Listen Live: Houston Texans At Cincinnati Bengals [Live Audio] Monday Night Football
Listen to play-by-play of the Monday Night Football matchup between the Houston Texans and the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio starting with pre-game at 7:45 PM Monday night on 105.7 The Fan! (no streaming)
PREVIEW
Where: Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio
One of three undefeated teams still standing in the NFL, the Cincinnati Bengals look to extend their perfect run to nine games when they host the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football. The Bengals entered the weekend with a 3 1/2-game cushion over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC North and have had 10 days off since demolishing Cleveland 31-10 on Nov. 5.
"We've put ourselves in the position that we're in and there aren't a lot of teams that get to 8-0," Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton said. "We've got to keep pushing and keep the same mentality that we've had the first half of the season and do whatever we can to keep winning these games in the second half." It marks the second of three straight prime-time matchups for the Bengals, who visit NFC West-leading Arizona on Nov. 22. Houston stumbled out of the gate with four losses in its first five games and has already changed starting quarterbacks twice. Brian Hoyer reclaimed the job and led the Texans to two wins in three games before last week's bye.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN.
ABOUT THE TEXANS (3-5): Houston's three victories have come at the expense of teams who are a combined 7-15, but it entered the weekend sitting a half-game behind first-place Indianapolis in the AFC South. Hoyer lost his starting job in Week 1 but has provided some stability by throwing for at least two scoring passes in a club-record five straight games and has one of the league's top receivers in DeAndre Hopkins, who has 66 receptions for 870 yards and six touchdowns. The running game has been anemic since the loss of Arian Foster and the defense will be without former No. 1 overall pick Jadeveon Clowney.
ABOUT THE BENGALS (8-0): If not for the play of New England's Tom Brady, Dalton would be the front-runner for MVP honors after throwing 18 touchdowns against only four interceptions while compiling a career-best 111.0 passer rating - second only to Brady. Wideout A.J. Green has 50 receptions and four touchdowns, but perhaps the biggest boost for Cincinnati's offense in the emergence of tight end Tyler Eifert, who had nine scoring passes among his 37 catches. Gio Bernard and Jeremy Hill continue to share time in the backfield while the defense is permitting only 17.8 points and has notched 23 sacks.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Green had 12 receptions for 121 yards in a 22-13 victory over Houston last season.
2. Texans DE J.J. Watt has 19.5 sacks in his last 13 games.
3. Eifert needs one TD to become the first Cincinnati tight end with 10 scoring passes in a season.
LINE: Bengals -11. O/U: 47.5
PREDICTION: Bengals 30, Texans 17