Houston added to the lead with a two-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud to Dalton Schultz. But the Raiders were determined to ruin the Holiday game. Jeanty struck again, with a 51 yard run to make things tighter than Santa trying to get down your chimney.
The Texans needed a big drive and got one. The dagger was a Stroud throw to Nico Collins inside the 15-yard line to kill the clock.
The stat sheet may say that Nico had four catches, but he also drew two huge pass interference penalties – one to set up the Schultz TD and another to get the Texans a crucial first down from deep in their end on the final drive.
Style points don’t matter. This was a hard-fought victory against a team that was playing like their record was reversed. And the Texans must keep winning because the AFC foes around them keep coming up with W’s.
Now comes a big test against the Chargers. It’s a shortened week to heal bodies and get the right X’s and O’s together to deal with a team that’s won four straight and seven of eight.
Enjoy the win and the egg nog for now. We’ll talk to you from the booth in Los Angeles on Saturday.