Texans and CJ Stroud can beat AFC South rival Colts: Key takeaways

By James Boyd, Tobias Bass and Larry Holder

A solid performance from CJ Stroud and a 100-yard performance from Joe Mixon helped the Houston Texans to a 23-20 victory over the Indianapolis Colts at NRG Stadium on Sunday.

Houston rode Mixon hard with 25 carries, while Stroud threw for 285 yards on 37 attempts and a touchdown.

The Texans quarterback easily outplayed Colts starter Anthony Richardson, who went 2 of 15 for 81 yards per touchdown in the half and a costly interception he threw with 34 seconds left in the second quarter. His two completions were the fewest of any quarterback with 15 halftime attempts in 30 years. He finished with just 10 completions on 32 attempts for 175 yards and a passer rating of 48.3.

A scary moment for the Texans when star wide receiver Stefon Diggs went down with a non-contact knee injury late in the third quarter. He fell to the ground and grabbed his right knee. Diggs, 30, finished with five catches and one reception for 81 yards.

The Texans are now 6-2, have beaten the Colts (4-4) in five of their last six games and are in the head-to-head tiebreaker.

The Texans are keeping pace at the top of the AFC South

Stroud was under fire throughout the game on Sunday.

Indianapolis would have moved to the top of the AFC South standings with a win at Houston, but the Texans beat Indy for the second time this season to retain sole possession of first place in the division. Stroud completed 25 of 37 passes despite missing star receiver Nico Collins (hamstring) and losing fellow star Diggs to a knee injury in the third quarter.

After Richardson threw an interception late in the second quarter, Stroud made Indianapolis pay with a 7-yard touchdown pass to Tank Dell just before halftime, giving Houston a 17-10 lead that it didn't wanted to give up more.

Mixon, who ran for 159 yards in Week 1 against Indianapolis, wasn't as productive the second time around. Still, he did the damage, highlighted by a gut-wrenching 14-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. — James Boyd, Colts beat writer

Richardson's changeable day

Richardson started Sunday completing 1 of 7 passes despite throwing the ball well. The Colts QB's incompletions were more a result of Houston's defensive backs making a few good plays with the ball than Richardson being inaccurate. Richardson finally broke through the Texans' defense with a 69-yard TD pass to wide receiver Josh Downs late in the first quarter, which was the longest pass of Richardson's career.

But from then on, sledding became difficult. Richardson did not complete a pass for the remainder of the first half and threw his seventh interception of the year. He picked up the pace in the second half, including a 24-yard completion on downs in the fourth quarter that set up Jonathan Taylor for a 1-yard TD run two plays later.

In a shocking scene in the third quarter, Richardson left the game for one play after being sacked by Houston linebacker Jake Hansen. Richardson tapped his helmet after the game to let the coaching staff know he needed a replacement, but according to the CBS broadcast, Richardson was just “a little rattled, a little out of breath” and not injured. Richardson was replaced by Joe Flacco and returned to the game on the next drive. He didn't miss any more attack shots. — Boyd

Colts stars back in action

Taylor returned from a right upper ankle sprain that had kept him out of action since Week 4. He caught 20 carries for 105 yards and a touchdown on Sunday, recording the 19th 100-yard rushing game of his career and his third of the season.

Indianapolis' defense also received a boost with the return of DeForest Buckner. The star defensive tackle suffered a right upper ankle sprain in Week 2 and was placed on injured reserve. He recorded a sack and two QB hits in his first game in over a month, but it wasn't enough to help the Colts to their third straight win. — Boyd

Required reading

(Photo: Cooper Neill/Getty Images)