TEXANS TAKEAWAYS

Most exciting standouts from Houston Texans slugfest victory over Colts

Most exciting standouts from Houston Texans slugfest victory over Colts
Texans defeat the Colts, 29-27. Composite Getty Image.

 Stefon Diggs caught two touchdown passes and Joe Mixon rushed for 159 yards and another score Sunday to help the Houston Texans close out a 29-27 victory against the Indianapolis Colts.

Houston (1-0) won its second straight road game in the series for the first time in franchise history and its ninth straight road game in division play.

The Colts (0-1), meanwhile, extended the NFL's longest active opening day winless streak to 11 despite getting two TD passes of more than 50 yards from Anthony Richardson, who also ran for a late score.

He was 9 of 19 with 212 yards and one interception and, ran six times for 56 yards including a 3-yard scoring run with 2:14 left to trim the deficit to 29-27.

The Texans, meanwhile, leaned heavily on Mixon's 30 carries to wear down a defense that spent 40 minutes on the field. Ka'imi Fairbairn also made three field goals from 50 or more yards.

C.J. Stroud, last year's AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, finished 24 of 32 with 234 yards and the two TD passes. Diggs caught six passes for 33 yards and Nico Collins had six catches for 117 yards.

But Houston controlled most of the game.

Just three plays after Fairbairn opened the scoring with a 51-yard field goal, Richardson launched a perfect 60-yard TD pass to a wide-open Alex Pierce for a 7-3 lead.

Fairbairn made a 50-yard field goal before Diggs gave the Texans a 12-7 cushion with his first score, a 9-yard catch. Fairbairn started the second half with another 51-yard field goal.

The Colts then capitalized on a blocked punt with Jonathan Taylor's 5-yard TD run, but a failed 2-point conversion left Indy in a 15-13 hole.

Mixon responded with a 3-yard TD run, one play after a defensive holding call erased a Colts interception.

Richardson connected with Ashton Dulin on a 54-yard score to make it 22-20, Diggs' 2-yard TD catch on fourth-and-goal with 4:42 left essentially sealed it. Richardson's score got the Colts within two, but they didn't try an onside kick and the weary defense couldn't get off the field again.

Strange ending

The first half ended on an unusual note with the officials erasing a spike that stopped the clock with 5 seconds to go so they could review whether Dalton Schultz's 7-yard reception was actually a catch.

After determining it was a catch, referee John Hussey announced the clock would be set to 15 seconds — prompting the Colts to call timeout. Before play resumed, Hussey “apologized for the confusion,” apparently rescinded the timeout, enforced a 10-second runoff for the review to put the clock at 5 seconds and started it on his signal. But the Texans didn't have their field goal team on the field and time expired before the ball was snapped.

“It's on us on the sideline,” coach DeMeco Ryans said. “We've got to be better.”

Turf trouble

Indianapolis installed new turf during the offseason and both teams struggled to stay upright. Stroud slipped on two consecutive plays on the Texans first series and when Colts rookie Adonai Mitchell slipped on a screen pass in the first half, it messed up the timing. And Kylen Granson's bad footing led to Calen Bullock's interception at the Texans 8-yard line late in the first half.

Be sure to watch the video above as the crew from Texans on Tap reacts to the game live on YouTube!

Up next

Texans: Host Chicago next Sunday night.

Colts: Visit Green Bay next Sunday.

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The Astros beat the Rangers, 5-4. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.

Zack Short hit a walk-off RBI single in the 11th inning after Christian Walker tied it with a sacrifice fly and the Houston Astros beat the Texas Rangers 5-4 on Saturday night.

Short hit a 1-1 pitch to right field off Hoby Milner after Robert Garcia (1-5) walked two to load the bases.

Texas took a 4-3 lead when Adolis García hit the first pitch from Bennett Sousa (3-0) for a single — scoring automatic runner Marcus Semien.

Kyle Higashioka hit a solo home run off Josh Hader with two outs in the ninth to tie it 3-3. It was the first blown save for Hader after 25 straight to begin the season.

Jose Altuve hit his 17th homer — a two-out solo shot in the first off Jacob deGrom to tie it 1-1 after the Rangers scored an unearned run on Framber Valdez’s wild pitch.

Yainer Diaz homered for the 14th time for a 2-1 lead in the fourth. Mauricio Dubón hit his sixth homer off Jacob Webb for a 3-1 lead in the seventh.

Semien hit his 11th homer to cut it to 3-2 in the eighth.

Valdez allowed an unearned run on four hits with 10 strikeouts and no walks in six innings. The Astros have won his last 12 starts with him getting the win in nine of them.

DeGrom allowed two runs on four hits and a walk in six innings with eight strikeouts.

The Rangers struck out 19 times — two short of the club record for an extra-inning game.

Key moment

Short entered as a pinch runner in the ninth and was just 4 for 17 before his game winner.

Key stat

Houston hasn’t lost a season series with division rival Texas since 2016.

Up next

Rangers RHP Nathan Eovaldi (6-3, 1.62 ERA) starts Sunday’s rubber game opposite Astros RHP Hunter Brown (9-3, 2.21).

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