Looking to continue their momentum from last week's win against the Atlanta Falcons, the Houston Texans traveled to Denver, Colorado to face off with the Denver Broncos.
In the first quarter, the Broncos were rolling. Peyton Manning looked unstoppable for a little while. Short passes and productive running plays got the Broncos into the Texans' territory quickly. The Houston Texans' defense settled down and only allowed the Broncos to come away with a field goal. When the Texans got the ball, they couldn't make much noise. Although Ryan Fitzpatrick did have a few third down conversions, they couldn't capitalize from it. At the end of the first quarter, the Broncos led, 3-0.
As the second quarter got underway, A.J. Bouye intercepted Manning, and that provided a huge boost for the Texans, as they got the ball back in good territory. Alfred Blue led the way on the drive with critical running plays. Blue had an important run on fourth down that kept the drive alive. Jonathan Grimes would eventually cap off the 8-play, 72-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown.
Later in the quarter, Manning rose to the occasion like he usually does, tossing a pair of touchdown passes to newly-acquired wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders. The first one came with just over a minute before halftime, and it was a beautiful 67-yard strike. It wasn't too pretty for the Texans though, as they trailed, 10-7. The second touchdown came with only five seconds left in the half. It was another perfect throw and catch, this time from 29-yards out, that increased the Broncos' lead to 17-7.
Manning had to feel good about how the first half ended, but it wasn't too long before the Texans were threatening to come back. Fitzpatrick didn't have his best performance, but he now has some things to look at to help him improve. Fitzpatrick was 10/17 for 80 yards, while Manning was 21/27 for 243 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Case Keenum came on for the third quarter, and didn't look too good. The passes were short, and the pressure was always getting to him. Luckily, his passes that were thrown poorly, were not intercepted. At least they made something of their first drive of the second half. Randy Bullock hit a 24-yard field goal to make it a 17-10 game. Brock Osweiler came on for the Broncos, and wasn't all that great either. This quarter had nothing surprising going on, but the Texans' defense intercepted Osweiler on the last play of the quarter.
As the fourth quarter came rolling along, the Texans were trying to capitalize on the interception. Keenum continued to struggle, and looked completely lost. Short throws, and not looking comfortable at all. For a quarterback fighting to be the second-string, it did not look good. Meanwhile, Osweiler led a good drive. Good passes and letting the running backs do the work, the Broncos were marching down the field. Burning a lot of clock, it did not look good for the Texans. At the end of the drive, Mitch Ewald came on for the field goal. The rookie kicker, was on to increase the Broncos lead. He missed a 36-yard field goal, and all of a sudden, the Texans had one more chance.
Rookie Tom Savage came on to play quarterback for the Texans' last drive. With Keenum struggling, the Texans turned to their rookie quarterback. With 4:25 left in the game, Savage took complete advantage of his opportunity. With just over a minute left, he fired a strike to tight end, Ryan Griffin, who took it 31 yards to the house. Savage then connected with Travis Labhart for the two-point conversion, and the Texans led 18-17. Osweiler got the ball back for the Broncos, and couldn't produce a miracle. The Texans won the game with a final score of 18-17.
What a win this was for the Texans. Although it is the preseason, everyone is competing for their job on the roster. Many bright spots tonight for the Texans, and a ton of progress is showing. Savage came in for one drive late in the game, and proved that he still wants the job as the backup quarterback. With roster cuts starting on Tuesday, it will be interesting to see who still remains with the Texans. For now, they can enjoy the victory and prepare for their final preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night.