3 concerning (and 1 reassuring) takeaways from Bengals' loss over Texans

Well, that didn't go according to plan now, did it, Cincinnati Bengals fans? The team was at one point favored by seven points over the sneaky Houston Texans but it was the feisty Texans who left Paycor Stadium with a 30-27 win. The Bengals fought back but it wasn't enough, as they got shredded by C.J. Stroud and lost their fourth game of the year.

The game started off well for Cincinnati, as Joe Burrow led the offense down the field and found Trenton Irwin in the end zone to make it 7-0 just like that. Unfortunately, the Bengals offense then started sleepwalking for the next hour and a half.

It wasn't until the team was in a massive 20-7 hole that the offense woke up a bit and got things going. They closed the gap and tied the game at 27 but when push came to shove, their efforts weren't good enough.

Let's get to the reassuring and concerning takeways from the Week 10 loss.

All stats courtesy of ESPN

Reassuring: Tanner Hudson = TE1

On the first drive of the game, Joe Burrow didn't need Tee Higgins... or anyone other than Tanner Hudson for that matter. He and Hudson connected on five receptions for 28 yards and while the drive ended with a touchdown to Trenton Irwin, Hudson showed that he should have probably been the starting tight end from Week 1.

Bengals fans saw Hudson play well during the preseason and it was disappointing when he didn't make the final roster. Now, however, there's clearly a connection between Burrow and Hudson and hopefully, he continues to get a lion's share of the targets at the tight end position moving forward.