes for 28 yards (14.0 avg) today.  The Bengals finished up with 281 total yards on offense (171 rushing, 110 passing) in this game as they had the ball for 26:58.

The Bengals’ D got pushed around by the Jets’ O-Line and shredded by rookie QB Mark Sanchez.  Safety Chinedum Ndukwe led the way for the Bengals on D today with 10 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss.  Linebacker Dhani Jones pitched in with 7 tackles.  The Jets finished up with 353 total yards in this game (171 rushing, 182 passing) in this game.  The Bengals were also really hurt by kicker Shayne Graham who missed field goals from 35 and 28 yards today.  This loss really hurts but the Bengals still had a pretty good season as they did win the AFC North.

The Bengals didn’t show much at all last week as they got pounded 37-0 by the Jets while they were resting some players.  Look for a different team to show up tomorrow in the Jungle.  The Bengals will likely tighten up the chin straps on offense and turn Cedric Benson loose against a Jets’ D that only allowed 98.6 yards rushing and 3.8 yards per carry this season.  Remember though, Benson has had success against run defenses that are better than the Jets this year.  With Chad Ocho Cinco likely being covered all game long by CB Darrelle Revis the Bengals might look to use other receivers more tomorrow.  Watch for TE J.P. Foschi over the middle against the Jets’ safeties as he has earned Carson Palmer’s trust.  Also, look for the Bengals to use a lot of three receiver sets with Andre Caldwell and Laveranues Coles getting a lot of targets.  I expect Carson Palmer to get his fair share of passing yards in the Jungle tomorrow afternoon.

Defensively the Bengals need to go all out to stop the Jets’ running game with led the league averaging 172.3 yards rushing and 4.5 yards per carry.  That will be easier said than done as DTs Tank Johnson and Domata Peko will have to keep the linebackers clean to get to the running backs.  If the Bengals can stop the Jets on first and second down they will be in business because Mark Sanchez will have a hard time beating the corners.  Jonathan Joseph and Leon Hall will likely be all over Braylon Edwards and Jerricho Cotchery as they fell jilted by not making the Pro Bowl. 

PREDICTION:  BENGALS 20, JETS 17