Both quarterbacks were rookies in 2011 and started opposite each other in the playoffs that season. While Yates wasn’t anything special in Houston’s wild-card victory, he didn’t turn the ball over that day while Dalton threw three interceptions in a 21-point loss. 

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Yates again took care of the ball Monday night while Dalton tossed a pair of interceptions in a 10-6 Houston victory at Paul Brown Stadium.

It was the first loss of the season for the Bengals (8-1) and a much-needed victory for the Texans, who are tied with the Colts atop the AFC South despite a 4-5 record. 

The Bengals were driving for a potential game-winning score in the final minute, but Texans safety Quintin Demps punched the ball away from A.J. Green after the Bengals receiver had caught a 10-yard pass on a fourth-and-6 at the Texans’ 23. Demps also recovered the fumble. 

Neither offense was able to get much going in the first half, with the Bengals holding a 6-3 lead at the break. A week after catching three touchdown passes, Bengals tight end Tyler Eifert was held to just three catches for 26 yards. He also had three drops and Dalton badly underthrew him when he was wide open after his defender had fallen. 

Dalton went 22 for 38 for 197 yards and an interception. He overshot Marvin Jones and Johnathan Joseph made a juggling pick.

“Everybody told us we couldn’t do this,” Texans defensive end J.J. Watt, who had one of Houston’s three sacks, told ESPN following the game. “Well, how you all doing?

“Our goal was to come out here and make the Red Rifle (Dalton) look like a Red Ryder BB gun. It wasn’t pretty. It was 10-6, but we were able to do some big things on defense to hold them to two field goals.”

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Texans quarterback Brian Hoyer was 12 of 22 for 123 yards and an interception before leaving late in the third quarter with a concussion. Fifth-year pro Yates, who started seven games as a Texans rookie in 2011, came in and led the team on a touchdown drive on his first series.

Yates lofted a pass up to DeAndre Hopkins, who made an incredible one-handed sideline catch even as Adam Jones had tight coverage. Hopkins finished with five catches for 57 yards. 

Yates went 3-4 as a starter in the 2011 season, including two wins against the Bengals. The first was a 20-19 victory on Dec. 11 at Cincinnati, where Yates threw for a career-high 300 yards and two touchdowns. His second win over the Bengals came less than a month later on Jan. 7, 2012, a 31-10 victory in Houston. That day, he managed the offense with an 11-of-20, 159-yard effort that included a touchdown and no turnovers. 

Yates put in yeoman’s work again Monday, going 5 of 11 for 69 yards and the touchdown. 

“T.J. Yates comes in here and does a heck of a job in the second half,” Watt said. “It’s incredible to watch what our guys can do when we play a full, complete game.”

Yates wasn’t perfect, but he didn’t have to be as the Texans’ defense dominated to ruin the Bengals’ quest for perfection.