Behold the power of cheese.
Green Bay Packer fans and their signature "cheese heads" dotted Reliant Stadium like holes in giant block of Swiss Sunday night.
They erupted into sheer glee when Packers quarterback Brett Favre carved out the 32nd comeback victory of his career.
Ryan Longwell's 46-yard field goal as time expired officially gave the Packers a 16-13 victory over Houston on Sunday Night Football.
The Texans had a 13-3 lead at halftime and felt good about their chances in the second half. Those feelings dissolved slowly through the third and fourth quarters.
Favre, the 14-year veteran, had done it again.
"Brett is special and to be able to rely on his leadership and abilities at those times gives us an opportunity to win a game like this in the fourth quarter with the last drive," Packers head coach Mike Sherman said.
Sweaty and stained with grass and mud the Texans searched for answers well into the night. They witnessed greatness by Favre, but knew their mistakes were their own undoing.
Why? What happened to the team that gained nearly 200 yards and surrendered only
three points in the first half?
"We had a number of opportunities in the second half that we weren't able to
convert, and that's what the game came down to," Texans head coach Dom Capers said.
The answer is not simple, but picking up no first downs and controlling the ball for less than five minutes in the fourth quarter couldn't have helped.
Green Bay was four-of-six on third down in the final period and scored 13 unanswered points. Houston gave up 383 passing yards but picked off Favre twice ending scoring chances.
Aaron Glenn and Dunta Robinson each got their fourth interceptions of the season. Both were on deep pass attempts with Robinson's coming with 3:06 left in the game and the score tied.
But the Texans went three-and-out and gave the ball back to Green Bay for the final time.
"We came in the first half and we were doing some good things moving the football effectively," Quarterback David Carr said of the offense's collapse. "They came in the second half and they set back in a soft zone and stopped our run up front with their front four and made it really tough."
Houston (4-6) rushed for 107 total yards in the game – 65 from Domanick Davis – but managed only 29 rushing yards in the second half.
Any attempt to run the clock out failed since the Texans were faced with third-and-long for much of the third and fourth quarter.
Words like "unacceptable" and "embarrassing" were common in the locker room.
"I don't know what happened," right tackle Todd Wade said. "It's embarrassing and we just have to pick it up. Our mentality is to run the ball. The fact that we couldn't baffles me."
Giving up 473 yards of total offense may not sound like a good day at the office but the Texans defense played well enough for a win Sunday night. Robinson and Glenn's interceptions were timely and the Packers were held to two field goals after having the ball inside the 25-yard line.
But some Texans remain haunted by a lack of consistency on third down. Houston came into the game last in the league in opponents third down percentage. Green Bay converted 47 percent of its third down tries Sunday night.
The Packers converted three third downs of five yards or more in the fourth quarter.
Favre's two interceptions seemed to disappear from the stat sheet when Longwell's kick split the uprights.
It didn't matter any more. Favre was the first to run on the field as time expired. The Texans slowly left for the locker room.
The Packers quarterback will likely be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. He's supposed to work miracles but that doesn't make the Texans feel any better.
Behold the frustration.
"This is the third season of the franchise. Moral victories went out a long time ago," nose tackle Seth Payne said.
