Broncos 17-22 Texans, summary: score, stats, highlights | NFL Week 13
Broncos @ Texans LIVE
Follow all the scores from Week 13 of the NFL on AS USA.
Texans beat Broncos: Ward intercepts Wilson to win the game
It was a mostly defensive game as the Denver Broncos and Houston Texans held each other out of the end zone for a good portion of the game. The first touchdown came from the Texans at the end of the first quarter, but they didn't get another until the 4th quarter. The Broncos didn't get a touchdown until late in the 3rd quarter.
And in the end, it was the Texans defense who won the game for them on a last-second interception thrown by Russell Wilson (into the hands of Jimmie Ward). The Texans defense allowed just 282 yards to the Broncos, including just 186 yards through the air from Wilson.
How did Wilson fare...before the game-deciding interception?
The Broncos QB ended the game with 15-of-26 completions for 186yards and onetouchdown, but THREE interceptions (a season high). He did have 44rushingyards and one rushing touchdown as well.
How did Stroud fare, for that matter?
Stroud took a few sacks in the game, finishing 16 of 27 for 274 yards and one touchdown, no interceptions, but five sacks. That actually ended his streak of four games throwing for at least 300 yards.
There was a moment of momentary panic when Stroud got up slowly, looking like he could have suffered from a concussion. He left the field to be assessed in the medical tent but was back on the field after just two plays.
His favorite target was WR NicoCollins, who made several huge plays and ended up with nine receptions for 191 yards and a touchdown pass from Stroud. It was a good thing, too as the Texans' other receiver, Tank Dell, was injured with a fracturedfibula early in the game.
What's next?
The Texans have improved to 7-6 and will face the New York Jets on the road next Sunday.
The Broncos fall to 6-6 and will face the LosAngelesChargers on the road next Sunday.
Texans beat Broncos, 22-17
Stroud takes the knee and that's game. The Texans WIN, beat the Broncos 22-17.
That will give the Texans the advantage in a head-to-head tiebreaker in the Wild Card.
Wilson avoided a sack only to throw an INTERCEPTION in the end zone to Ward for a TOUCHBACK
Wilson pass too high to Sutton, incomplete - 3rd and goal
Wilson pass incomplete to Trautman, 2nd and goal
Broncos take final timeout
Wilson runs it and picks up 5 yards to the Texans 8 and gets the 1st down!
Texans take final timeout
Broncos take second timeout
Wilson is forced to throw it away with Anderson all over him - 4th down and 2
Wilson pass caught by Jeudy, he steps out of bounds after 4 yards - 3rd and 2 at the Texans 13
Wilson fakes the handoff, Williams makes the catch for 4 yards - 2nd and 6, clock keeps ticking...
Williams just barely gets it, but he gets it! The Broncos have the 1st down as the clock keeps ticking.
Broncos take first timeout
TWO-MINUTE WARNING
That takes us to the 2-minute warning! With just two minutes left to play, the Broncos are trailing 22-17. They have the ball on the Texans 22 at 4th and 1. We should think they'll go for it here.
Wilson scrambles 7 yards to the 22 - 4th and 1
Wilson tosses it to McLaughlin but Pitre was all over him, no gain - 3rd and 8
Williams gets hit by Harris and Hansen, gains just 2 yards - 2nd and 8
Pass Interference on Texans' Harris, Broncos get automatic 1st down at the Texans 31
Wilson escapes the pocket but it's incomplete to Perine
Williams gets just a yard, taken down by Greenard - 3rd and 4
Mims picks up 5 yards, 2nd and 5
Wilson pass deep to Sutton for 32yards to the Texans 48, 1st down
Johnston punt lands in the end zone on a 40-yard kick, Touchback
Stroud escaped the sack, threw the pass and it was caught by Ogunbowale for 14 yards, but that puts them at just 4th and 9 and they'll be forced to punt yet again
Stroud SACKED by Locke for a loss of 9 - 3rd and 23
Stroud hands it off to Pierce and he's taken down immediately by Locke for a loss of 4 yards - 2nd and 14
Stroud is back on the field
Mills pass to Collins complete for 18 yards and the 1st down
Pierce picks up 3, 2nd and 7
Mills has come in at quarterback while Stroud is getting assessed in concussion protocol
Texans' Stroud was quite wobbly getting up from that last play and has now been taken to the medical tent
Stroud gets 2 yards for the 1st down
Texans take second timeout
Stroud pass complete to Metchie for 9 yards - 3rd and 1
Texans take over at their own 27, Pierce taken down by Jewell and Singleton for no gain - 2nd and 10 Texans
Wilson pass INTERCEPTED by Stingley AGAIN at the Texans 27
Broncos' Meinerz injured on the plaY
Williams takes it up 4 - 2nd and 6
Johnston punt returned by Mims 7 yards to the Broncos 32
Running into the Kicker penalty on Broncos' Turner-Yell, declined
Stroud pass incomplete to Collins - 4th and 17, Texans will punt it back
Stroud SAKCED by Singleton for a loss of 10 yards - 3rd and 17
Singletary gets 3 yards - 2nd and 7
Lutz kicks to end zone - Touchback
After the 41-yard pass to Jeudy, Wilson took the ball in himself to finish the job and give the Broncos their second TD of the game on a 1-yard run. Lutz's PAT was good and the Broncos trail by just 5 with 12:04 still left in the game
BRONCOS TOUCHDOWN!
Wilson passes DEEP to Jeudy for a 41-yard pass all the way to the 1!
Williams gets the 1st down on a 3-yard run
Texans' Ward was injured on the play
McLaughlin takes it up 8 yards, 2nd and 2
Unnecessary Roughness on Texans' Ward, 15-yard penalty
Wilson faked the handoff but got hit hard by Ward after 7 yards
Ammendola kicks to the 35 - Touchback
The Texans extend their lead on a 3-yard pass from Stroud to Collins in the end zone. They decided to go for the 2-point conversion, but the attempt failed - picked off by the Broncos. Texans lead to start the final quarter with 14:16 left to play in the game.
The Texans went for two and it was INTERCEPTED
TEXANS TOUCHDOWN!
Pierce taken down by Cooper after 5 yards, to the Broncos 3 - 2nd and goal
END THIRD QUARTER
That takes us to the end of the 3rd quarter. There was a fumble by the Texans, a recovery by the Texans, and then a Russell Wilson pass intercepted by the Texans. Now, Houston is at 1st and goal at the Broncos 8 to start the final quarter. They lead 16-10 over Denver.
On 2nd down, Stroud passed deep to Jordan for 13 yards to the Broncos 8, 1st and goal
Wilson pass INTERCEPTED by Stingley, takes it 3 yards to the Broncos 21
Texans lucky to be able to punt it away at 4th and 11 as there were about 5 guys on that fumble
Stroud SACKED again and it was knocked away by McMillan and FUMBLED. Ruling on the field is that it was recovered by Texans' Ogunbowale
Texans take first timeout
Stroud SACKED by Allen for a loss of 3 yards, 3rd and 13
Stroud pass deep to Brown is incomplete, 2nd and 10
Stroud picks up the 1st down on a 2-yard run
Stroud to Collins for another 4, 3rd and 1
Stroud pass to Saubert for 5 yards
King returns the punt from the 35 to the 21, 23 yards
The Broncos get their first touchdown of the game! Wilson passed to Sutton deep for 45 yards and the TD and Lutz's PAT was good. Broncos trail by 6 with 4:47 left in the 3rd quarter.
Pass Interference on Texans' Pitre, declined
BRONCOS TOUCHDOWN!
Burton gets another 4 and the 1st down at the Texans 45
Williams gets 4 yards, 2nd and 1
Neutral Zone Infraction on Texans' Hinish, 5-yard penalty, 1st and 5 Broncos
Johnston punts 43 yards, out of bounds at the 42
Stroud pass to Brown was soooo close, but his feet were out of bounds and ruled incomplete by both officials. On the replay, you can clearly see he's out. The Texans will punt on 4th down.
Singletary gets nowhere - 3rd and 10
Stroud pass incomplete to Jordan, he had it but it slipped through his hands
Well, it looked like there was a Broncos fumble when Wilson passed to Perine, and Texans' King took it back into the end zone.
But the play was ruled dead before the ball came loose and it called an incomplete pass. Instead, the Broncos punted it away at 4th and 3 on their own 31.
Wilson bullet passes the ball away to Williams and he gets 5 yards, 3rd and 3
McLaughlin stopped by Pitre after just 2 yards - 2nd and 8
Ammendola kicks to the 7, Mims takes it up 17 yards to the 24
The Broncos defense is making moves, forcing the Texans to kick another field goal, but they are adding up. Ammendola's 38-yard try is good and the Texans take a 13-point lead with 8:51 to play in the 3rd quarter.
TEXANS FIELD GOAL!
Stroud pass complete to Collins but he gets just 5 yards, 4th down and 8 and they'll go for the field goal
Stroud SACKED by Harris for a loss of 1, he's on a roll - 3rd down and 12
Pierce takes it 3 yards, stopped by Harris
Stroud pass to Metchie for 4 yards but an IllegalFormation call takes them back 5 yards, 1st and 15 at the 27
Stroud passes deep to Collins for 39 yards, 1st down at the 22
Pierce takes it again taken back a yard this time by Jones, 3rd and 11
Pierce gets nowhere, stopped by Allen - 2nd and 10
Broncos punt it again, Dixon kicks it to the 33 and King takes it up 7 yards to the 40
Wilson SACKED again, this time by Greenard for a loss of 7 - 4th and 16
Wilson pass to McLaughlin for a 5-yard gain, 3rd down and 9
Wilson SACKED by Anderson for a loss of 4 yards on the first play of the second half. Ouch! 2nd and 14
And we're back!
Ammendola kicks to the 35 - Touchback
END FIRST HALF
And that will take us to halftime!
The Texans lead by 10, but it's been a mostly defensive game with just one touchdown for the Texans - a Pierce run in the 1st half.
The Broncos will start on offense in the second half when we come back±
Johnston punts it to the 11, Mims calls for the Fair Catch
Stroud under pressure, avoids the sack but forced to throw the ball away - 4th and 5
Texans hurry up this time, Stroud passes deep but it's nowhere near Metchie - overthrown and incomplete, 3rd and 5
Stroud pass to Collins complete for 5 yards, 2nd and 5
Singletary takes the ball up 14 yards to the 39, 1st down
The Broncos finally get some points on the board. The Houston defense kept them out of the end zone, but Lutz gets the 34-yard field goal to make it a 10-point game heading into the second half with 1:24 left to play.
BRONCOS FIELD GOAL!
Wilson avoids a sack, but barely. He runs backwards and finally throws the ball away before being tackled by Greenard after dodging Anderson, but it took them to 4th down
Texans take second timeout
Williams tripped up, taken back 2 yards by Pitre, 3rd and 6
Texans take first timeout
Wilson pass caught by Jeudy, he dukes it and gets 6 yards, 2nd and 4 at the Texans 14
Broncos take first timeout
Broncos' Manhertz was injured on the play
McLaughlin gets the 1st down on a 6-yard run
TWO-MINUTE WARNING
That'll take us to the 2-minute warning in the first half.
The Broncos have the ball at the Texans 26 on 2nd and 4 after a 6-yard pass to Trautman.
Wilson pass caught by Trautman for 6 yards, 2nd and 4
Wilson picks up the 1st down! On a 3-yard run
Wilson pass to Perine and he gets just 5 yards but the Broncos go for it on 4th down anddd...
Wilson pass deep to Sutton is incomplete, 3rd down and 6
Wilson hands it off to Williams for a 4-yard gain, 2nd and 6
Wilson fakes the handoff, takes it up 11 yards for the 1st down to the Texans 44
Wilson pass caught by Williams and taken up 15 yards for the 1st down
Williams gets just 2 yards, taken down by King - 2nd and 8
Okay, so now we've got the FINAL punt, a 52-yard kick by Johnston to the Broncos 28, downed by Saubert
Johnston punts again, 58 yards to the 7 and Mims gets taken back by Ross for a loss of 1
Texans' Beck is called for a Face Mask, 15 yards....we'll do a THIRD punt here now.
Johnston punts 46 yards, returned 6 yards by Mims to the Broncos 20.
Illegal Formation on Texans, 5-yard penalty
Stroud pass incomplete to Mitchie, 4th and 2
Pierce gets just a yard this time, 3rd and 2
Pierce breaks through the gap on a 22-yard run all the way to the 39, 2nd and 3
Tripping penalty on Texans' Deiter, puts them back 15 yards - 1st and 25
Stroud FUMBLES and it's recovered by Texans' Fant
Stroud pass caught by Jordan for a big gain of 24 yards for the 1st down and then some
Pierce taken backwards by Harris for a loss of 1, 2nd and 11 at the 9
Dixon punts 41 yards, Fair Catch called by King at the Texans 9
Perine gets just 1 yard and the Broncos are at 4th down again
Williams takes the ball up 5 yards - 3rd and 5
Wilson passes deep to Mims but it's broken up by Stingley, looked like pass interference but there's no flag - 2nd and 10
Williams takes off 16 yards to the 44
Wilson scrambles under pressure, taken down by Anderson, 2nd and 7
Ammendola kicks 67 yards to Broncos -2 and Mims takes it 27 yards to the Broncos 25.
The Texans set up a huge play on a 59-yard Stroud pass to Collins, but couldn't find the end zone this time after a penalty set them back. They settled for an Ammendola 38-yard field goal and take a 13-point lead with 12:54 to play in the first half.
TEXANS FIELD GOAL!
Stroud scrambles for 2 yards and they'll go for the field goal at 4th and 2 at the Broncos 20
Singletary gets away, takes the ball 10 yards to the 22, 3rd and 6
Stroud pass caught by Singletary for just 4 yards, 2nd and 16
Stroud pass to Metchie was caught for no gain, taken down by Singleton
Illegal Block Above the Waist on Texans' Scruggs, 10-yard penalty puts Houston at 1st and 20
END FIRST QUARTER
That'll take us to the end of the first quarter.
The Texans now have the ball at the Broncos 26 after a deep pass was caught for 59 yards through the air by Collins. Houston leads 10-0.
Stroud passes deep to Collins and IT IS CAUGHT for another huge play of 59 yards to the Broncos 26!
Stroud under pressure, moves backwards and throws it away, 3rd and 6
Singletary takes it up 4 yards, 2nd and 6
Dixon punts to the 11, Fair Catch by Woods
Wilson tries to scramble away, gets just a yard before Hughes takes him down, 4th and 2
McLaughlin pushed back by King for a loss of a yard, 3rd and 3
Mims takes it up 8yards, 2nd and 2
Wilson pass caught by Humphrey and he gets 12 yards, 1st down at their own 37 (their first 1st down of the game)
Ammendola punts to the 35 - Touchback
Dell is being carted off the field, but was able to move his hands and feet
Texans' Dell was injured on the play
Pierce took the ball in to finally finish the job on a 3-yard touchdown for the Texans. They take a bigger lead with 3:49 to play in the 1st quarter.
TEXANS TOUCHDOWN!
Stroud pass too high to Collins in the end zone, incomplete - 2nd and goal
Stroud and Singleton were getting into a little tussle there after Singleton shoved Stroud after the play was dead.
Refs are separating the teams and flags are flying!
False Start on Texans' Tunsil, ruled dead.
Personal Foul on Broncos' Singleton, gives Texans the 1st and goal
Stroud under pressure, throws to Collins in the end zone but he just couldn't hold onto the ball, 4th and 2 and Houston will go for it
Pierce picks up another 2, 3rd and 2 at the Broncos 7
Pierce runs into his own teammate (Collins) but gets 6 yards, 2nd down and 4
Texans go for it with the tush push on 4th and inches and they get the 1st down as Stroud takes it up 2 yards
The Broncos defense stops them again, Ogunbowale is juuuust short, 4th down and inches
Stroud pass complete to Collins for 6 yards, 3rd and 2 at the Broncos 18
Pierce picks up 2 yards - 2nd and 8
Broncos' Surtain was injured on the play
On the first play, Stroud throws deep to Collins and it is CAUGHT for 52 yards at the Broncos 26!
Dixon's punts to the 22, Fair Catch by King
Wilson SACKED by Anderson for a loss of 11 yards, 4th and 14 and Broncos punt it back
No huddle, Broncos are moving quick. Williams gets 2 more yards before he's stopped by Anderson and Perryman, 3rd and 3
Williams picks up 5 yards, stopped by Collins and Ward
Amendola kicks to the 35 - Touchback
At 2nd and less than a yard, the Texans were held to 4th down and forced to settle for a field goal. The Amendola 29-yard attempt was good and the Texans are on the board with the lead to start the first half, with 10:11 to go in the 1st quarter.
TEXANS FIELD GOAL!
Stroud pass INCOMPLETE to Beck, Texans at 4th down and 1
Singletary stopped by Allen for no gain, 3rd and 1
Offsides on Broncos' Browning, 5-yard penalty puts Texans at 2nd and 1
Singletary picks up a yard, but a flag is thrown...
Stroud pass to Beck for 5 yards, 2nd and 5
With great field position already, Stroud passes to Jordan and he takes off for 27yards to the Broncos 20.
The punt was tipped! Dixon's punt goes 22 yards and bounces out of bounds at the Broncos 47.
Wilson scrambled on 3rd down just as Stroud did, but just as Stroud was, Wilson was short.
Broncos ALSO go 3 and out and the Texans will receive on 4th down.
Wilson tries two deep passes in a row to Sutton and both were incomplete! 3rd and 10 Broncos
Fair catch at the 18-yard line
Stroud under pressure, scrambles away but he's short of the first down.
Texans went 3 and out and will punt it back to the Broncos on 4th and 1 at their own 34.
Singletary takes off with it again and gets another 4, 3rd and 5
Singletary starts off with just a 1-yard gain, stopped by Parcell, 2nd and 9 Texans
GAME TIME!
Denver won the toss and have elected to defer. Let's hope for the Broncos' sake the Texans don't score first. They typically win when they do that!
Stroud and the Texans offense have taken the field. LET'S GO!
We're just a few moments away from kickoff at NRG Stadium, so stay tuned!
Tank Dell: Another breakout rookie
The Texans have another rookie making a name for himself besides their QB and that's wide receiver Tank Dell. Although he was listed as questionable earlier in the week, he is good to go for today's game against the Broncos.
Dell's breakout rookie season
Dell is ranked second in the league in receiving yards with 709 and his seven touchdowns are tied for first among the rookies from this year's NFL Draft. Among rookies, he has the most yards per reception (15.1) and the most yards per game (70.9).
He and Stroud together have the most rookie quarterback-and-receiver duo yards (709) through 11 games since 1991.
Denver's 5-game winning streak
How exactly did the Broncos bounce back from their 1-5 start to go on a five-game win streak? Well, a lot of it has to do with their defense. The Broncos have had 13 more takeaways than their opponents over the last five games.
However, the Texans have the second-fewest interceptions (after the Denver Broncos) and have the fifth-fewest giveaways in the league. Only six quarterbacks have a rating above 100 this season and Houston's C.J. Stroud is one of them (as well as Broncos' Russell Wilson).
C.J.’s been impressive. He’s having one of the best rookie years ever. And he’s got a great gene in him, and it’s called the ‘clutch gene.’ He’s got some ‘it’ in him. You saw that in college, too.”
INACTIVES for Texans vs Broncos
Denver Broncos INACTIVES
TE Nate Adkins
QB Ben DiNucci
C Alex Forsyth
DL Elijah Garcia
Edge rusher Thomas Incoom
Edge rusher Ronnie Perkins
Safety JL Skinner
Houston Texans INACTIVES
RB Mike Boone
G Nick Broeker
WR Xavier Hutchinson
QB Case Keenum
DE Myjai Sanders
TE Dalton Schultz
Stroud lauds Denver defense
In their five-game winning streak, the Broncos have forced turnovers in the last four, with 15 combined over those games.
Stroud's historic rookie year
If the Broncos want to pull off an upset and secure the head-to-head tiebreaker, they'll need to get past Texans QB C.J. Stroud first. And that's not an easy task. The rookie and No. 2 overall draft pick has had an incredible season so far.
Stroud making history in Houston
Let's take a look at Stroud's unique rookie stats. He is now averaging the most passing yards (296.9) by any rookie quarterback in history. Over just the last four games, he's thrown for 1,466 yards, the most by a rookie since the 1970 merger.
He's also tied (with Justin Herbert and Andrew Luck) for the most games with 300 passing yards and two touchdowns by a rookie. He ranks in the top six in three categories: passing yards per game, touchdown-to-interception ratio (19to-5), and passer rating (100.8).
He's the main reason the Texans are even in talks of going to the playoffs this season. They haven't had a winning season since 2019.
High stakes as Broncos take on CJ Stroud's Texans
The Broncos and Texans are both sitting at 6-5 on the season and are the first two teams out of the AFC playoff picture. That means whichever team wins today will secure the head-to-head advantage in any potential tiebreakers in the future.
The Broncos got off to a rocky start, going 1-5 before improving to a five-game winning streak that they'll look to continue against the Texans. This will be their first of three tough games on the road.
With rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud at the helm for the Texans, they've been performing at a much higher level than expected and it won't be an easy win for Denver. However, the Broncos are currently 4-0 against teams with a winning record.
Hello everyone and welcome to our live coverage of the Denver Broncos at Houston Texans Week 13 game!
Today, the Broncos travel to NRG Stadium in a game with huge playoff implications. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. ET and we'll be here to bring you all the latest scores, stats, highlights, and commentary.