Bengals vs. Texans: TV Channel, Start Time and How to Watch

The Cincinnati Bengals visit the Houston Texans on Sunday, September 20 at 1 p.m. ET at Reliant Stadium. CBS has it with Kevin Harlan and Trent Green, and both teams arrive off Week 1 games that produced a combined 131 points.

Odds and Spread

Bengals -13.5 | total 26.5

SportsbookBengals spreadTexans spreadTotalBengals MLTexans ML
DraftKings-13.5 (-162)+13.5 (+123)26.5 (+121)-10000+4400
Caesars-13.5 (-800)+13.5 (+450)29.5 (-170)-10000+1200
Polymarket+1.5 (-18082)-1.5 (+18082)46.5 (+19900)-199900+199900
Kalshi-9.5 (+2400)+9.5 (-2400)44.5 (+3233)-19900+9900
FanDuel-13.5 (-1800)+13.5 (+700)26.5 (+700)-100000+10000
BetRivers-13.5 (-530)+13.5 (+335)31.5 (-103)-5000+1200
BetMGM-13.5 (-650)+13.5 (+500)26.5 (+425)-15000+4000
Fanatics-8.5 (-105)+8.5 (-125)26.5 (+600)-50000+8000

Lines from BALLDONTLIE and refreshed automatically. Numbers move, so confirm at your sportsbook before betting.

Houston has home field, though Cincinnati won its opener and the Texans lost theirs. Two offenses that both scored in the 30s usually push the total up. Confirm at your book before kickoff.

Start Time, TV Channel and How to Watch

SUNDAY, SEPT. 20 · 1:00 P.M. ET · CBS
Bengals at Texans
Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas
Date Sunday, September 20, 2026
Kickoff 1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT
TV CBS, with Kevin Harlan and Trent Green. A regional window, so coverage varies by market
Streaming Paramount+, plus Fubo, YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV and DirecTV Stream. NFL+ on mobile in market
Week NFL Week 2
Stadium Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas

How Both Teams Got Here

Cincinnati is 1-0 after beating Tampa Bay 33-27 at home. Houston is 0-1 after losing 36-31 to Buffalo at home, a game the Texans were in until the end.

Neither defense held up in Week 1. Cincinnati gave up 27 and Houston gave up 36, which sets an obvious expectation for the afternoon.

What to Watch

Whether either defense shows up. Both teams proved they can score against a decent opponent and neither proved it can stop one. Houston losing a home game it led at points is the more concerning of the two results.

The Texans also cannot afford 0-2 in a division where Jacksonville already looks better than expected after a 34-10 win over Cleveland.

Related

NFL standings · NFL scores · NFL games today

The Bottom Line

Bengals at Texans kicks off Sunday, September 20 at 1 p.m. ET on CBS from Reliant Stadium. Cincinnati is 1-0 after a 33-27 win over Tampa Bay; Houston is 0-1 after losing 36-31 to Buffalo. The odds table above updates automatically.