Fairbairn's 49-yard kick lifts Texans past Jaguars 34-31
Jacksonville erased a 10-point deficit and tied the game from 60 yards, but Houston got the final snap at Wembley.
With the clock at zero, kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn made a 49-yard field goal and the Houston Texans beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 34-31 at Wembley Stadium in London, in Week 6 of the NFL season, according to ESPN.
Houston arrived at 1-4 and without running back David Montgomery and safety Jalen Pitre, as reported before the game.
Houston struck first: quarterback C.J. Stroud threw a 6-yard pass to Foster Moreau to open the scoring in the first quarter. In the second period, Trevor Lawrence threw two touchdown passes and Jacksonville moved ahead 14-10 with about a minute left before halftime. Moreau caught another one, this time from 1 yard out with eight seconds left in the half, and Houston went to the break up 17-14.
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texans | 7 | 10 | 14 | 3 | 34 |
| Jaguars | 0 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 31 |
After halftime, Stroud found Jaylin Noel on the first drive and Houston led 24-14. Nate Boerkircher cut it to 24-21 for the Jaguars, and Jawhar Jordan ran 25 yards to restore the 10-point margin, 31-21.
The finish
The last quarter belonged to Jacksonville. Travis Hunter caught a 7-yard pass to make it 31-28 with 11:26 to play. With about four minutes left, Hunter picked off Stroud in the end zone. Shortly after, with about two minutes to go, Cam Little tied the game with a 60-yard field goal. Fairbairn had the last word.
According to Sky Sports, no player had scored and made an interception in the same game since Brian Dawkins in 2002, and this time it was Hunter.
By the individual numbers, Stroud completed 24 of 34 passes for 312 yards, with three touchdowns and one interception, the first he has thrown this season. Lawrence completed 24 of 41 for 306 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. Noel had four catches for 107 yards and a touchdown, and Marvin Harrison Jr. made his Houston debut with three catches for 34 yards.
Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said Stroud "has been hot all year," and the quarterback replied: "I'm having fun." Jacksonville head coach Liam Coen said he was "extremely proud" of how his team kept fighting, according to ESPN.
The Jaguars, who came in on a three-game winning streak, saw it end and fell to 4-2, still atop the AFC South. Houston moved to 2-4, two wins behind them.
