The Houston Texans have made winning nail-biters a recurring theme in their 2024 campaign.
They kept that trend alive on Sunday, edging out the Buffalo Bills. With the score knotted at 20, kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn drilled a 59-yard field goal to secure the win for Houston with zeroes on the clock.
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This game wasn’t always looking like a sweat for Houston, as the Texans took a 17-3 advantage into the half. The scoring to build that lead included a 67-yard bomb from quarterback C.J. Stroud to wide receiver Nico Collins. The house call was bittersweet, though, as Collins exited the game after injuring his hamstring on the deep touchdown.
#Texans wide receiver Nico Collins injures hamstring on long touchdown catch, questionable to return @KPRC2 https://t.co/bDtXU6eXZw
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 6, 2024
The Texans extended their lead to three possessions on their first drive of the third quarter, but Buffalo responded with two consecutive touchdown drives to make it a 20-17 ballgame.
The Texans tried to build off their slim lead, but an interception and fumble by Stroud on back-to-back possessions allowed the Bills to tie the game at 20.
In the game’s closing minutes, Texans’ punter Tommy Townsend pinned the Bills back at their own three-yard line with 32 seconds on the clock and no timeouts. In what was a widely criticized coaching decision, the Bills threw three straight incomplete passes and were forced to punt. A solid punt return by wide receiver Robert Woods gave Houston the ball at Buffalo’s 46-yard line with seven seconds on the clock.
Stroud found running back Dare Ogunbowale for five quick yards, and he went down with two seconds remaining. That gave Fairbairn—who became the Texans’ all-time leader in career points earlier in the game—the chance to add to his record with a game-winning kick.
This moves the Texans to 4-1 on the season, their best start since the 2012 season.