Browns Up Big on Texans at Halftime
The Houston Texans playoff hopes may be in serious jeopardy.
Facing a critical matchup vs. the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at NRG Stadium, the Texans have found themselves in a hole early on, trailing 00-00 at halftime.
Things got started very quickly for Cleveland, with Joe Flacco hitting Amari Cooper for a 53-yard bomb to put the Browns in scoring position. The Browns then scored just a couple of plays later on a rush from Jerome Ford, taking an early 7-0 lead.
Then, after the two teams traded five consecutive punts, the Browns were in the endzone again, with Flacco hitting Cooper for a 75-yard score, giving Cleveland a commanding 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.
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The Texans were able to answer with a kick return touchdown from running back Dameon Pierce - his first score since Week 13 vs. the Broncos.
However, just a couple of drives later, the Browns were once again in the endzone on a Flacco touchdown pass. This time, it was to tight end David Njoku on a 21-yard toss.
The Browns elected to go for two after the touchdown, with Dorian Thompson-Robinson rushing in the conversion to give Cleveland a 22-7 lead with just over four minutes to go in the half.
The Texans were unable to get an answer on the next drive, punting back to the browns just ahead of the two-minute warning.
Fortunately for the Texans, they were able to force a Joe Flacco interception by DeAndre Houston-Carson on the ensuing drive but turned the ball back over on an interception of their own just a few plays later.
Houston minimized the damage, however, keeping the Browns out of the end zone with a Derek Stingley interception to end the half.
The Texans will start with the ball in the second half after Cleveland received to start the game.
