Winners and Losers From the Bengals' 37-31 Win Over the Texans

Here are our winners and losers from Sunday's game

The Bengals beat the Texans 37-31 on Sunday. It was their second-straight win and Zac Taylor's first career road victory. 

Here are four winners and two losers from Sunday's game. 

Winners

Zac Taylor

Head coach Zac Taylor was in a tough spot two weeks ago. He appeared to be on the hot seat, but after beating the Steelers in primetime, he called another good game on Sunday against the Texans. It was Taylor’s first career road win. The second-year head coach appears to have saved his job the last couple weeks and will hope to carry this momentum into next season.

Brandon Allen

The Bengals backup quarterback had a phenomenal game against the Texans. He led his team to a big win, finishing with 371 passing yards and two touchdowns. Allen might have solidified his spot on the roster as the long-term backup quarterback with Joe Burrow set to return next season. 

Tee Higgins

The rookie wideout had another impressive performance Sunday. Higgins finished with 99 receiving yards and one touchdown. He made some great catches and looked like a complete wide receiver. With Burrow returning next year, Higgins should be a huge piece of the Bengals roster for years to come.

Samaje Perine

Perine had 95 yards on the ground and two rushing touchdowns on Sunday. He also had 41 receiving yards. The former Oklahoma running back stepped up in place of injured Joe Mixon and had a great performance. Perine looks like he could be a future depth piece behind Mixon next season.

Losers

Lou Anarumo

The Bengals' defense struggled against the Texans, allowing 166 rushing yards to the worst running offense in the league. They also had a hard time containing Deshaun Watson, who finished with 324 passing yards and three touchdowns. Although Taylor’s job appears to be safe, Anarumo could be in trouble this offseason.

Markus Bailey

The rookie linebacker didn’t play much, but had a bad sequence of plays in the second half. Bailey gave up a touchdown against Johnson in coverage and was called for a penalty on the ensuing kick return. Brandon Wilson returned the ball to the Houston 40-yard line, but Bailey's penalty negated the big return. These errors aren’t too concerning for the rookie, but it wasn’t his best performance.

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