Texans' C.J. Stroud Makes NFL History for All the Wrong Reasons vs. Bengals

The Houston Texans had a pretty abysmal performance on the offensive side of the ball en route to their 6-20 Week 2 loss against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The run game was non-existent, the offensive line remained an issue as it has been for the last few seasons, and Houston's red zone attack couldn't gain any traction as they went 0/4 on their total opportunities.

However, even in the disastrous day the Texans had on the offensive side of the ball, it didn't stop quarterback C.J. Stroud from having a big day in terms of his counting stats––so much so that he actually wound up making NFL history in the process of Houston's Week 2 loss.

C.J. Stroud Makes Ugly NFL History in Loss vs. Bengals

According to Scott Kacsmar on X, Stroud is the first quarterback in NFL history to record 350 or more passing yards in a game with no interceptions while his team scored less than 10 points in the game.

Stroud: 1st QB in NFL history to throw for 350+ yards with no INTs and his team scored fewer than 10 points 🤷 https://t.co/ctYtaR3rc0
— Scott Kacsmar (@ScottKacsmar) September 20, 2026

The statline from Stroud certainly tells a story about just how this Texans offense looked throughout the course of their Week 2 demise.

Overall, Stroud played well in his role, considering the circumstances. While he was forced to throw a career-high 55 pass attempts, he did move the chains with 353 passing yards, albeit on a bit of a lower completion percentage of 54.5%.

Stroud also took care of the football well, as opposed to his two giveaways from last week against the Buffalo Bills, considering he had zero interceptions or fumbles against Cincinnati. That ball security and ability to limit mistakes was a bit of what kept Houston within striking distance for most of the game.

But while Stroud played his part under center and put up a ton of passing yards to show for it, it was other areas of the offense around the Texans' quarterback that crumbled and ultimately led their scoring to hit a brick wall, all for just a total of six points scored.

Week 2 marked only the fourth time during the DeMeco Ryans era where the Texans scored seven points or less in a single game, and the first time since 2024's Christmas Day game against the Baltimore Ravens, where they also lost in an embarrassing 2-31 fashion.

Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97) wraps up Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) for a sack in the fourth quarter of the NFL Week 2 game between the Houston Texans and the Cincinnati Bengals at Reliant Stadium in Houston on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. The Bengals improved to 2-0 on the season with a 20-6 win on the road. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

So really, this isn't the first time the Texans' offense has seen similar woes to what they did this week against the Bengals. A lot of their issues are very similar to what they tried to repair on that side of the ball this offseason, yet those tweaks haven't amounted to many substantive results two weeks into the new year.

Once Collins is back in the lineup, and perhaps as the Texans get a little deeper into the season, their offensive results can look a bit better. So far though, it feels like there's a little déjà vu going on in Houston.

The Texans will look to rebound from their humbling offensive performance here against the Bengals in Week 3 as they travel to take on their division rival Indianapolis Colts for their first AFC South matchup of the 2026 season.

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