Bengals vs. Texans: Injuries Will Be Too Much for Houston to Overcome

Injuries single-handedly derailed the Houston Texans' season. 

Gary Kubiak’s club may just be Super Bowl favorites with a healthy Matt Schaub and Mario Williams, but more than likely they won’t even get out of the first round.

First Schaub bit the dust, then Matt Leinart and now T.J. Yates is on the injury report.  According to USA Today, he’s probable against the Cincinnati Bengals with a separated non-throwing shoulder. 

With an injured Yates or a full-strength Jake Delhomme if he’s forced into action, Houston’s running game will be forced to carry the offense up and down the field.

Halfbacks Arian Foster and Ben Tate form the best one-two punch in the entire NFL, but the Texans won’t be able to defeat the Bengals running a one-dimensional offense. 

Cincinnati fields a top-10 defense that is talented enough to key in on Foster and Tate and shut them down if there is no respectable threat through the air.

Andre Johnson, Houston’s only dangerous weapon at wide out, is also probable for Saturday’s action with a hamstring injury.  That hammy kept him out of nine games this season and playing though it against the Tennessee Titans in the regular season finale, Johnson only caught two passes for 21 yards. 

Without a consistent quarterback to get him the football while at the same time not being 100 percent, Cincinnati won’t be forced to commit as much attention to the former Miami Hurricane allowing them to focus on stopping the Texans’ running game.

Houston’s defense is elite, but after losses to subpar teams in the Titans, Indianapolis Colts and Carolina Panthers the past three weeks, it’s difficult to pick the Texans with any confidence. 

Brian Cushing and company may be at home, but the Bengals actually have a better road record than home this season so that advantage will be non-existent.

David Daniels is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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