The Houston Texans have suffered multiple seasons' worth of injuries to the quarterback position this year alone, and the latest casualty - third-stringer turned starter T.J. Yates' bruised left shoulder - is turning Wild Card Cincinnati into a hot pick.
Texans head coach Gary Kubiak indicated that Yates could've returned in Sunday's 23-22 loss to the Tennessee Titans, but since Houston had already locked the No. 3 overall seed and couldn't compete for a first round bye, Yates was benched in favor of recently signed back up Jake Delhomme.
SB Nation NFL editor Joel Thorman considers Houston's quarterback trauma - and the fact Houston has lose their last three games - enough to give the Bengals a serious look for the potential upset:
The Texans, statistically, are one of the best teams in the AFC field but they've also lost three straight entering this game. I'm still undecided on who my final pick will be but right now I'm leaning toward Cincinnati. The Texans quarterback situation makes me too nervous right now, even if they have the rest of the pieces in place for a serious run.
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