CINCINNATI -- Until he finally wins a game at NRG Stadium, Andy Dalton will always have mixed feelings about playing professional ball in Houston.

Some 35 miles east of his hometown of Katy, Texas, NRG Stadium is home to the Houston Texans, the team that beat Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals in consecutive playoffs in 2011 and 2012.

He hasn't played a game there since.

Until this weekend.

When Dalton returns for this week's contest inside one of the five buildings he has played in where he still hasn't won, the fourth-year quarterback will find it hard to put the past behind him and to focus on the present.

That's because he still thinks about the couldas, shouldas and wouldas from his only games in Houston. They are his only memories of playing professionally near his hometown. Still a little bothered by the two postseason losses that have defined a rather significant portion of the legacy he's left to this point, Dalton is motivated to win this weekend just so he can start creating recollections.

"Obviously when you go home, you want to play well, you want to get a win and all that kind of stuff," Dalton said. "But you know, losing in the playoffs a couple times there, it still does sit with you."

In general, the Bengals haven't been good against the Texans with Dalton at the helm. Since he was drafted in 2011, he's gone 0-3 against them, including the two postseason losses. He has a 1-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio in the three games and a total QBR of 26.9, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

As a franchise, the Bengals haven't beaten the Texans since 2005 and are 1-3 all-time in games at Houston.

Offensive coordinator Hue Jackson may find himself playing the role of motivational speaker, psychologist and coach this week when it comes to getting Dalton to use the memorable postseason defeats as fuel for Sunday.

"I'll pick my spots," Jackson said. "Home, away, Kroger, Walgreens, it don't matter. It's a football game. They can only put 11 out there and we can only put 11 out there. At the end of the day, we'll make sure he's ready like he has been. He'll be prepared. It's not about home.

"And I know he'll have friends there and things like that, but at the end of the day, it's about winning. What does it take to win this football game, and is he willing to do what it takes to win this football game?"

Dalton played well Sunday at New Orleans, posting the second-highest QBR of his career, one week after having his second-lowest. He's been inconsistent throughout his career, if anything. A win this week would go a long way toward him finally demonstrating consistency. Oh, and it finally could get him that ever elusive "W" in the hometown ledger.