Matthew Wright kicked a 35-yard field goal as time expired to give the Houston Texans a 16-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans in Nashville.
It was the third field goal of the game for Wright, filling in for the injured Ka’imi Fairbairn for the second straight week. The kick capped a nine-play, 48-yard drive that saw Davis Mills convert a third-and-16 from the Houston 42 with a 17-yard completion to Nico Collins.
Woody Marks added three runs for 17 yards that placed the ball in position for Wright to up the Texans’ record to 5-5 and polish off a season sweep.
Mills completed 26 of 41 passes for 274 yards in earning his second straight win in place of starter CJ Stroud (concussion protocol). Mills’ 3-yard scoring pass to Collins gave Houston a 7-6 lead with 7:21 left in the third quarter, then Wright tacked on field goals of 41 and 43 yards to increase the margin to seven.
The Titans (1-9) tied the game with 1:35 left when Cam Ward found Van Jefferson for a 4-yard scoring strike, finishing an 11-play, 95-yard drive. Ward, who was 24 of 37 for 194 yards, hit Chig Okonkwo for 39 yards to set up the touchdown.
The pregame storyline was the return of multiple veterans for the Titans, including defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, wide receiver Calvin Ridley and rush end Arden Key, from various injuries. Ridley’s return lasted one snap as he hobbled off the field with an ankle injury after catching a 13-yard pass and didn’t return.
However, Tennessee was able to build and hold a slim lead until the middle of the third thanks to Joey Slye’s leg and its defense. After Cody Barton sacked Mills for an 11-yard loss on fourth-and-goal from the 1 to end Houston’s first possession, the Titans kept the ball for 7 1/2 minutes and Slye bombed a 56-yard field goal with 50 seconds left in the first quarter.
Slye increased the advantage to 6-0 on a 47-yard kick at the 10:45 mark of the third, capping a 37-yard drive.
–Field Level Media
