Ka’imi Fairbairn drilled a 59-yard field goal as time expired as the Houston Texans held off the Buffalo Bills in a 23-20 victory. In a game the Texans tried to give away multiple times in the fourth quarter, the Bills ended up giving Houston one final opportunity to win it.
Buffalo faced a first-and-10 at its own 3-yard line as the Bills went aggressive in the final minute to avoid going to overtime. Three deep passes led to incompletions as the Bills had to punt from their 3-yard line with 16 seconds left. Sam Martin had a 56-yard punt, but Robert Woods returned it 13 yards to give C.J. Stroud a chance to win the game.
With seven seconds left, Stroud dumped the ball off to Dare Ogunbowale for a 5-yard completion. That set Fairbairn up for the game-winning kick, which he drilled as time expired.
The Texans previously held a 20-3 lead before Allen and the Bills clawed back in the game. Houston had multiple chances to preserve the lead and put the game away, but Stroud turned the ball over twice in the fourth quarter. A fumble deep in his own territory with a 20-17 lead allowed the Bills to tie it, but Buffalo ended the game running seven plays and gaining zero yards.
Stroud threw for 331 yards and a touchdown while Allen was just 9-for-30 for 131 yards and a score. The Texans lost Nico Collins to a hamstring injury after his 67-yard touchdown catch in the first half.
Here are our biggest takeaways from the AFC showdown:
Why the Texans won
The Texans jumped out to a 20-3 lead and Stroud threw for 331 yards, yet it was the defense that came through late in the fourth quarter when the offense was trying to give the game away.
Houston’s defense was backed up at its 15-yard line with Josh Allen and the Bills offense getting the ball, trying to preserve a 20-17 lead. The Bills got zero yards on three plays and had to kick a field goal that tied the game at 20. After the Texans punted, the defense forced three incomplete passes and forced a punt.
Special teams then came through with Robert Woods’ 13-yard return that gave the Texans a chance to win it with no time left. Defense and special teams carried the offense late.
Why the Bills lost
Buffalo did an admirable job coming back from a 17-point deficit in this one, but what Sean McDermott and Joe Brady decided to do in the final minute of this one was head-scratching. With 32 seconds left, Josh Allen went deep to Keon Coleman, Mack Hollins and Curtis Samuel on consecutive plays. All the passes were incomplete and killed just 15 seconds off the clock — forcing the Bills to punt.
The Texans had all three timeouts left, so they would have gotten the ball back. But they probably wouldn’t have had a chance to run one quick play and kick a long field goal with no time outs left if the Bills just ran it three times. Perhaps the Bills would have lost in overtime, but there at least would have been an overtime.
Questionable decision-making by McDermott, Brady and Allen.
Turning point
C.J. Stroud fumbled at his own 14-yard line while being sacked as he was trying to get rid of the ball. The Bills recovered at the Texans’ 15-yard line in a 20-17 game with a field goal in hand and a great chance to take the lead.
James Cook ran for no gain, and then Allen had his head knocked to the turf while throwing a pass to Cook. On third-and-10, Allen threw an incomplete pass to Samuel that forced a Tyler Bass field goal. The Bills gained no yards on that possession and none for the rest of the game.
Stroud had two turnovers in the fourth quarter, but that only led to three points from the Bills.
Play of the game
Fairbairn’s 59-yard field goal with no time left is the winner here — literally. Stroud found Ogunbowale for a 5-yard gain to set up Fairbairn for the game-winner in the middle of the field.
Fairbairn did not miss, as it looked like he could have hit it from 60-plus yards. The Texans had two turnovers in the fourth quarter and punted on their first three possessions, only to get bailed out by Fairbairn’s kick. Houston tried to give the game away, but ended up preserving a win it had for the majority of the game.
The quote
“Today he broke the all-time record for scoring in Texans history. Man, he’s a dawg. He’s got ice in his veins. Me and him are big Kobe fans, so we’re just talking about having that Mamba Mentality. I’m just proud of that guy.” — Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud to NFL on CBS’ Evan Washburn on Ka’imi Fairbairn’s game-winning 59-yard field goal.
Up next
The Texans (4-1) travel to face the Patriots next Sunday while the Bills (3-2) travel to the Meadowlands to face the Jets on “Monday Night Football”
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