Texans beat Jaguars 34-31 in London on Fairbairn’s last-second field goal

The Houston Texans got the last word in London. Ka'imi Fairbairn hit a 49-yard field goal as time expired Sunday, beating the Jacksonville Jaguars 34-31 after a frantic finish in which both teams had a chance to take the lead.

Houston was up 31-28 late in the fourth quarter when Jaguars cornerback Travis Hunter intercepted C.J. Stroud in the end zone with 3:59 remaining. Jacksonville turned that escape into a tying score: Cam Little made a 60-yard field goal with 1:55 left. The Texans had to answer from their own 32 after the kickoff return.

Stroud found Woody Marks for 19 yards to reach Jacksonville territory. The Jaguars used their final timeout with 47 seconds left, and Houston then tried a direct snap to Cade Stover on third-and-1. He was stopped short, leaving fourth-and-1 at the Jacksonville 32. With the Jaguars unable to stop the clock, the Texans let it run to three seconds, called timeout and sent Fairbairn out for the winner. His kick went through as the clock hit zero.

There was a little London lesson in that finish for Nick Sirianni. A week earlier, his Philadelphia Eagles took a 17-16 lead on Jacksonville with eight seconds left, then kicked a returnable ball. Ameer Abdullah brought it back 53 yards and Little beat Philadelphia from 57 yards at the gun. DeMeco Ryans' Texans left the Jaguars no timeouts or time on the clock and Houston avoided making similar mistakes.

Houston had supplied plenty of offense before the last kick. Stroud threw two first-half touchdowns to Foster Moreau and a third-quarter score to Jaylin Noel; Jawhar Jordan's 25-yard run late in the third made it 31-21. Jacksonville kept answering. Bhayshul Tuten caught two first-half touchdowns from Trevor Lawrence, and a seven-yard strike to Hunter early in the fourth drew the Jaguars back within three. Little's long kick made it level, but Jacksonville never got the ball again.

Stroud finished 24 of 34 for 312 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. Lawrence went 24 of 41 for 306 yards, four scores and a pick. Noel had four catches for 107 yards and a touchdown for Houston, while newly acquired Marvin Harrison Jr. caught three passes for 34 yards in his Texans debut. The win moves Houston to 2-4 and drops Jacksonville to 4-2. The final score and scoring plays tell the story of a tight game; the last possession shows how Houston made sure it stayed theirs.