It all came together for the Texans in the final minute of the first half.
Houston, locked in a 10-10 tie with the Colts at NRG Stadium, was forced to punt on 4th-and-22 at the 50-yard line. Tommy Townsend dropped a beauty deep into Indianapolis territory, which was fair caught by Josh Downs at 5-yard line.
A 7-yard run and an incompletion by Anthony Richardson followed, and then on third down, the defense came up with a game-changing play.
Safety Jalen Pitre picked off a Richardson pass intended for Downs at the 17-yard line, and scuffled his way forward 10 yards before he was brought down at the Colts' 7-yard line. It as PItre's first interception of the season.
The offense jogged onto the field with 0:23 remaining in the second quarter, and wasted no time.
Quarterback C.J. Stroud zipped a pass into a tight window on the back right side of the end zone for Tank Dell, who gathered it in and kept both feet in bounds for the score. A Ka'imi Fairbairn extra point followed, and Houston held a 17-10 advantage just before the intermission.
It was Dell's second touchdown reception of 2024, and the 11th scoring strike of the year for Stroud.
