HOUSTON — Andre Johnson had the game of his life to save the Houston Texans on Sunday.
Johnson finished off a career day by turning a screen pass from Matt Schaub into a 48-yard sprint for the winning touchdown as the Texans rallied to beat Jacksonville 43-37.
“All the good teams find a way to win, no matter if it’s ugly, pretty or whatever," Johnson said. “In the win column, it either says ‘W’ or ‘L.’ They don’t ask how you got it done."
Schaub threw a career-high five touchdown passes, completed a franchise-record 43 passes and finished with 527 yards in the air, second most in NFL history. Warren Moon also threw for 527 yards for the Houston Oilers in December 1990 in Kansas City. Norm Van Brocklin holds the record with 554 for the Rams in 1951.
Johnson caught 14 passes for 273 yards, both career highs; the yardage was a team record. He turned 31 in July, but has been saying for weeks that he’s feeling as fit and healthy as he ever has.
“Maybe you guys will believe me after that," Johnson told reporters after the game.
He seemed to be open all day and he was somehow uncovered again when Schaub flipped him the short pass for the decisive score.
“When I caught the ball, and I saw how open I was, I was looking around like, ‘Where are the defenders at?’" Johnson said. “I took off running, I kept looking. I thought the cornerback would come from the outside, but he wasn’t there. It was just the safety, so I was just saying to myself, ‘I can’t let him tackle me.’"
It almost didn’t come to that. Houston trailed 34-20 with 12 minutes left, but Schaub completed 16 consecutive throws to launch the comeback.
“Something we can look back on as we move through this," Schaub said, “because there are going to be games like that, that are not always going to be a two- or three-score lead in the fourth quarter, where you’re trying to run the clock out."
The Texans (9-1) won an overtime game for the first time at Reliant Stadium and improved to 2-7 in overtime in their history. The Jaguars (1-9) have lost three road games in overtime this year.
Also on Sunday:
Ravens 13
Steelers 10
PITTSBURGH — Jacoby Jones returned a punt for a touchdown, Justin Tucker kicked two field goals and Baltimore took control of the AFC North with a victory over Pittsburgh. The Ravens (8-2) moved two games in front of the Steelers (6-4) by shutting down Pittsburgh’s offense, which sputtered without injured quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
Falcons 23
Cardinals 19
ATLANTA — Matt Ryan overcame a career-worst five interceptions, guiding Atlanta to its only offensive touchdown in the fourth quarter in a sloppy win. The Falcons (9-1) turned it over a total of six times, but Michael Turner scored on a 1-yard run with 6:40 remaining to give Atlanta its first lead of the game. Ryan set up the score with four completions for 64 yards, including a 9-yarder to Tony Gonzalez on third-and-5 at the Arizona 10.
Packers 24
Lions 20
DETROIT — Aaron Rodgers threw two touchdown passes, including a 22-yarder to Randall Cobb with 1:55 left, to lift Green Bay. Mason Crosby made a 39-yard field goal with 19 seconds to go after missing two field goals earlier in the game. Matthew Stafford couldn’t put the Lions ahead on either of their last two drives in a game he’d like to forget. Stafford threw two interceptions — one of which was returned 72 yards by Green Bay safety M.D. Jennings for a go-ahead score in the third quarter — and lost a fumble.
Cowboys 23
Browns 20
ARLINGTON, Texas — Dan Bailey kicked a 38-yard field goal in overtime and Dallas overcame a critical fumble by Tony Romo that sparked a wild ending. Bailey’s winning kick with 6:07 remaining in OT came after both teams punted once in the first overtime game at Cowboys Stadium. Bailey hit a tying 32-yard field goal with two seconds left in regulation. Dallas (5-5) rallied from a 13-0 halftime deficit and went ahead 17-13 on Romo’s 28-yard pass to Dez Bryant. A fumble by Browns rookie Brandon Weeden on a sack appeared to put the Cowboys in control, but Romo gave it right back with a fumble on another sack. The Cowboys made one goal-line stand in the final minutes, but the Browns got another chance and went ahead 20-17 on Weeden’s 17-yard pass to Benjamin Watson.
Buccaneers 27
Panthers 21
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Josh Freeman threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Clark in overtime to cap a comeback. It was Freeman’s third touchdown pass of the game for the Buccaneers (6-4). Carolina appeared to have the game in hand after a 29-yard touchdown pass from Cam Newton to Brandon LaFell put the Panthers (2-8) up 21-10 with 4:34 left in the game. But after a 40-yard field goal by Connor Barth, the Panthers were forced to punt, and Freeman led the Bucs 80 yards on seven plays in 50 seconds with no timeouts. He finished the drive with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Vincent Jackson between three defenders with 12 seconds left. Freeman went back to Jackson for a 2-point conversion on a slant route to send the game into overtime.
Patriots 59
Colts 24
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The Patriots used three scoring passes from Tom Brady, two touchdowns on interception returns and another on a punt return to match a team single-game scoring record. The first matchup between three-time Super Bowl winner Brady and star rookie Andrew Luck was no match. The Patriots (7-3) won their fourth straight game and extended their lead in the AFC East to three games. The Colts (6-4) had their four-game winning streak stopped by the NFL’s best offense and one of its worst defenses.
Saints 38
Raiders 17
OAKLAND, Calif. — Drew Brees threw three touchdown passes and Malcolm Jenkins returned an interception for another score to get the Saints back to .500. Lance Moore caught two touchdown passes and Mark Ingram ran for a score as the Saints (5-5) won for the fifth time in six games and are in position to make a late-season playoff run despite the season-long distraction from the bounty scandal.
Broncos 30
Chargers 23
DENVER — Peyton Manning threw for three touchdowns and Von Miller had three sacks to take the league lead with 13. Denver took a three-game lead in the AFC West by sweeping the Chargers. Manning threw for 270 yards. He got off to a slow start, throwing an interception that Eric Weddle returned for a score and an early 7-0 lead. But the Broncos (7-3) took a 10-7 lead early in the second quarter and never trailed again.
Redskins 31
Eagles 6
LANDOVER, Md. — Robert Griffin III threw four touchdown passes, and Washington broke a three-game losing streak. Griffin completed 14 of 15 passes for 200 yards and also ran 11 times for 85 yards. He threw for scores of 6, 49, 61 and 17 yards — one in each quarter. Philadelphia’s Nick Foles was 21 for 46 for 204 yards in his first NFL start, and his first two series ended with interceptions. Foles was starting in place of Michael Vick, who suffered a concussion in last week’s loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
Jets 27
Rams 13
ST. LOUIS — Mark Sanchez directed a turnover-free offense and Bilal Powell ran for the first two touchdowns of his career as the Jets ended a three-game losing streak. Chaz Schilens scored on a 25-yard reception and Nick Folk kicked a pair of 51-yard field goals for the Jets (4-6).
Bengals 28
Chiefs 6
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Andy Dalton threw for 230 yards and accounted for three touchdowns and A.J. Green caught a touchdown pass in his ninth straight game. Green finished with six catches for 91 yards in another dazzling performance, Mohamed Sanu had a scoring grab and BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for 101 yards and a touchdown as the Bengals (5-5) won their second straight following a four-game losing streak.
