Arian Foster of the Houston Texans celebrates after he scored a 1-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals during their AFC Wild Card Playoff Game at Reliant Stadium on Saturday. (Photo: Scott Halleran, Getty Images) HOUSTON -- One team entered with the momentum of a strong regular-season finish. The other limped into the playoffs, hoping for a fresh start. In the end, the struggling Houston Texans pulled it together just enough against the Cincinnati Bengals for a 19-13 victory to earn a trip to New England for the AFC Divisional Playoff game next weekend. JOE WHO?: Vikings go to backup QB for start For the Bengals, it was the second consecutive season their season ended against Houston in Reliant Stadium. The Saturday afternoon game was a rematch of the 2011 Wild Card game in which the Texans defeated Cincinnati, 31-10. Texans running back Arian Foster helped lift the Texans for the second consecutive year, rushing for 140 yards on 32 carries and scoring the team's lone touchdown. Foster became the first player in NFL history to rush for more than 100 yards in each of his first three career playoff games. His outing, coupled with a dominant performance by the defense, helped the Texans shake a final month in which their best season in franchise history seemed to spiral out of control as they lost three of their final four games. The Bengals, who had finished second in the NFL in sacks, never were able to get at Schaub, whose offensive line gave him time and opened up big holes for Foster, who snapped a dismal Texans streak in which they had gone eight-consecutive quarters at home without a touchdown. Foster scored on 1-yard carry on the first drive of the second half, giving the Texans a 16-7 lead - enough of a cushion to last them until the end. Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton struggled throughout the game, getting sacked twice and completing just 14-of-30 passes for 127 yards and one interception. It took until the second half for him to even connect with Pro Bowl receiver A.J. Green, who finished with five catches for 80 yards. Dalton's lone interception was picked off by Johnathan Joseph, helping set up the fifth field goal of the game for Texans placekicker Shayne Graham from 24 yards. Despite the Texans dominating on defense and in time of possession for the first half, they entered the second half with a slim 9-7 lead. Texans quarterback Schaub, who threw only one touchdown in the last four regular season games, continued his issues finding the end zone. He went three-and-out on the first drive before getting the team in position for a 48-yard field goal by Graham on the second drive with 7:49 to go in the first quarter. The Bengals' Andy Dalton was having more problems than Schaub though. He went three-and-out on their first possession and was sacked by J.J. Watt for a 9-yard loss on a third-and-13 on their second possession, forcing their second of four first-half punts. The Bengals mustered only 54 total yards of offense in the entire first half and crossed midfield only once. The Texans didn't give Dalton too many opportunities to find his rhythm, dominating in time of possession 22:53-7:03 in the first half. When the Texans' offense stalled in the red zone early in the second quarter, Graham kicked a 27-yard field goal with 13:07 left in the half to give the Texans a 6-0 lead. The Bengals' lone score came courtesy of Schaub, when a bad pass to full back James Casey was picked off by Bengals cornerback Leon Hall, who returned it 21 yards for an easy touchdown with 9:30 to play in the half. Hall's touchdown gave the Bengals' a brief 9-7 lead. The Texans took back the lead to a chorus of boos from a crowd frustrated with the red zone troubles. Led down the field by big runs by Arian Foster, Schaub faced a third-and-3 on the Bengals' 4-yard line. His low and outside pass to receiver Andre Johnson slipped through Johnson's fingers. The Texans had to settle for a 22-yard field goal by Graham. Foster finished with 86 rushing yards for the Texans, who had 250 total offensive yards in the half. Schaub finished the game 29-of-38 for 262 yards. The Texans will now try to redeem themselves in New England, a team that derailed them a month ago in a 42-14 loss. Story Highlights
Source : http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2013/01/05/houston-texans-beat-cincinnati-bengals-19-13-in-afc-wild-card-game/1811431/