Texans report card: Grading Houston's 34-31 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars

Houston Texans tight end Foster Moreau (87) beats Jacksonville Jaguars safety Eric Murray (29) in the end zone for a 6-yard touchdown reception during the first half of an NFL football game at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle) LONDON - The Houston Texans won their second consecutive game - this time against one of the AFC's best. The Texans defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 34-31 at Wembley Stadium and are now 2-4 on the season after losing their first four games. It was a nail-biter, but the Texans pulled it out on a walk-off field goal by Ka'imi Fairbairn.Here are the grades from the performance:Quarterback: B+C.J. Stroud played phenomenally for most of Sunday's game. But he made one near-fatal mistake. He threw an interception in the end zone with 3:53 left in the game, preventing a potential score and allowing the Jaguars to tie it. It was his first interception of the season and it nearly cost them. But he redeemed himself later by getting the Texans in good enough field position to win the game. Stroud finished 24 of 34 for 312 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Running back: B-Nothing came easy, but that was somewhat expected. The Jaguars have the stingiest run defense in the NFL, and the Texans were also missing running back David Montgomery.The Texans didn't have many yards in the first three quarters, but backup running back Jawhar Jordan broke it open with a 25-yard rushing touchdown near the end of the third.Woody Marks, who got the start, also had a clutch 19-yard catch for a first down to get the Texans in position for the winning field goal. Marks finished with 56 yards on 15 carries, while Jordan finished with 43 yards on six carries. Wide receivers/tight ends: A-The Texans‘ trade for Marvin Harrison Jr. paid off. Harrison had three catches, which tied his season high. All three of his catches were for a first down. Nico Collins was held to three catches, including a 45-yarder, which set up the Texans' first touchdown. Foster Moreau caught two touchdown passes, and Jaylin Noel led all receivers with 107 yards. Aside from one drop by Dalton Schultz, who quickly redeemed himself, it was a great performance from the Texans' receiving group. Offensive line: BThe protection for Stroud was great all day, and you've got to give the line credit for opening a hole on that 25-yard touchdown run by Jordan. With the exception of a few penalties, the line had arguably its best game of the season. Defensive line: CThe defensive line was able to get pressure on Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence and affect several of his throws, but they weren't able to sack him. It was the first time all season Will Anderson Jr. wasn't able to get a sack. The Jaguars' offensive line got the best of the Texans in this game, leading to a big day for Lawrence, who threw three TD passes, and 108 yards rushing for Jacksonville. Linebackers: C+The return of Henry To'oTo'o was much-welcomed for the defense. He made a few plays in the first half, including a tackle for no gain and a pass deflection. But Jacksonville's running backs had far too much success - both receiving the ball and running. Jaguars running back Bhayshul Tuten had four catches for 48 yards and two touchdowns. Secondary: C+The secondary did a good job of holding Parker Washington to under 70 yards. But Reed Blankenship missed a critical tackle that led to a touchdown. And M.J. Stewart also allowed a touchdown. The Texans were without starting nickel Jalen Pitre. Special teams: AThe kick return coverage wasn't great. The Jaguars' offense often had great field position. But the Texans had several good returns of their own. And Ka'imi Fairbairn hit a clutch game-winning field goal as the clock expired. Overall, it was Houston's best performance as a special teams unit.Coaching: BThis was a big win for the Texans, and credit to the coaching staff, who had a good game plan, especially on offense.The Texans won their first one-score game of the season after losing their previous three. It was a critical win for a team that absolutely needed it. TEXANS 34, JAGUARS 31Houston710143-34Jacksonville014710-31First QuarterHou_Moreau 6 pass from Stroud (Fairbairn kick), 5:13. Drive: 5 plays, 62 yards, 3:01. Key Play: Stroud 42 pass to Collins. Houston 7, Jacksonville 0. Second QuarterJac_Tuten 27 pass from Lawrence (C.Little kick), 6:47. Drive: 8 plays, 79 yards, 4:26. Key Plays: Lawrence 19 pass to Washington; Lawrence 27 pass to Washington on 3rd-and-4. Houston 7, Jacksonville 7. Hou_FG Fairbairn 25, 4:16. Drive: 8 plays, 62 yards, 2:31. Key Plays: Hutchinson kick return to Houston 31; Stroud 34 pass to Noel; Stroud 14 pass to M.Harrison; Stroud 7 pass to Schultz on 3rd-and-8. Houston 10, Jacksonville 7. Jac_Tuten 2 pass from Lawrence (C.Little kick), :55. Drive: 10 plays, 48 yards, 3:21. Key Plays: Cameron kick return to Houston 48; Lawrence 9 pass to Meyers on 3rd-and-8; Lawrence 19 pass to T.Hunter. Jacksonville 14, Houston 10. Hou_Moreau 1 pass from Stroud (Fairbairn kick), :08. Drive: 4 plays, 63 yards, 00:47. Key Plays: Noel kick return to Houston 37; Stroud 50 pass to Noel. Houston 17, Jacksonville 14. Third QuarterHou_Noel 13 pass from Stroud (Fairbairn kick), 9:21. Drive: 12 plays, 65 yards, 5:39. Key Plays: Stroud 9 pass to Schultz on 3rd-and-10; Stroud 14 pass to M.Harrison; Stroud 10 pass to Noel; Stroud 6 pass to M.Harrison on 3rd-and-2. Houston 24, Jacksonville 14. Jac_Boerkircher 1 pass from Lawrence (C.Little kick), 2:34. Drive: 6 plays, 69 yards, 2:57. Key Plays: Lawrence 22 pass to Meyers; Lawrence 28 pass to Meyers; Lawrence 11 pass to Tuten on 3rd-and-3. Houston 24, Jacksonville 21. Hou_J.Jordan 25 run (Fairbairn kick), :50. Drive: 6 plays, 65 yards, 1:44. Key Play: Stroud 16 pass to Schultz. Houston 31, Jacksonville 21. Fourth QuarterJac_T.Hunter 7 pass from Lawrence (C.Little kick), 11:26. Drive: 9 plays, 61 yards, 4:18. Key Plays: Lawrence 26 pass to T.Hunter; Lawrence 10 pass to Washington; Rodriguez 3 run on 3rd-and-1. Houston 31, Jacksonville 28. Jac_FG C.Little 60, 1:55. Drive: 7 plays, 38 yards, 1:58. Key Plays: T.Hunter 0 interception return to Jacksonville 20; Lawrence 15 pass to Meyers; Lawrence 6 pass to Strange on 3rd-and-10. Houston 31, Jacksonville 31. Hou_FG Fairbairn 49, :00. Drive: 8 plays, 36 yards, 1:55. Key Plays: Hutchinson kick return to Houston 32; Stroud 19 pass to Marks on 3rd-and-2. Houston 34, Jacksonville 31. ___HouJacFIRST DOWNS2324Rushing36Passing1617Penalty41THIRD DOWN EFF5-117-12FOURTH DOWN EFF0-00-1TOTAL NET YARDS426412Total Plays5968Avg Gain7.26.1NET YARDS RUSHING114106Rushes2527Avg per rush4.563.926NET YARDS PASSING312306Sacked-Yds lost0-00-0Gross-Yds passing312306Completed-Att.24-3424-41Had Intercepted11Yards-Pass Play9.1767.463KICKOFFS-EndZone-TB6-1-16-2-2PUNTS-Avg.3-49.3332-47.5Punts blocked00FGs-PATs blocked0-00-0TOTAL RETURN YARDAGE119171Punt Returns1-21-7Kickoff Returns4-1175-164Interceptions1-01-0PENALTIES-Yds6-406-66FUMBLES-Lost0-00-0TIME OF POSSESSION29:3730:23___INDIVIDUAL STATISTICSRUSHING_Houston, Marks 15-56, J.Jordan 6-43, Stroud 1-5, Collins 1-5, Stover 2-5. Jacksonville, Rodriguez 11-55, Tuten 12-39, Lawrence 3-11, Allen 1-1.PASSING_Houston, Stroud 24-34-1-312. Jacksonville, Lawrence 24-41-1-306.RECEIVING_Houston, Noel 4-107, Schultz 4-33, Collins 3-74, Harrison 3-34, Marks 2-25, Boutte 2-16, Hutchinson 2-10, Moreau 2-7, J.Jordan 1-7, B.Jordan 1-(minus 1). Jacksonville, Meyers 5-83, Strange 5-44, Washington 4-64, Hunter 4-59, Tuten 4-48, Boerkircher 2-8.PUNT RETURNS_Houston, Noel 1-2. Jacksonville, Washington 1-7.KICKOFF RETURNS_Houston, Noel 2-65, Hutchinson 2-52. Jacksonville, Abdullah 4-118, Cameron 1-46.TACKLES-ASSISTS-SACKS_Houston, Lassiter 6-2-0, Stingley 5-1-0, To'oTo'o 3-3-0, Togiai 3-3-0, Blankenship 3-2-0, Bullock 3-2-0, Stewart 3-0-0, Al-Shaair 2-5-0, T.Smith 2-1-0, Hunter 1-2-0, L.Hall 1-1-0, Rankins 1-0-0, Anderson 0-1-0, Crumedy 0-1-0, McDonald 0-1-0, Ramsey 0-1-0. Jacksonville, Johnson 5-1-0, Oluokun 4-4-0, Merriweather 4-3-0, Jar.Jones 4-2-0, Combs 3-1-0, Lewis 3-0-0, Murray 2-1-0, Miller 1-5-0, Hunter 1-2-0, Walker 1-2-0, Hamilton 1-1-0, Gardeck 1-0-0, Hines-Allen 1-0-0, Armstead 0-2-0, Dickerson 0-1-0, Orhorhoro 0-1-0.INTERCEPTIONS_Houston, Bullock 1-0. Jacksonville, Hunter 1-0.MISSED FIELD GOALS_None.___OFFICIALS_Referee Shawn Hochuli, Ump Larry Smith, HL Patrick Holt, LJ Carl Johnson, FJ Jason Ledet, SJ Dave Hawkshaw, BJ Jimmy Russell, Replay Tyler Cerimeli.SubscribeThere’s more to Houston with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at Texans report card: Grading Houston's 34-31 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.