C.J. Stroud threw for 274 yards and two touchdowns. He had a 106.7 passer rating.
The Texans quarterback also lost two fumbles on strip sacks by Greg Rousseau, and the Bills won 36-31 as Stroud couldn’t get them in the end zone despite a first-and-goal at the 9.
Coach DeMeco Ryans thought Stroud played well enough to win, pointing to the 409 yards his vaunted defense gave up. That included 334 passing yards by Josh Allen.
“C.J. was very much in control the entire game,” Ryans said, via texanscommenter. “Took what the defense gave him. Made great decisions with the football. Proud of the way he played today. He showed what he’s been showing all camp, that confidence, that growth. Was very calm, great demeanor, putting us in a great position to win the game.
“Unfortunately, we lost the football there two times. Don’t want those plays at all, but not going to let that overshadow the game that he had. Offense put up way more points than needed for us to win this game. Could’ve definitely played much better defensively.”
The Texans had first-and-goal at the Buffalo 9 with 25 seconds left, but Deone Walker sacked Stroud for a 9-yard loss. After an incompletion, Rousseau had a strip-sack of Stroud that Terrell Bernard recovered with 9 ticks left to end it.
“Got down there,” Stroud said. “Can’t get stalemated like that. That sack kind of made it tougher, but even then, we still had a chance. I’m trying my best to protect the ball but also to make plays. We needed seven right there, so I can’t be super conservative. I’ve got to be able to take shots. Sometimes it doesn’t roll your way. We’ll try to fix that and go forward.”
Bills Clips
The Bills and Texans put on a show on Sunday afternoon. There may not be many games this season that are better than the season opener in Houston.
Josh Allen, who was 0-4 in Houston, threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to Josh Palmer with 1:36 remaining for a 36-31 lead and then had to watch from the bench as the Bills held on.
The Texans had first-and-goal at the Buffalo 9 with 25 seconds left, but Deone Walker sacked C.J. Stroud for a 9-yard loss. After an incompletion, Greg Rousseau had a strip-sack of Stroud that Terrell Bernard recovered with 9 ticks left to end it.
The back-and-forth game had nine lead changes.
Allen ripped apart the Texans’ vaunted defense, throwing for 334 yards and two touchdowns as the Bills had 409 total yards. He nearly threw his only interception on the play before the game-winner, but Kamari Lassiter, who had a rough day, dropped the pick in the end zone.
Tight end Dalton Kincaid caught five passes for 130 yards and DJ Moore had five catches for 100 yards and a touchdown in his Buffalo debut.
James Cook ran for 57 yards on 13 carries.
The Texans gained 381 yards, but Stroud had the only two turnovers. He also lost a fumble on a strip-sack by Rousseau in the first half. Stroud finished 26-of-38 for 274 yards and two touchdowns.
The Texans showcased their free agent acquisition, David Montgomery, as he had 20 carries for 60 yards and two touchdowns and three catches for 19 yards and a touchdown. The Texans had 32 rushes and 38 passes, held the ball for 36:17 and went 2-for-2 on fourth down.
C.J. Stroud threw his second touchdown pass of the day, an easy 7-yard flip to David Montgomery. It was the running back’s third touchdown in his Houston debut.
The sixth lead change of the game has given the Texans a 28-27 lead with 13:34 remaining.
The Texans converted two fourth downs in the 13-play, 72-yard drive. Montgomery had a 2-yard run on fourth-and-1 at the Houston 37 and backup running back Woody Marks ran for 3 yards on fourth-and-1 at the Buffalo 22.
Montgomery now has 18 carries for 59 yards and two touchdowns and three catches for 19 yards and a score.
Stroud is 18-of-26 for 190 yards. He lost a fumble early in the game, which led to a Bills field goal.
The Texans and Bills are playing what could end up being one of the best games of the regular season.
The back-and-forth has led to five lead changes.
The Bills lead 24-21 at halftime, gaining 224 yards against one of the NFL’s best defenses.
Josh Allen, who is 0-4 in Houston in his career, is 8-of-11 for 163 yards and a touchdown, a 43-yarder to DJ Moore. He has run for touchdowns of 21 yards and 1 yard and has 24 yards on four carries.
Moore, an offseason acquisition, has three catches for 76 yards and has drawn a 46-yard pass interference penalty on Kamari Lassiter in the end zone that set up Allen’s 1-yard score.
James Cook has six carries for 37 yards.
The Bills have not punted, but Allen was stopped for a 2-yard loss on fourth-and-1 at the Houston 34 on the Bills’ first drive. Buffalo had to settle for a field goal after it had 12 players in the huddle on fourth-and-1 from the Houston 23 on its second drive.
The Texans have 215 yards, having punted once and have one turnover, which was a C.J. Stroud fumble on a strip-sack by Greg Rousseau that Ed Oliver recovered.
Stroud is 12-of-16 for 123 yards and a touchdown, a 12-yard pass to Nico Collins with 26 seconds left in the half. Collins has three catches for 46 yards. David Montgomery has 13 carries for 52 yards and two touchdowns.
Josh Allen is aware of his 0-4 record in Houston.
So far on Sunday, he is playing better than he ever has despite playing one of the league’s best defenses.
Allen scrambled for a 21-yard touchdown, giving the Bills a 10-7 lead with 12:46 left until halftime.
The Bills had chances to score on every drive. Allen was stopped for a 2-yard loss on fourth-and-1 at the Houston 34 on the Bills’ first drive; the Bills had 12 players in the huddle on fourth-and-1 from the Houston 23 on their second drive and settled for a field; and the Bills drove 62 yards on six plays for the Allen touchdown on their third drive.
Allen is 4-of-5 for 49 yards and has three carries for 23 yards.
The Bills have 106 yards after three drives.
The Texans were 29th in red zone efficiency last season, converting only 45.9 percent of their opportunities into touchdowns. They are 1-for-1 to start 2026.
Houston has taken a 7-3 lead on the Bills on David Montgomery’s 1-yard touchdown run.
It did take the former Lions running back three times to get in from the 2 after C.J. Stroud hit Nico Collins for a 25-yard gain on third-and-8.
Stroud lost a fumble on the Texans’ first drive on a Greg Rousseau strip-sack that Ed Oliver recovered at the Houston 32. The Bills, though, converted with only a field goal after having 12 players in the huddle on fourth-and-1 at the Houston 23.
The Texans stopped the Bills on fourth-and-1 at the Houston 34 on Buffalo’s first drive.
A report on Sunday morning indicated cornerback Joey Porter Jr. was unlikely to be in the Steelers’ lineup for their season-opening game against the Falcons and official word on his status came 90 minutes before kickoff in Pittsburgh.
Porter is officially inactive for the game. Porter was listed as questionable with a back injury after spending all of training camp on the physically unable to perform list.
Porter’s inactivity this summer was also thought to be connected to his desire for a contract extension that never came together. That has reportedly opened the door to a trade as the Steelers have a team policy against negotiating contracts during the regular season.
Updates on where things stand with Porter for Week 2’s game against the Patriots and beyond will likely come this week. For Sunday, though, he’ll just be a spectator.
Falcons at Steelers
Falcons: QB Tua Tagovailoa, QB Michael Penix, DB Billy Bowman, DB Malcom DeWalt, LB Christian Harris, OL Ethan Onianwa
Steelers: CB Joey Porter Jr., QB Drew Allar, G Gennings Dunker, DL Kevin Jobity, DL Gabe Rubio, QB Will Howard
Bears at Panthers
Bears: QB Tyson Bagent, S Xavier Woods, OT Ozzy Trapilo, OL Jordan McFadden, DL Jayden Loving, DL Jamree Kromah, QB Miller Moss.
Panthers: TE Ja’Tavion Sanders, WR John Metchie, QB Haynes King, S Zakee Wheatley, OT Albert Reese, LB Patrick Jones, DT Cam Jackson
Buccaneers at Bengals
Buccaneers: DL DeMonte Capehart, CB Ayden Garnes, WR Jalen McMillan, G Billy Schrauth, DL Elijah Simmons, OT Justin Skule, RB Sean Tucker
Bengals: WR Ke’Shawn Williams, CB Josh Newton, OT Myles Hinton, C Connor Lew, TE Jack Endries, DT Landon Robinson, DE Shemar Stewart
Saints at Lions
Saints: TE Oscar Delp, RB Alvin Kamara, OT Mason Murphy, DE Cam Jordan, DT John Ridgeway, DT Khristian Boyd, QB Zach Wilson
Lions: CB Christian Izien, LB Jimmy Rolder, DE Ahmed Hassanein, CB Ennis Rakestraw, DL Mekhi Wingo
Bills at Texans
Bills: RB Ty Johnson, WR Skyler Bell, OT Jude Bowry, G Ar’maj Reed-Adams, DL T.J. Sanders, LB Mike Danna, S Jalon Kilgore
Texans: OL Febechi Nwaiwu, CB Collin Wright, LB Aiden Fisher, OL Nate Thomas, DL Jaden Crumedy, TE Brevin Jordan
Ravens at Colts
Ravens: QB Joe Fagnano, WR Devontez Walker, WR Elijah Sarratt, G Emery Jones, CB Chandler Rivers, DT Nnamdi Madubuike, LB Teddye Buchanan
Colts: LB Austin Ajiake, CB Jonathan Edwards, RB DJ Giddens, DE George Gumbs, QB Riley Leonard, G Dalton Tucker
Browns at Jaguars
Browns: QB Taylen Green, LB Justin Jefferson, CB Noah Igbinoghene, S Daniel Thomas, CB Toriano Pride, C Parker Brailsford, G Teven Jenkins
Jaguars: QB Quinn Ewers, S Jalen Huskey, DE Bryan Thomas, OL Daniel Faalele, TE Tanner Koziol, DE Wesley Williams
Jets at Titans
Jets: CB D’Angelo Ponds, RB Kene Nwangwu, K Blake Grupe, LB Trevin Wallace, LB Joseph Ossai
Titans: CB Jaylon Jones, OL Atonio Mafi, RB Nick Singleton, LB Cedric Gray, DT Jackie Marshall, OT Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, LB Owen Pappoe
The dream team has had an unexpected detour.
After losing to the 49ers badly in Melbourne, and given Myles Garrett’s candid remarks about the impact of his health on his performance, Garrett will have knee surgery and be placed on injured reserve, per multiple reports.
It’s a stunning development for a Rams team that became the odds-on favorites to win the Super Bowl after Garrett’s arrival in June. His presence lured Aaron Donald out of retirement. Now, Donald will be playing for at least four games (if Donald plays in Week 2) without Garrett.
And it won’t be an easy road. The Rams host the Giants next Monday night. The following Sunday night, they face the Broncos in Denver. Then, the Rams head to Philly for a date with the Eagles. After that, the Rams return home for a Monday night showdown with Josh Allen and the Bills.
In six days, the Bills will host the first regular-season game at their new stadium. On the second new field there.
The team decided to replace the grass after only two preseason games.
Via Tim Graham of The Athletic, NFL field expert Nick Pappas explained what went wrong with the first field installed there.
“The aspect of the field that appeared to be an issue was that there were major deformations happening, large divoting outside of what we typically see at many of our NFL grass fields — although not something we haven’t seen before,” Pappas told Graham. “That lent itself to say there was an opportunity to improve that surface, and that’s what the Bills have stepped up to do and made that decision to replace it.”
Pappas explained that, whenever a new stadium is built, “There’s a period before it gets turned over to Bills staff. So, you’re now reliant on the general contractor or the installation company for maintenance over a certain period of time.”
He attributed the situation to a “combination of the sod quality from the start, the challenges, and maybe the management up until the Bills’ grounds crew were able to take over, and then you couple it with a very new growing environment that needs to be worked through.”
Pappas said the new sod “will come in thicker” than the prior version.
The next challenge becomes preparing the field for three home games in three weeks: Week 2, Week 3, and Week 4.
Pappas thinks another replacement will likely happen during the season.
“Recovery needs to outpace usage,” he said. “But if the weather is great and all goes well over that three-game stand, maybe they’re looking at Week 8 to replace it, or they can look at the weather and say, ‘Hey, based on where we are today, we have three weeks to recover. We can bring the grow lights out. We can provide our agronomic program with fertility and grow it back.’”
Given the weather challenges in Buffalo, Pappas said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Bills need three or four fields per year.
That’s one of the reasons why some teams prefer artificial turf. It’s cheaper. It doesn’t require constant evaluation.
But if teams and owners care about giving their players the surface they prefer, it’s worth the money and the effort. Despite the challenges the Bills are facing, they deserve credit for trying to give the players the best possible surface.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen has a 96-46 record as a starter in regular-season and postseason games. That’s a 67.6-percent success rate.
Against Sunday’s opponent, he’s right on the Mendoza line.
Allen holds a sluggish 1-4 career record against the Texans, and 0-4 in Houston.
The Week 1 game happens in Houston.
Most recently, Allen was sacked a career-high eight times in a 23-19 Thursday night loss in Houston. He had two interceptions and no touchdown passes in the game.
Countering his one career win against the Texans are eight playoff victories. Per NBC Sports research, that’s the most for any quarterback who did not play in a Super Bowl.
As he starts the ninth year of his career, the clock is ticking. The pressure is increasing. While the postseason narrative can’t change until January, Allen has a chance to alter his history in Houston by finally getting a win there, in his fifth try.
