Replay error paves way for Texans OT win over Lions
DETROIT -- Justin Forsett never stopped running and wound up with a record. His Houston Texans teammates took the same approach and wound up with their second overtime victory in five days.
Forsett scored a controversial 81-yard, third-quarter touchdown and Shayne Graham kicked a 32-yard field goal with 2:21 remaining in overtime to give the Texans a wild 34-31 victory over the Detroit Lions on Thursday at Ford Field.
Forsett appeared to be down by contact at his own 26-yard line but was rewarded with the score when Lions coach Jim Schwartz illegally challenged the play, nullifying the automatic replay review. That play, the longest touchdown run in Texans history, came after Detroit had taken a 10-point lead.
"This is a special group and a special time for us," Forsett said. "Sometimes, things happen like that and the ball bounces our way a couple of times. I'm just thankful to be a part of this team and we've just got to keep it going. This is the time of year you want to win games -- in November and December."
Matt Schaub completed 29 of 48 passes for 315 yards and Andre Johnson had nine receptions for 188 yards for the Texans (10-1), who defeated Jacksonville in overtime Sunday. Arian Foster, who gained 102 yards on 20 carries to surpass 1,000 yards this season, scored the tying touchdown with 1:55 remaining in regulation.
Both teams missed field-goal attempts in overtime before Graham finally ended it.
"That's just unheard of and we got beat up, too," Texans coach Gary Kubiak said of back-to-back overtimes victories in less than a week. "It was really a test of our character and we never panicked. We just kept playing and got ourselves in great position in overtime. It looked a lot like last week but this group refused to go down."
Matthew Stafford passed for 441 yards and two touchdowns for Detroit (4-7), which has lost nine consecutive Thanksgiving Day games. This was by far the most excruciating, as it had lost the previous eight by an average of 21.5 points. Calvin Johnson caught eight passes for 140 yards and a touchdown.
"It's a lot of adversity when it comes to this game," Lions running back Joique Bell said. "You have to overcome it. Bad call or not a bad call, we've just got to pull away with this. We had our chances to pull away with it. We just have to learn to finish."
Detroit had the first overtime possession, but Brandon Pettigrew fumbled at the Houston 35-yard line and Darryl Sharpton recovered. Graham then had a chance to win it for the Texans but missed a 51-yard field-goal try with 9:38 left.
Cornerback Chris Houston stepped in front of Andre Johnson and picked off a Schaub pass at the Texans' 41 on Houston's next possession. But Jason Hanson's 47-yard field-goal try with 4:32 left bounced off the right upright.
Andre Johnson put the Texans in field-goal range on the ensuing possession with a 23-yard reception. James Casey's 11-yard reception preceded Graham game-winner.
"We've been doing it all year," Foster said. "We believe, we have great leadership and players keep showing their resiliency."
The overtime drama came after the errors by the officiating crew and Schwartz. Replays showed that Forsett's knee and elbow were down after he was grabbed by safety Louis Delmas.
"I got low and really didn't feel my knee go down, so I just kept running," Forsett said. "I didn't hear the whistle, so I kept my feet going and just stuck it out to the end zone. I turned around and they said it was a touchdown. That's the way I was taught since I was little, you play until the whistle blows."
The crowd, unaware that the play probably would have been overturned if not for Schwartz's blunder, exploded in anger as Houston cut Detroit's lead to 24-21.Hanson had kicked a 46-yard field goal 33 seconds earlier.
"I overreacted," Schwartz said. "I was so mad they didn't call him down, because he was obviously down on the field, I had the flag out of my pocket before he even scored the touchdown and that's all my fault."
Graham's 45-yard field goal made it 24-24 with 2:36 remaining in the quarter.
Detroit regained the lead when Bell burst through a big hole up the middle and scored from 23 yards with 13:31 left. But Andre Johnson made two crucial catches on Houston's game-tying drive in regulation before Foster's 1-yard scoring run.
Stafford racked up 246 passing yards in the first half as the Lions led 21-14 at halftime. Detroit moved ahead with 1:49 remaining in the half when Calvin Johnson beat the coverage of Alan Ball and hauled in a 22-yard pass from Stafford. That score came just 22 seconds after the Texans had tied the score 14-14 on a 9-yard pass from Schaub to tight end Owen Daniels.
NOTES: Lions left tackle Jeff Backus saw his franchise-record streak of 186 consecutive starts snapped because of a hamstring injury. Backus, who was replaced by rookie Riley Reiff, had not missed a game in his 12-year career. Backus' streak was the third longest among active players behind Tampa Bay's Ronde Barber (209) and Washington's London Fletcher (189). ... Cornerback Jacob Lacey (foot) and wide receiver Titus Young (disciplinary reasons) were also inactive, and the Texans played without starting cornerback Johnathan Joseph (hamstring) and nose tackle Shaun Cody (ribs, back). Houston linebackers Brooks Reed and Bradie James left the game with injuries. ... Calvin Johnson surpassed 7,000 career receiving yards with his 20-yard, first-quarter reception. He's second behind Herman Moore (9,174) in franchise history. ... Stafford became the second quarterback in NFL history to pass for 11,000 yards in 40 or fewer games, joining Kurt Warner (11,457 yards after 40 games).
