Sports · NEWS EXPLAINER
Texans beat Jaguars 34–31 in London: Fairbairn’s walk-off kick, Stroud’s response and Hunter’s rare two-way swing
Ka’imi Fairbairn hit from 49 yards as time expired after Cam Little’s 60-yarder tied the game. The finish also packed Travis Hunter’s touchdown catch and end-zone interception into a rare two-way sequence.
Houston beat Jacksonville 34–31 at Wembley Stadium on October 18 after Ka’imi Fairbairn made a 49-yard field goal as time expired. C.J. Stroud answered a late end-zone interception by leading the drive that followed Cam Little’s 60-yard tying kick.
Stroud finished with 312 yards and three touchdown passes, while Trevor Lawrence threw four scores for Jacksonville. Travis Hunter supplied the strangest two-way turn of the fourth quarter: a 7-yard touchdown catch followed later by an interception in the opposite end zone. Houston improved to 2–4; Jacksonville fell to 4–2.
The last two minutes
Houston led 31–28 and was driving when Travis Hunter intercepted Stroud in the end zone. Jacksonville converted that reprieve into Cam Little’s 60-yard field goal with 1:55 remaining. Stroud then found Woody Marks for 19 yards on third-and-2, moved the Texans into range and watched Fairbairn make the 49-yarder at 0:00. The final kick, rather than the earlier interception, set the 34–31 result.
Stroud recovered after the mistake
Stroud finished 24 of 34 for 312 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. His first interception of the season came at the worst possible moment, but Houston held Jacksonville to three points on the ensuing possession and returned the ball with enough time for one last drive. Foster Moreau caught two touchdown passes, Jaylin Noel added a 13-yard score and a career-high 107 receiving yards, and Woody Marks supplied the 19-yard conversion that unlocked the winning kick.
Hunter changed the finish at both positions
Hunter caught a 7-yard touchdown to cut Houston’s lead to 31–28, then intercepted Stroud in the opposite end zone. Reuters/Field Level Media described him as the first NFL player since Brian Dawkins in 2002 with a touchdown catch and an interception in the same game. AP placed the achievement in a broader Super Bowl-era frame, calling Hunter the fifth player, including the playoffs, to score a touchdown and intercept a pass in one game. Those descriptions are compatible: one identifies the most recent predecessor, while the other counts the wider historical group.
Jacksonville’s four touchdown passes were not enough
Trevor Lawrence completed 24 of 41 passes for 306 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. Bhayshul Tuten caught two touchdown passes, rookie tight end Nate Boerkircher scored his first NFL touchdown and Hunter added the fourth. Jacksonville repeatedly answered Houston’s two-score leads, but penalties extended a Texans possession that ended in Noel’s touchdown, and Houston controlled the final 1:55 after Little had tied the score.
What the result changes — and what it does not
Houston improved to 2–4 with a second consecutive win, while Jacksonville fell to 4–2 and lost a three-game winning streak. The completed game shows that the Texans could respond after a late turnover and that Jacksonville’s two-way package for Hunter created genuine high-leverage plays. It does not prove either team’s season has turned. Houston next hosts the New York Giants before its bye; Jacksonville enters its bye.
