Tyrod Taylor rushed for two touchdowns and Desmond King II recorded a pair of fourth-quarter interceptions Sunday as the Houston Texans snapped an eight-game losing skid with a shocking 22-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tenn.
King returned his second interception of Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill 25 yards to the Tennessee 15-yard line and Texans kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn followed with a 37-yard field goal at the 3:30 mark to make it a two-possession game.
It was Fairbairn’s 57th consecutive conversion from 40 yards and in, securing Houston’s second victory of the season.
Texans cornerback Terrance Mitchell then picked off Tannehill on the ensuing Titans possession, marking the fifth Titans turnover and the first four-interception game for Tannehill.
The Titans (8-3) had their six-game winning streak snapped under an avalanche of miscues.
After Fairbairn capped a 14-play, 62-yard drive with a 43-yard field goal on the Texans’ opening possession, Tannehill marched the Titans into the red zone before being intercepted on the last play of the first quarter. Houston linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill returned that pick 82 yards to the Tennessee 6 before Titans running back Dontrell Hillard’s touchdown-saving tackle.
The Texans (2-8) settled for a 24-yard Fairbairn field goal that pushed their lead to 6-0.
Houston extended that advantage to 12-0 when Taylor, who passes for 107 yards, scrambled for a 7-yard touchdown with 7:43 left in the first half. It was the Texans’ first touchdown on the road since the fourth quarter of their 31-21 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 2, a span of 268 offensive snaps.
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The Titans kept stumbling along, with Tannehill flagged for intentional grounding with four seconds left in the first half, an infraction that prevented Tennessee from attempting a field goal.
Then, midway through the third quarter, the Texans opted to punt instead of attempting a 53-yard field goal – but the ball deflected off the foot of Titans return man Chester Rogers and Tremon Smith recovered at the Tennessee 5. Taylor scored on third down, marking his first career game with two rushing touchdowns and extending the lead to 19-0.
The Titans mounted a comeback with Tannehill finding Dez Fitzpatrick for an 18-yard touchdown, and Titans tight end Anthony Firkser recovered a Hillard fumble in the end zone for a touchdown that cut the deficit to six points midway through the fourth quarter.
Still, the two late turnovers doomed the Titans.
Tennessee outgained the Texans 420-190. Tannehill passed for 323 yards.
–Field Level Media