3 heroes (and 7 zeroes) from Bengals' infuriating Week 10 loss to Texans

Cincinnati Bengals fans weren't expecting a loss to the Houston Texans this week but sometimes, these losses come out of nowhere. The Texans are clearly a good team and managed to hold off the Bengals by kicking a game-winning field goal to avoid overtime at Paycor Stadium.

The Bengals led 7-0 after their first drive of the game and then failed to lead the rest of the way. The Texans were at one point leading 20-7 before the Bengals made it a three-point game at the end of the third quarter.

Joe Burrow said following the game that this was one of the most frustrating losses of his career and if you watched the game, you'd understand why. The Bengals had chances to put the game away but continued to struggle in the key moments, even with the Texans trying to choke the game away themselves.

With the loss, the Bengals are now 5-4 and will hit the road on a short week to face the 7-3 Baltimore Ravens, who are also fresh off a loss. Being the road team for Thursday Night Football is tough and the Bengals will have to figure things out quickly and not dwell on this loss too much in the short week.

In honor of The Marvels hitting theaters last week, let's tweak the typical winners and losers to heroes and zeroes. Since the Bengals lost, we'll start with the heroes.

All stats courtesy of ESPN

Heroes

Cam Taylor-Britt

While the Bengals defense left a lot to be desired, Cam Taylor-Britt did not. The former second-round pick out of Nebraska almost got the Bengals' win singlehandedly, as he snagged an interception from C.J. Stroud in the fourth quarter that set the Bengals up in an immediate goal-to-go situation. This came right after Joe Burrow had thrown a pick in the end zone in what looked like the end of the game.

Unfortunately, Taylor-Britt's efforts weren't enough to get his team the win. One thing remains clear though and that's that he's the MVP of this defense through the first 10 weeks of the season.

Heroes

Ja'Marr Chase

In the lead up to the game this past week, fans weren't sure if Ja'Marr Chase would end up playing due to a back injury he suffered in the win over Buffalo. Chase did indeed play, however, and he had a killer day, as per usual.

The fifth overall pick in the 2021 draft finished the day with five catches for 124 yards and a touchdown. This was all done despite having a sore back that Chase played through. With Tee Higgins sidelined, the Bengals needed a big day from Chase and as usual, he delivered.

Tanner Hudson

The Bengals might have their TE1 so that's good, right? Tanner Hudson was elevated to the active roster last week and he made his mark in this game, hauling in six catches for 33 yards. Five of those catches came on the first drive of the game but Hudson showed that he can be a reliable option for Joe Burrow in the big moments.

Zeroes

Tyler Boyd

This one hurts because Tyler Boyd actually had an incredible game stats-wise (eight catches for 117 yards) but he makes the zeroes list because of what he didn't do. With the Bengals facing a 3rd-and-Goal with 1:42 left in the game, Burrow targeted Boyd in the end zone. Had Boyd hauled in the pass, the Bengals would have been up 30-27 or 31-27 if Evan McPherson connected on the extra point.

Since Boyd is included in the zeroes section, you know that he did not haul in the pass. He dropped it and the Bengals had to settle for a McPherson field goal, which tied the game. Boyd shouldn't be blamed for the loss but that drop was brutal. The Bengals likely win the game if he catches that ball.

Rushing Attack (or lack thereof)

Why don't the Bengals run the ball more? On Sunday against the Texans, the rushing attack managed just 66 yards on 18 carries. Joe Mixon did have a rushing touchdown but it came late in the game when the Bengals were on the 1-yard line. Otherwise, Mixon ran the ball for just 46 yards on 11 carries, averaging 4.2 yards per carry.

Joe Burrow was the only other runner for the Bengals in this game. He finished with five rushes for 20 yards. Both he and Mixon averaged over four yards per carry.

Zeroes

Pass Rush

Where was the pressure on C.J. Stroud? The Bengals only brought the rookie quarterback to the ground one time and only hit him four times. Sam Hubbard wasn't active for the game due to an injury but Trey Hendrickson (who also got hurt at the end of the game) had just one hit on Stroud and half a sack. Logan Wilson had the other half sack.

The Bengals pass rush had been looking pretty dang good during their win streak but it was weak on Sunday. It needs to improve if this team wants to get in the playoff picture.

Secondary

As I mentioned in Cam Taylor-Britt's section, the Bengals secondary had a rough day at the office. Stroud cooked them to the tune of 356 yards and a touchdown and Noah Brown was making big plays all afternoon long. The Texans receiver had 172 yards off of seven catches and averaged 24.6 yards per catch.

Chidobe Awuzie had a particularly bad day and Nick Scott isn't gaining favor with Bengals fans. Taylor-Britt and D.J. Turner were about the only positives from this group on Sunday.

Zeroes

Offensive Line

Just when Bengals fans thought the offensive line might be turning a corner, they had a stinker of a game. Alex Cappa got destroyed by Sheldon Rankins (who finished with three sacks) and Burrow was taken to the ground four times in total and hit nine times. It was a brutal day for the Bengals o-line and they have to play better if this team wants to go places this season.

Run Defense

The run defense woes are back and the Texans took advantage of it. They gashed the Bengals on the ground, rushing for 188 yards on 34 carries and averaging 5.5 yards per carry. This is even worse when you realize that Dameon Pierce wasn't even active for this game. Devin Singletary carried the rock 30 times for 150 yards and one touchdown while averaging five yards per carry. Abysmal.

Playoff Hopes

With the Bengals dropping to 5-4, they're all alone at the bottom of the AFC North, as the Browns and Steelers both won moving to 6-3. The Ravens might have lost but they still have three losses versus the Bengals' four losses so Thursday's game isn't playing for a potential division lead as it would have been had Cincinnati managed to win this one.

At this point, the Bengals' best chance to get into the playoffs will be winning the division because they currently have just one win against the AFC. Conference record will come into play in tiebreaker scenarios so being 1-4 in the division is not going to help them if they have the same record as other playoff contenders down the stretch.