NASHVILLE —
Antonio Smith picked up the ball J.J. Watt forced Titans running back Chris Johnson into fumbling, and the Texans' defensive end ran from the Houston 37 all the way to the end zone.
Smith walked around the end zone holding the ball up just in case he'd scored a touchdown.
Officials insisted the play had been whistled dead after Smith recovered the ball, so the Houston Texans forced five more turnovers and also had six sacks in beating the Tennessee Titans 24-10 on Sunday to clinch a second straight playoff berth.
"They blew the whistle,'' Texans coach Gary Kubiak said. "I think it could be a touchdown for us but unfortunately they blew a whistle, and it's not. There's nothing you can do about it. We did a great job of getting turnovers all day long.''
Easy for Kubiak to be charitable after his Texans set a franchise-record for wins in a season by improving to 11-1 with their sixth straight victory. They also improved to 6-0 on the road - the NFL's only unbeaten team away from home. And just for good measure, they also swept the Titans, the team they replaced in Houston, for only the second time as a franchise.
Fullback James Casey, who caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Matt Schaub, said the feeling of clinching is a lot different this year than last season. The Texans are happy to know they're in the playoffs with more goals still ahead.
"We have a lot higher aspirations this year, but still we clinched the playoffs and that's hard to do,'' Casey said. "We're in it now. We have a shot. We have other things we want to do too. We want to clinch the division, we want to get home field advantage, so we have a lot of work to do and are already looking forward. We know we have a really big game against New England on Monday night, so we're excited about that.''
Rookie Whitney Mercilus had two sacks, Watt had another sack giving him 15 1/2 and the Texans also batted down a handful of Jake Locker's passes.
"We kind of got after him and frustrated him a little bit, and that was our goal,'' Watt said. "The defense played great, and I think the defense did a heck of a job. I'm very proud of how we played.''
Schaub also threw for 207 yards and two touchdowns, including a 54-yarder to Lestar Jean on the opening drive to put Houston ahead to stay. Arian Foster scored on a 2-yard TD run as the Texans led 21-3 at halftime to avoid any overtime drama after needing extra time to beat Jacksonville and Detroit in a span of five days in their last two games.
"Our defense really won the game for us,'' Schaub said. "They created all those turnovers and stops on fourth down. The game ball goes to the defense because we weren't holding up our end on offense.''
For the Titans (4-8), the issues are growing quickly. They lost a second straight game and now have combined for 13 turnovers in back-to-back home losses. Locker fumbled twice and was intercepted three times. Right tackle David Stewart broke his right leg on the opening series, and left guard Steve Hutchinson hurt his right knee late in the first half.
"What could go wrong, would go wrong,'' Titans coach Mike Munchak said.
Tennessee outgained the Texans 354-332 in total offense with Locker throwing for 309 yards in the debut of offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains. He took over when Chris Palmer was fired a week ago. But when Locker settled down, his teammates took turns dropping balls or wiping out big plays with penalties.
"When he got going, then other people took their turns at making mistakes, so it was just sloppy, on the offensive side of the ball, at different times throughout the game,'' Munchak said.
Sports
NFL: Texans beat Titans to clinch playoff berth
- Sports
-
-
Howe, Whatley shine at OU Showcase
Claremore High School seniors Bryce Howe and Matt Whatley caught the eyes of several NCAA Division I and JUCO scouts Friday in Norman.
Howe and Whatley, as well as Claremore’s Cole Weiesnbach and Cameron Smith, competed with the Bearcats — a competitive baseball team coached by Jenks’ Jeff Owens — at the University of Oklahoma Showcase. -
‘Staying close to home’
Home is where the heart is.
Claremore graduate Isaac Hollihan loves playing baseball and takes his academics pretty serious.
For the next four years, Hollihan will continue his baseball career a short distance from his Claremore residence at Rogers State University. -
TRACK: Tyson Gay healthy heading into nationals
For a little bit, Tyson Gay's first step tearing down the track made him wince and his next made him wonder: Would he ever be the same sprinter again?
The runner who captured three gold medals at the 2007 world championships. The runner who broke the American 100-meter record in 2009. -
Texas Longhorns men's track coach retires
Texas men's track coach Bubba Thornton is retiring after 18 years and 12 conference championships.
According to a statement from the school on Monday, Thornton and athletic director DeLoss Dodds mutually agreed to terminate the coach's contract effective Aug. 31. The Longhorns won this year's Big 12 indoor and outdoor championships and finished sixth at the NCAA outdoor championships. -
Daytona frontstretch getting $400M facelift
Daytona International Speedway is getting another facelift, this one considerably bigger than the last.
Three years after a complete repaving project, the famed track is overhauling the frontstretch to enhance the "fan experience.'' -
STANLEY CUP NOTEBOOK: Rough ice affects play in Game 3
Teams try to avoid risky plays in the postseason that they might try in the regular season. And when the ice surface isn't smooth, even greater care is necessary.
Boston took that approach with less-than-ideal ice conditions during its 2-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks that gave the Bruins a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup finals on Monday night. -
STANLEY CUP: Rask shuts down Blackhawks, Bruins take 2-1 lead
The puck bounced off the post and rolled across the crease, away from the goal line. The red light flashed briefly, but replays would confirm that Tuukka Rask's shutout streak was intact.
For the last 122 minutes, 26 seconds of the Stanley Cup finals, the Bruins goalie has prevented Chicago from scoring. -
New $15M scoreboards planned for Jazz arena
Owners of EnergySolutions Arena are upgrading the home turf of the Utah Jazz with a new $15 million scoreboard system.
-
NBA FINALS: Heat have no room for error versus Spurs in Game 6
They lost three times in three months in one of the most overpowering stretches the NBA has ever seen.
Now the Miami Heat have lost three times in five games.
So superb during the regular season, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the Heat have to be something even more for the rest of the NBA Finals. -
NBA FINALS: Spurs' coach puts 'Pop' into news conferences
During his team's Game 3 rout of the Heat, Gregg Popovich was shown on TV talking to his players while they were in the process of burying Miami with a stirring offensive display.
- More Sports Headlines
-
Ohio Woman Accuses 3 of Holding Her Captive
Hunt for Ex-Teamster Boss Hoffa's Remains Ends
Aug. Trial Set for Ohio Man in Triple Kidnapping
Car Crash in NYC's East Village Injures 8
Obama Renews Call for Nuclear Reductions
Raw: Car Jumps Curb in NYC, Injures 8
Unusual Heat Wave Bakes Alaska
Raw: German President Welcomes President Obama
Raw: Arizona Wildfire Scorches 8 Square Miles
Raw: Huge Fire Near Yosemite National Park
Kid Couture: Spending Big Bucks on Babies
