The Houston Texans gained some much-needed momentum before their bye week, defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-20 on Sunday after knocking quarterback Trevor Lawrence out of the game with a concussion.
Joe Mixon rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown, while Nico Collins had eight receptions for 119 yards. The Texans (8-5) secured only their second win in the last five games and kept a two-game lead in the AFC South.
“Yeah, it’s a win for us, a big win for us,” said Houston coach DeMeco Ryans. “Now, we need a break. It’s been a long time. … It’s 13 weeks straight now. It’s been a long time and our guys, I think we felt that toward the end of the game. Our guys are gassed. The bye week is coming up at a perfect time for us.”
Mixon appeared to have plenty of energy left. He became the third player in NFL history to rush for at least 100 yards and a touchdown in six road games during the same season. He joined Tiki Barber (2004) and Derrick Henry (2020) in this achievement, becoming the first to do so in his first six road games of the year.
Mixon carried the ball 20 times, including a key 8-yard run on third-and-5 in the final minutes, which helped secure the win.
“Joe’s an old school running back,” Ryans said. “He’s that guy that wants it 30 times, and he keeps getting better the more touches that he gets. So really proud of him to know he’s hurting and still push through. To still turn out yards, even when they’re loading the box, and still being able to find a way to get yards.”
C.J. Stroud completed 22 of 34 passes for 242 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Schultz early in the fourth quarter that sealed the game. The win marked Houston’s 12th in the last 14 matchups against the Jaguars (2-10) and their sixth straight win in Jacksonville.
Schultz finished with five catches for 61 yards and was part of the Texans’ successful offense.
The game also featured a controversial hit on Lawrence. Linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair delivered a violent elbow to Lawrence in the second quarter while the quarterback was sliding after a scramble. The hit caused a brawl on the field. Lawrence showed signs of a possible concussion and was down for several minutes before being helped off the field and carted away. He was ruled out with a concussion.
Tight end Evan Engram and other Jaguars players confronted Al-Shaair after the hit.
“It was a dirty hit,” Engram said. “Obviously those hits are always in question. … It just didn’t feel like a clean hit, so just go stick up for my quarterback.”
Mac Jones replaced Lawrence and threw for 235 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Jaguars to rally from a 23-6 deficit in the fourth quarter. However, Jacksonville did not get the ball back after that.
“Sports are very emotional, especially when something like that happens,” Jones said about the reaction to Lawrence’s injury. “We definitely came together as a team and fought hard for Trevor. Came up short at the end, but I feel like the guys responded.”
