SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 9, 2014
Colts 33, Texans 28: Andrew Luck passed for 370 yards and three touchdowns and T.Y. Hilton came within one yard of the franchise mark for receiving as visiting Indianapolis withstood a furious rally to beat Houston.
Luck finished 25-of-44 with Hilton hauling in nine passes for 223 yards and a score, one yard shy of Raymond Berry's club record. Ahmad Bradshaw and Coby Fleener also caught TD passes and Trent Richardson added a rushing score for the Colts (4-2), who have won four straight overall and 10 in a row against AFC South rivals.
Arian Foster rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns and Andre Johnson had seven receptions for 99 yards and score for the Texans (3-3). Ryan Fitzpatrick was 15-of-23 for 212 yards and a touchdown, and J.J. Watt had two sacks, three tackles for loss and a fumble return for a touchdown for Houston.
The Texans had not allowed a point in the first quarter in its first five games, but Richardson's 5-yard TD run and Luck's short scoring passes to Bradshaw and Fleener gave the Colts a 24-0 lead after one quarter. Fitzpatrick hit Johnson for a 4-yard TD pass and Foster scored from 12 yards before Adam Vinatieri's second field goal of the night sent Indianapolis to halftime with a 27-14 advantage.
Foster and Hilton traded touchdowns in the third quarter before Houston's defense took over, as Watt pounced on Luck's fumbled snap and went 45 yards for a score. The Texans drove into Colts territory with a chance to take the lead but Vontae Davis forced a Johnson fumble that Mike Adams recovered with 4:38 left, and Fitzpatrick fumbled on the second play of Houston's final possession to seal it.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Watt became the fifth player in league history to register a receiving touchdown along with returning an interception and fumble recovery for scores in the same season. ... The Colts converted their third successful onside kick of the season - no other team has converted one. … Vinatieri (2,063) passed John Carney for the fourth-most points in NFL history and became the first player in history to score 900 points with two different teams. … Texans WR Johnson (13,080) became the 15th player to surpass 13,000 career receiving yards.