Bengals will face a rowdy home crowd in Reliant
today
HOUSTON -
Wildcard Weekend will get underway at 3:30 pm when the Cincinnati
Bengals face the AFC South Champion Houston Texans at home in Reliant
Stadium. The game will be broadcast on
NBC television.
The Texans defeated the Bengals in week 14 of the
regular season on the road in Cincinnati by a score of 20 – 19. The game was won when rookie QB T.J. Yates
led the Texans to a last minute touchdown.
Expect a
playoff crazed home crowd to be a factor
The roof will be closed. The crowd will be deafening. Ten years of frustration and anticipation
will explode when the Texans take the ball.
The noise that Houston fans produced at home against Atlanta
made a big difference in that game. Expect it to be louder today, much louder.
“I think it will be the loudest it’s ever been,”
outside linebacker Conner Barwin said. “They (the fans) set the standard
for Atlanta. That was a meaningful game here at home, and obviously this one
means more.”
Bengals signal-caller Andy Dalton will have a less
than welcoming homecoming. Dalton, who
has been exceptional as a rookie QB for the Bengals is a Katy native. But
Dalton should have a hard time at the line because of the fans whose ability to
upset the cadence and timing of the Bengals will be a key to victory. Think of it as Houston’s own “12th
Man”.
Limping into a championship
The Texans have been besieged by injuries this
season losing both starting Pro-bowl QB Matt Schaub, and backup QB Matt Leinart
in the span of two games. That led to
rookie QB T. J. Yates being thrown into the starting lineup and the limelight.
Superstar WR Andre Johnson has been sidelined
twice this season missing nine games with nagging hamstring injuries. Johnson will start today.
Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips who was absent
from the sidelines for several games at the end of the regular season due to a
surgery will be back. Phillips will be
in the press box calling a game that will see two top ten defenses go after
each other.
The Texans finished the regular season with the
number two ranked defense in the NFL allowing 285.7 yards per game. The Bengals come to town as the seventh ranked
defense allowing 316.3 yard per game.
The Texans rank fifth in sacks overall while the Bengals rank fourth
with just one additional sack by the Bengals making the difference.
Emotions
running high
Head Coach Gary Kubiak says the Texans are ready
and they are pumped up. That supports Linebacker DeMeco Ryans’ statement
that the Texans are fired up and are coming off a week of practice that has
been their best of the year.
“He’s (Ryans) right,” Gary Kubiak said. “They’re
very focused on what they’re doing and they’re hard on each other this week,
and that’s a good thing. When players push each other, when players put
pressure on each other to do things right, to prepare the right way, that’s
when your team comes together, and they’ve done that all year, but they’ve been
exceptional this week. They’ve had a great week and they’re ready to play.”
Nick Scurfield of HoustonTexans.com writes, “The
intensity at practice has been so high that on Tuesday, the Texans’ first day
of practice, All-Pro wide receiverAndre Johsnon said they could have played the Bengals that
day if they had to.”
T. J. Yates agrees with Johnson, “The energy at
practice these last couple days has been remarkable,” Yates said. Yates described his teammates as ‘excited to be
there. Flying around, yelling, screaming.”
to play this game.
Kubiak approves noting that the Texans usually
play at their highest level when they’re emotional.
For more information visit HoustonTexans.com
and be sure to tune-in to NBC starting at
3:00 pm today for the pre-game
show. Kick off at 3:30 pm.
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About Ethan Edwards
Ethan Edwards is the Senior Writer for
TheCypressTimes.com.
Edwards’ work focuses on topics ranging from
Christian opinion, national news, world news,
Christian Persecution and politics.
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