Houston Texans get 140 yards from running back Arian Foster to beat Cincinnati Bengals in AFC wild card playoff game
Scott Halleran/Getty Images
Arian Foster takes a bow after scoring the only offensive TD of the game in Houston's 19-13 win.
TEXANS 19, BENGALS 13
HOUSTON — The Texans had deployed a winning formula when they jumped out to an 11-1 start, but somehow they lost it during the month of December when they went 1-3 down the stretch.
The formula featured an offense that had a quarterback who didn’t make mistakes, operating behind a rock-solid line that launched a punishing, clock-eating rushing attack that leaned on a stingy defense intent on forcing opponents into untenable third-down situations.
It looks as if Houston discovered the formula again and just in time for the playoffs. Houston beat the Bengals, 19-13, Saturday in an AFC wild-card playoff game before a record crowd of 71,738 at Reliant Stadium. Now the Texans (13-4) will see if the formula is road-worthy because they have to travel to New England to take on the Patriots in a divisional playoff game next Sunday.
“Anytime we control the line of scrimmage we’re going to be hard to beat,’’ said Texans running back Arian Foster, who rushed for 140 yards and a touchdown on 32 carries and helped Houston hold the ball for 38:49.
Foster set an NFL record by becoming the first running back to rush for more than 100 yards in his first three playoff games.
“He’s a man,’’ Houston coach Gary Kubiak said.
“I’ve been around some good ones. The whole stadium knew we had to line up and run the ball and boy was he at his best there at the end. The bigger the game the better Arian gets.’’
In the week leading up to game, Foster was asked whether he had been reading anything inspirational during the Texans' losing stretch. He said he had been reading a book of philosophy called “The Shaman’’ but he had misplaced the book.
“It’s about a plant in . . . I think it’s the Amazon rain forest, that when you ingest it, it’s supposed to take you to a spiritual experience similar to DMT,’’ Foster said.
The Bengals (10-7) must have thought they were having an out-of-body experience trying to contain the elusive Foster. He ruined what had been a remarkable late-season run for Cincinnati, which had won seven of its last eight games to make the playoffs.
Of the 120 NFL teams that started the season 3-5, only seven had made the playoffs and the Bengals were one of them this season. It didn’t matter. The Bengals saw all that momentum go down the drain. They haven’t won a playoff game in 22 years.
“I’m not one for moral victories. We lost,’’ said Bengals cornerback Leon Hall, who returned an interception for the Bengals’ only TD of the game.
“We had a good year. Obviously we didn’t play good enough, because our season is over now.’’
Houston’s defense blunted any threat from Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton and his big-play receiver, A.J. Green.
Green's lone big play came on a 45-yard catch that set up a 34-yard field goal by Josh Brown that cut Houston’s lead to 16-10 in the third quarter.
“We have a saying on defense that if we hold 'em to five field goals that’s 15 points,’’ said Houston cornerback Johnathan Joseph, who had an interception in coverage against Green. “You can’t win in this league with 15 points.’’
For a while it seemed as if that’s about all the Texans were going to get with Matt Schaub behind center.
A lot of eyes were on Schaub because he was starting his first playoff game in nine seasons in the NFL. He watched from the sidelines with a foot injury as backup T.J. Yates led the Texans to a victory over the Bengals in a wild-card game last year.
Schaub got comfortable as the Texans defense put the clamps down on the Bengals, holding them to 0-for-9 on third down. He completed 29 of 38 passes for 262 yards, including a 20-yarder to receiver Andre Johnson in the third quarter that gave the Texans a first-and-goal at the 5 to set up Foster’s 1-yard TD run — Houston's only TD of the game.
Now it’s on to New England, where the Texans lost, 42-14, on Dec. 10.
“We know what it takes to win (there) and that’s play good road football,’’ Schaub said.
“We didn’t do that the last time we were up there. We’re going to move on from this one and we’re going to be excited to go up there and play better.’’
HOUSTON — The Texans had deployed a winning formula when they jumped out to an 11-1 start, but somehow they lost it during the month of December when they went 1-3 down the stretch.
The formula featured an offense that had a quarterback who didn’t make mistakes, operating behind a rock-solid line that launched a punishing, clock-eating rushing attack that leaned on a stingy defense intent on forcing opponents into untenable third-down situations.
It looks as if Houston discovered the formula again and just in time for the playoffs. Houston beat the Bengals, 19-13, Saturday in an AFC wild-card playoff game before a record crowd of 71,738 at Reliant Stadium. Now the Texans (13-4) will see if the formula is road-worthy because they have to travel to New England to take on the Patriots in a divisional playoff game next Sunday.
“Anytime we control the line of scrimmage we’re going to be hard to beat,’’ said Texans running back Arian Foster, who rushed for 140 yards and a touchdown on 32 carries and helped Houston hold the ball for 38:49.
Foster set an NFL record by becoming the first running back to rush for more than 100 yards in his first three playoff games.
“He’s a man,’’ Houston coach Gary Kubiak said.
“I’ve been around some good ones. The whole stadium knew we had to line up and run the ball and boy was he at his best there at the end. The bigger the game the better Arian gets.’’
In the week leading up to game, Foster was asked whether he had been reading anything inspirational during the Texans' losing stretch. He said he had been reading a book of philosophy called “The Shaman’’ but he had misplaced the book.
“It’s about a plant in . . . I think it’s the Amazon rain forest, that when you ingest it, it’s supposed to take you to a spiritual experience similar to DMT,’’ Foster said.
The Bengals (10-7) must have thought they were having an out-of-body experience trying to contain the elusive Foster. He ruined what had been a remarkable late-season run for Cincinnati, which had won seven of its last eight games to make the playoffs.
Of the 120 NFL teams that started the season 3-5, only seven had made the playoffs and the Bengals were one of them this season. It didn’t matter. The Bengals saw all that momentum go down the drain. They haven’t won a playoff game in 22 years.
“I’m not one for moral victories. We lost,’’ said Bengals cornerback Leon Hall, who returned an interception for the Bengals’ only TD of the game.
“We had a good year. Obviously we didn’t play good enough, because our season is over now.’’
Houston’s defense blunted any threat from Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton and his big-play receiver, A.J. Green.
Green's lone big play came on a 45-yard catch that set up a 34-yard field goal by Josh Brown that cut Houston’s lead to 16-10 in the third quarter.
“We have a saying on defense that if we hold 'em to five field goals that’s 15 points,’’ said Houston cornerback Johnathan Joseph, who had an interception in coverage against Green. “You can’t win in this league with 15 points.’’
For a while it seemed as if that’s about all the Texans were going to get with Matt Schaub behind center.
A lot of eyes were on Schaub because he was starting his first playoff game in nine seasons in the NFL. He watched from the sidelines with a foot injury as backup T.J. Yates led the Texans to a victory over the Bengals in a wild-card game last year.
Schaub got comfortable as the Texans defense put the clamps down on the Bengals, holding them to 0-for-9 on third down. He completed 29 of 38 passes for 262 yards, including a 20-yarder to receiver Andre Johnson in the third quarter that gave the Texans a first-and-goal at the 5 to set up Foster’s 1-yard TD run — Houston's only TD of the game.
Now it’s on to New England, where the Texans lost, 42-14, on Dec. 10.
“We know what it takes to win (there) and that’s play good road football,’’ Schaub said.
“We didn’t do that the last time we were up there. We’re going to move on from this one and we’re going to be excited to go up there and play better.’’
Source: http://www.nydailynews.com
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