The Chiefs are on the board after getting a stop and a score to begin the second half.
Kareem Hunt took in a 2-yard touchdown on fourth-and-1, cutting Houston’s lead to 10-7 with 9:52 left in the third quarter.
After Houston went three-and-out to begin the third period, quarterback Patrick Mahomes connected with receiver Hollywood Brown for a 35-yard deep shot, putting the Chiefs on Houston’s 21-yard line.
The Chiefs needed Hunt to convert on third-and-1 with a short gain, which he did. Then on fourth-and-1 from the 2-yard line, Hunt bounced off multiple defenders to get himself into the end zone for a critical score.
Hunt has rushed for 19 yards on eight carries so far on Sunday night.
As one might’ve expected given Houston’s defensive prowess and the injury issues along Kansas City’s offensive line, the Texans have a two-possession advantage over the Chiefs at halftime.
Houston leads Kansas City 10-0 at the break.
C.J. Stroud finished the first half 12-of-19 passing for 171 yards with a touchdown and no picks. While the Texans opened the scoring with a 35-yard field goal with 4:18 in the first quarter, Houston got in the end zone with a 9-yard scoring strike from Stroud to running back Woody Marks.
With Kansas City struggling to generate pressure with a four-man rush, Houston has averaged 6.3 yards per play over the first two quarters.
Nico Collins has four receptions for 121 yards to lead the way.
On the other side, the Chiefs lost offensive lineman Wanya Morris — who was filling in at left tackle for injured starter Josh Simmons — on the first play from scrimmage to a knee injury. That hasn’t helped Patrick Mahomes find time in the pocket to hit an open receiver, as the quarterback finished the first half 8-of-12 for 58 yards with an interception. He was also sacked twice in the first half.
Mahomes is currently the Chiefs’ leading rusher with 23 yards on three carries.
Kansas City’s only true opportunity to score was foiled when Harrison Butker’s 43-yard field goal hit the right upright and was no good.
Notably, Houston running back Nick Chubb is questionable to return with a rib injury.
Houston will receive the second-half kickoff.
The Texans have gotten out to a 10-point advantage over the Chiefs.
Quarterback C.J. Stroud connected with running back Woody Marks for a 9-yard touchdown early in the second quarter, giving Houston a 10-0 lead.
The Chiefs’ defense had a chance to get off the field early in the possession, but a defensive holding call on third-and-9 moved the chains.
From there, Stroud connected with Dalton Schultz for a 14-yard gain on third-and-3. Then Stroud connected with Nico Collins for a 53-yard gain on an off-schedule play down to Kansas City’s 7.
The Chiefs have struggled to generate much pass rush without blitzing and that burned them on the long completion to Collins.
Stroud has started the night 8-of-11 for 140 yards with a touchdown. Collins has three catches for 103 yards.
The injury situation for the Chiefs continues to get worse.
Kansas City announced top corner Trent McDuffie is questionable to return with a knee injury.
McDuffie had to come out of the game after suffering the injury while defending Nico Collins on a deep pass midway through the first quarter.
McDuffie was able to make his way to the sideline and the NBC broadcast showed him running to test his knee.
Nohl Williams came in to replace McDuffie at corner.
The Chiefs already lost replacement left tackle Wanya Morris to a knee injury suffered on the first offensive play from scrimmage on Sunday night.
Houston leads Kansas City 3-0 at the start of the second quarter.
The Chiefs already entered the game down three starting offensive linemen. Then one of the team’s replacement starters suffered an injury on the team’s first play from scrimmage.
Wanya Morris, who started the game at left tackle, exited the contest after Kansas City’s first play with an apparent knee injury.
Morris immediately grabbed at his left knee after Isiah Pacheco’s 3-yard run to start the night. He was helped off the field by trainers, not putting any weight on his left leg.
While Morris was initially examined on the sideline, multiple reporters on the scene noted that Morris was carted from the sideline to the locker room for further evaluation.
Undrafted rookie Esa Pole came in to make his debut at left tackle — a tough assignment against the vaunted Texans defense for any young lineman.
UPDATE 8:38 p.m. ET: Morris is officially questionable to return with a knee injury.
UPDATE 9:00 p.m. ET: Morris has been downgraded to out.
