Browns Up Big on Texans at Halftime

The Houston Texans are facing an uphill battle at halftime vs. the Cleveland Browns

Matt Galatzan | Dec 24, 2023

Browns Up Big on Texans at Halftime /

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Houston Texans

The Houston Texans playoff hopes may be in serious jeopardy.

Facing a critical matchup vs. the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at NRG Stadium, the Texans have found themselves in a hole early on, trailing 00-00 at halftime.

Things got started very quickly for Cleveland, with Joe Flacco hitting Amari Cooper for a 53-yard bomb to put the Browns in scoring position. The Browns then scored just a couple of plays later on a rush from Jerome Ford, taking an early 7-0 lead.

Then, after the two teams traded five consecutive punts, the Browns were in the endzone again, with Flacco hitting Cooper for a 75-yard score, giving Cleveland a commanding 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.

The Texans were able to answer with a kick return touchdown from running back Dameon Pierce - his first score since Week 13 vs. the Broncos.

However, just a couple of drives later, the Browns were once again in the endzone on a Flacco touchdown pass. This time, it was to tight end David Njoku on a 21-yard toss.

The Browns elected to go for two after the touchdown, with Dorian Thompson-Robinson rushing in the conversion to give Cleveland a 22-7 lead with just over four minutes to go in the half.

Watch: Texans RB Dameon Pierce Gets Huge Kick Return TD vs. Browns

The Texans were unable to get an answer on the next drive, punting back to the browns just ahead of the two-minute warning.

Fortunately for the Texans, they were able to force a Joe Flacco interception by DeAndre Houston-Carson on the ensuing drive but turned the ball back over on an interception of their own just a few plays later.

Houston minimized the damage, however, keeping the Browns out of the end zone with a Derek Stingley interception to end the half.

The Texans will start with the ball in the second half after Cleveland received to start the game.

Published Dec 24, 2023

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan the Editor-In-Chief of TexansDaily.com. Galatzan graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry under Mike Fisher at DallasBasketball.com in 2014, which at the time was part of the 247Sports network. He also spent two years covering the SMU Mustangs for PonyStampede.com on the 247Sports network. When DallasBasketball.com and CowboysCountry.com moved over to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, Galatzan followed suit, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com and AllAggies.com a year later. Through the years, Galatzan has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, former Longhorns players Dan Neil and Phil Dawson, and many other recruits, and current/former players for each of the teams he has covered. Galatzan is also a full-time employee in the digital media department for Audacy and KRLD FM's 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, which is the official radio home of the Dallas Cowboys. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels. For any inquiries, please email matt.galatzan@gmail.com