Texans' Watson celebrates birthday with 13-9 win over Bengals
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[September 16, 2017]
(The Sports Xchange) - Deshaun
Watson passed for 125 yards and had a 49-yard TD run in his first
career start on his 22nd birthday, lifting the Houston Texans to a
13-9 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday night at Paul
Brown Stadium.
DeAndre Hopkins was targeted 13 times and had seven catches for 73
yards for the Texans (1-1), who avoided their first 0-2 start since
2015.
The Texans relied heavily on their rushing attack, with 168 yards,
including Watson's 67. Lamar Miller had 61 yards on 18 carries.
Cincinnati has not scored a touchdown in eight quarters to begin
this season. It's the 15th time the Bengals have started 0-2. They
have never reached the playoffs after an 0-2 start.
Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton was coming off one of the worst
performances of his career in last week's 20-0 loss to the Baltimore
Ravens with four interceptions. He didn't throw an interception
Thursday night, but was off-target for much of the game, going 20 of
35 for 224 yards.
Watson earned the start after passing for 102 yards with a TD and an
interception after taking over for Tom Savage in the second half of
last week's loss to Jacksonville. Watson was 15 of 24 and was sacked
three times Thursday but maintained his composure throughout.
The teams traded field goals in the second half as Ka'imi
Fairbairn's 42-yarder with 2:01 left gave Houston a 13-9 lead.
Cincinnati's last drive ended when Dalton threw incomplete on
fourth-and-9 from his own 44.
There were a combined nine punts in the first half.
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Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) looks to pass against
the Cincinnati Bengals in the first half at Paul Brown Stadium.
Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
The first touch of Cincinnati wide receiver John
Ross' NFL career was a 12-yard gain on an end-around, but he
fumbled, and Jadeveon Clowney returned it 48 yards to the Bengals
20-yard line.
That led to a 26-yard field goal by Fairbairn to put Houston ahead
3-0.
After 15 scoreless possessions to begin the season, the Bengals
finally got on the scoreboard with a 39-yard field goal by Randy
Bullock, set up by A.J. Green's 50-yard catch.
Later in the second quarter, Watson was drilled by Geno Atkins for
an 11-yard sack, one of three sacks for the Bengals in the half.
Two plays later, Watson scrambled on third-and-15, broke two tackles
and raced 49 yards for a touchdown, putting the Texans ahead 10-3.
Cincinnati drove 64 yards in 48 seconds just before halftime but
settled for a 29-yard Bullock field goal, making the score 10-6. [© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
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