Texans hold off Saints' late surge to pick up third win of season

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Rookie C.J. Stroud threw for 199 yards and two touchdowns and the Houston Texans got two defensive stops late to hold on for a 20-13 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

The victory matches Houston’s win total from last season when the team finished 3-13-1.

The Saints (3-3) trailed by 7 when Derek Carr threw a 51-yard pass to Rashid Shaheed to get them to the Houston 35. Five consecutive runs by Alvin Kamara got them to the 14. But Carr’s pass to Kamara on fourth-and-4 was short to give Houston the ball back with 4½ minutes to go.

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Shaquill Griffin and Blake Cashman combined to take Kamara down near the Texans sideline where coach DeMeco Ryans celebrated with his defense.

Houston (3-3) couldn’t move the ball after that and punted it back. New Orleans got to the Houston 24 on the next drive, but Carr’s throw on fourth-and-10 was intercepted by Steven Nelson with 21 seconds left to secure the win.

Carr threw for a season-high 353 yards and a touchdown but often couldn’t finish drives as the Saints, lost for the third time in four games after opening the season 2-0.

The Texans led 17-10 at halftime and made it 20-10 on a 22-yard field goal with about seven minutes left in the third quarter. Houston had a first down at the 1-yard line after a pass interference call against Marshon Lattimore in the end zone. But two incomplete passes and a 3-yard loss on a run by Dameon Pierce forced the Texans to settle for the short field goal.

Blake Grupe's 45-yard field goal cut the lead to 20-13 with about two minutes remaining in the third. Carr was sacked by Sheldon Rankins for a loss of 11