Texans savor a thrilling London win, but coach DeMeco Ryans says the climb is just starting

HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Texans returned from London feeling great after getting a thrilling win over Jacksonville this weekend.

But the Texans (2-4) still have a lot of work to do if they hope to dig out of the hole created by dropping their first four games this season.

Coach DeMeco Ryans is proud of how his team battled through its early season adversity and expects the guys to continue to work to turn things around.

“You’re going to have difficult moments, but that one moment doesn’t define you,” he said. “It’s all about how you respond to it and I love the response that our team has given us … I love where our team is right now.”

On Sunday, the Jaguars tied the game late on a 60-yard field goal by Cam Little. C.J. Stroud then orchestrated a drive to set up Ka’imi Fairbairn’s 49-yard field goal as time expired to give the Texans t he 34-31 win at Wembley Stadium.

It was an impressive win for a team that had coughed up leads late in the fourth quarter in three of its four losses.

“It’s always great for us to close games out,” Ryans said. “We stumbled along there early in the season when we didn’t finish games, but we found a way (Sunday) to continue to play complementary football, all three phases, really having an impact on this game.”

The Texans got a boost with the addition of receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who made his debut after last week’s trade from Arizona. The fourth overall pick in the 2024 draft had three receptions for 34 yards in limited action.

The trade reunited him with Stroud after the two played together at Ohio State.

“It felt like old times and I’m proud of him, happy for him,” Stroud said. “I thought he looked great, looked like he was excited to be out there. And we’ll get him more touches and more plays here in the season.”

What’s working

Though he threw his first interception of the season on Sunday, Stroud continues to play exceptionally well. He was 24 of 34 for 312 yards with a season-high three touchdown passes.

He ranks second in the NFL with 1,714 yards passing this season and leads the NFL with 25 completions of at least 20 yards. He has done a great job of spreading the ball around and completed passes to 10 different players against Jacksonville.

“C.J. has been hot all year and he’s still hot,” Ryans said. “He’s lighting it up. He’s dishing the ball around to a lot of different people, doesn’t matter who it is. Everybody who has an opportunity, they’re open, they’re getting the football.”

What needs help

Houston’s normally fearsome pass rush led by defensive ends Will Anderson Jr., who leads the NFL with 7 1/2 sacks, and Danielle Hunter was shut down on Sunday. The Texans entered the game with 18 sacks but were unable to get to Trevor Lawrence once.

Stock up

RB Jawhar Jordan and TE Foster Moreau.

Jordan was promoted from the practice squad this week to fill in for David Montgomery, who is out with a groin injury. He had six carries for 43 yards and his first career TD run gave the Texans a 31-21 lead late in the third quarter.

Moreau, who is in his eighth NFL season and first with the Texans, scored on both of his catches on Sunday. It was his first career game with multiple touchdowns and he became the first Houston tight end to score two touchdowns in a game since Jordan Akins in 2023.

Stock down

DE Jadeveon Clowney was flagged for defensive offside in the second quarter and the Texans were penalized for 12 men on the field later in the quarter when he didn’t run off quickly enough.

Key injuries

Ryans said Monday that WR Tank Dell will play this week after sitting out since suffering a gruesome knee injury in December 2024. … Montgomery will likely be out again this week. … S Reed Blankenship sustained a concussion against the Jaguars. … S Jalen Pitre missed the game with a shoulder injury.

Key number

216 — The number of pass attempts Stroud had this season without an interception before Travis Hunter picked him off in the end zone with about four minutes remaining Sunday. It was the longest streak without an interception to start a season in franchise history.

Up next

The Texans will try and stretch their winning streak to three games before their bye when they host the NFC East-leading New York Giants (3-2-1) on Sunday.

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