The Cincinnati Bengals are getting set for a big test in Week 2 against the Houston Texans. There are concerns on the injury front for the Bengals, and the Texans are hungry to get their first win in front of a home crowd.
To help us get a lay of the land, we tapped the knowledge of Scott Barzilla over at Battle Red Blog. Here are five questions we asked him ahead of the clash.
1.) What did you see from C.J. Stroud, in terms of improvement this summer and last week? I know there has been a contract
impasse between him and the Texans—does he still feel like the long-term answer?
SB: It’s always a mixed bag with Stroud. Overall, it was a really good performance, and it makes you feel good about him as a quarterback. He had a 106.5 rating and is on pace to have a 30-TD season. However, that was sandwiched by two fumbles that played a key role in the game. I don’t really blame him for the second fumble, but ball security is a huge issue.
The question for the Texans long-term is how much they want to invest in a near-franchise quarterback, considering that they have committed so many resources to their defense. $60-million quarterbacks mean you have to save elsewhere, and there is still an open question as to whether he is good enough to elevate a flawed roster the same way the other elite quarterbacks do.
As I sit here, I don’t know what the long-term answer is. He is certainly as good as many of the quarterbacks that have gotten paid, but he is not as good as others (say Joe Burrow), so it makes it an impossibly complicated question.
2.) Talk about the loss of Henry To’oTo’o this week, and its potential impact on this game.
SB: I’m really worried that this team is already losing key starters to injury when the defense was very healthy last year. It is not as acute as when facing more mobile quarterbacks, but it still presents coverage issues because the Texans already have difficulties covering tight ends, and that is one more option taken away from them.
I would bet pretty heavily on the over for Mike Gesecki receiving yards, as the Texans really don’t have a good answer for him with injuries they have already suffered to their linebacking core (they lost E.J. Speed in training camp).
3.) Much like the Bengals, questions about the Texans’ offensive line have been prevalent. They have made moves to remedy that—did it show up last week?
SB: Keelan Rutledge may have been the steal of the draft. He was the only lineman to have a 70+ PFF rating last week at left guard. They are marginally better at center with Evan Brown than they were last season. The rest of the line is the same.
In particular, the right side of their line struggled against Buffalo as Trent Brown and Ed Ingram got beat on some key plays. Ingram was solid last season, so we can hope that was a one-off. Brown was solid down the stretch, but there is very little chance he makes it through 17 games healthy.
They signed Braden Smith in the offseason, and he is out with a plantar fasciitis injury. Hopefully, he will be able to return by week five, but that is the state of the line. So, overall they are improved, but there are still some holes that opponents can exploit.
4.) Who are a couple of X-Factors (maybe under-the-radar guys who could surprise) on Houston’s offense and defense for you this week?
SB: On offense, the big key on Sunday will be the receiving core with Nico Collins out. Keyshon Boutte was acquired right before the end of the preseason, so he is probably still learning the playbook, but he is capable of making a big play or two.
The rest will likely rest on their tight ends and Xavier Hutchinson. I like Jaylin Noel in the open field if they give him a screen or two, but the overall production from the receivers will be an issue. A deep cut could be Marlin Klein, their second-round pick. He has a ton of athleticism for a tight end, but is still raw. If he is guarded one-on-one by a linebacker or safety, it could be a mismatch.
5.) The line has hovered between 2.5-3-points in favor of the Texans, per FanDuel this week. What are your thoughts on that and how do you see this playing out?
SB: I’m not comfortable going either way on this line. I just don’t have a good feel for the game. Like you, I think the over is as good a bet as could be had in this game. Both offenses can put points on the board, so someone is going off in this game. If you held a gun to my head, I would pick the Bengals and take the points. I am not touching this money line with a forty-foot pole on either side. I just don’t have a good feel for it, to tell you the truth.
Our thanks to Scott Barzilla for the chat. Check out the other side of the conversation at Battle Red Blog.
