Arizona Cardinals come up short against Houston Texans

Kyler Murray completed a 13-yard pass to Hollywood Brown, then found Greg Dortch for a 31-yard gain as the Arizona Cardinals put together one final drive.

Murray completed six consecutive passes on the drive, but not all of them were for positive yards. In the end, Arizona (2-8) came up short against the Houston Texans, 21-16.

A Murray pass was batted down and the clock stopped with 35 seconds left and the Cardinals needing 8 yards for a first down. A fourth-down pass attempt to Brown was batted away.

Stroud took a knee to seal the victory.

Stroud was 27-for-37 passing for 336 yards and two touchdowns. He threw a career-high three interceptions.

Murray finished 20-for-30 for 214 yards and a touchdown with one interception. Murray had seven carries for 51 yards and a touchdown.

James Conner led Arizona with 62 yards on 14 carries. Greg Dortch had six catches for 76 yards.

Houston's Devin Singletary had 112 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. Tank Dell caught eight passes for 149 yards and a touchdown.

Arizona hosts the Rams next week, while Houston (6-4) hosts the Jaguars.

Cardinals pick off Stroud pass for 3rd time

Antonio Hamilton made a leaping interception along the sideline to give the Arizona Cardinals new life.

It was the third interception thrown by Houston QB C.J. Stroud. It's the first time in his college and professional career that Stroud has thrown three interceptions in a game.

Hamilton was injured on the play and had to be helped from the field by his teammates.

The Cardinals gained possession at the Arizona 19.

C.J. Stroud throws 2nd INT

Krys Barnes, playing for the injured Kyzir White, intercepted a pass at the Arizona 3 to prevent the Texans from adding to their lead.

Barnes returned the ball 46 yards to midfield.

It is the first time in his professional career that Stroud has thrown two interceptions in a game.

The Cardinals couldn't make anything of the extra possession.

Trailing 21-16 with 7:22 to play, Arizona elected to go for it on fourth-and-4. Murray's pass intended for Trey McBride was low and incomplete.

Houston took over at its own 45.

Texans 21, Cardinals 16 (7:18 Q4)

Cardinals come up short on fourth down

Minutes after scoring on fourth down, the Cardinals looked to convert on fourth-and-3 from the Houston 23.

A pass to Greg Dortch was was short of the line to gain and Arizona turned the ball over to Houston.

Arizona nearly avoided the fourth-down situation, but a catch was challenged by Houston and the play was reversed.

The Cardinals looked to minimize the damage by backing the Texans by forcing a punt. However, on the punt, it was ruled that the ball struck Cardinals defender Antonio Hamilton and the ball was recovered by the Texans for a first down on the Arizona 24.

Texans lead Cardinals after 3 quarters

The Texans have collected 370 yards of offense compared to 208 for the Cardinals.

It is perhaps surprising that the Texans lead just 20-16 after three quarters.

Rookie QB C.J. Stroud has thrown for 263 yards.

Arizona starts the fourth quarter with the ball on the Houston 47 for a first-and-10.

Kyler Murray scrambles for 4th-down TD

On fourth-and-goal from the 1, Kyler Murray scrambled for a touchdown. The two-point conversion attempt — another Murray carry — came up short.

The 12-play 62-yard drive began with Houston's missed field goal attempt.

Murray had two key scrambles on the play, one of which included a face mask penalty against the Texans.

Murray is now 10-for-15 passing for 118 yards and a touchdown. He has five carries for 41 yards and a touchdown.

Texans 21, Cardinals 16 (2:52 Q3)

Cardinals make a stop

The Cardinals came up with a defensive stop that forced the Texas to attempt a field goal early in the second half.

Kicker Matt Ammendola missed the 48-yard attempt and turned the ball over to the Cardinals at their own 30.

Had Houston made the field goal, it would have been up by two scores.

The Cardinals are playing without defensive lineman Leki Fotu, who injured his hand. Fotu had a sack in the first half. Linebacker Kyzir White, the team's leading tackler, left with an elbow injury in the second quarter.

Texans 21, Cardinals 10 (8:01 Q3)

Texans lead Cardinals 21-10 at the half

Tank Dell caught a 40-yard pass for a touchdown that put Houston up 21-10 with 26 seconds left in the first half.

Houston started the drive at its own 26 with 2:15 left in the second quarter. Quarterback C.J. Stroud was 4-for-4 on the drive. He is now 18-for-24 for 259 yards and two touchdowns in the game. He also threw one interception.

Cardinals QB Kyler Murry is 8-for-12 for 99 yards and a touchdown with an interception. James Conner has six carries for 43 yards.

Houston receives the ball to start the second half.

Cardinals stop Houston drive with INT

C.J. Stroud's pass intended for Nico Collins in the end zone was intercepted by Jalen Thompson for a touchdown.

The interception was an abrupt end to a Houston drive that began with and interception of a Kyler Murray pass.

Houston held the ball for 5:02 and used 10 plays to move 63 yards.

Arizona takes over with 6:10 left in the first half.

Cardinals linebacker Kyzir White is questionable to return after exiting with an elbow injury.

Houston takes lead over Cardinals

A hard 11-yard run by Devin Singletary put the Texans in the end zone for the second time. The point after made it 14-10 Texans.

The 75-yard drive took 5:01 off the clock.

The Cardinals got the ball with 11:20 left in the second quarter, but didn't keep it long.

On first down, Kyler Murray's pass intended for Hollywood Browns was intercepted by Derek Stingley at the Houston 25.

Texans 14, Cardinals 10 (10:36 Q2)

Prater adds to record with another FG

A 57-yard field goal by Matt Prater put the Cardinals up 10-7.

James Conner had carries of 11 and 14 yards and Kyler Murray scrambled for 35 yards before the drive stalled.

Murray fumbled and then was sacked to bring up a fourth-and-16 from the Houston 39.

Murray is 4-for-6 passing for 68 yards and a touchdown. He has two carries for 22 yards.

Prater now has 76 field goals of greater than 50 yards in his career.

Cardinals 10, Texans 7 (1:21 Q1)

Houston bets on its defense

The Texans won the bet as its defense held the Cardinals to a three-and-out midway through the first quarter.

Houston turned the ball over to Arizona on the Cardinals 15. Arizona picked up just 6 yards before punting. A 48-yard punt by Blake Gillikin set Houston up with a first down at its own 39.

C.J. Stroud and the offense went to work. Consecutive completions to Tank Dell and Robert Woods went for first downs before a 4-yard carry by Devin Singletary moved the Texas to the Cardinals 20.

Dalton Schultz then made a sliding catch that carried him across the goal line for a touchdown. It was his fifth receiving touchdown of the season.

Stroud is 6-for-10 for 89 yards and a touchdown.

Cardinals 7, Texans 7 (5:48 Q1)

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Cardinals receive opening kick and score quickly

Kyler Murray led the Cardinals onto the field to start the first offensive possession of the game.

Murray was under center for the first snap and completed a pass to tight end Trey McBride for a first down. That was a solid start for the Cardinals, who benefitted from an illegal contact penalty against the Texans on the following down.

James Conner then took a handoff, which was good for 9 yards.

On the next play, Murray completed a 48-yard pass to Rondale Moore for a touchdown. The 3-play 75-yard drive lasted just 1 minute 32 seconds. Matt Prater's kick made it 7-0 Cardinals.

It was the first receiving touchdown of the season for Moore.

Houston rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud looked to answer. He took the Texans 60 yards and converted a pair of third downs along the way. However, faced with fourth-and-2 from the Arizona 15, the Texans were stopped at the line.

Arizona took over on downs and will start its next drive at its own 15.

Cardinals 7, Texans 0 (9:27 Q1)

Cardinals-Texans inactives

How to watch Cardinals vs. Texans NFL Week 11 game

The game can be seen at 11 a.m. MST time on CBS.

It can be streamed on several streaming services, including FUBO (free trial).

Tom McCarthy will provide the play-by-play call for the game and James Lofton and Jay Feely will be the analysts.

More: Arizona Cardinals at Houston Texans schedule, TV: How to watch, stream NFL Week 11 game

Texans vs. Cardinals NFL Week 11 odds

The Texans are a 5.5-point favorite over the Cardinals in NFL Week 11 odds for the game, courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook.

Houston is -250 on the moneyline, while Arizona is +200.

The over/under (point total) is set at 48.5 points.

More: Arizona Cardinals at Houston Texans picks, predictions, odds: Who wins NFL Week 11 game?

Cardinals at Texans NFL Week 11 picks, predictions

ESPN gives the Texans a 67.6% chance to beat the Cardinals on Sunday.

Other sites also give the edge to the Texans in the game in Houston.

The Arizona Republic's Jeremy Cluff predicted a 27-24 win for the Texans over the Cardinals in the game.

Pregame reading for Texans vs. Cardinals game:

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Arizona Cardinals pick up running back Michael Carter off waivers from New York Jets

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Inside the Numbers: Arizona Cardinals might be below average, but their defense isn't

NFL power rankings Week 11: Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Houston Texans impress

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Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Kyler Murray, Cardinals come up short on final drive vs. Texans