The Seattle Seahawks defeated the Houston Texans 27-19 on Monday night, despite the Texans' defense recording four takeaways. This win allows Seattle to keep pace with the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers in the competitive NFC West. The game showcased a mix of defensive prowess and offensive struggles, particularly for Houston, which failed to capitalize on critical opportunities.
Seattle quickly established dominance in the first quarter, jumping out to a 14-0 lead. Zach Charbonnet opened the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run, followed by Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s 11-yard touchdown reception. However, the Texans responded with resilience, converting a trick play interception and a blocked punt into a pair of field goals, narrowing the score to 14-6 by halftime.
After a Seattle field goal early in the third quarter, the Texans’ defense made a significant impact. Will Anderson executed a critical strip-sack, recovering the fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. The subsequent two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful, leaving the score at 17-12 in favor of the Seahawks.
Jason Myers extended Seattle's lead with a 47-yard field goal before Charbonnet secured another touchdown with a 2-yard run, pushing the score to 27-12 late in the third quarter. Houston continued to face difficulties on offense, turning the ball over on downs at the Seattle 45-yard line midway through the fourth quarter. Following a Derek Stingley interception that brought the Texans to the 1-yard line, Houston once again failed to score, resulting in another turnover on downs.
With just 2:04 remaining, Woody Marks caught a touchdown pass, narrowing Seattle’s lead to eight points. However, the Texans’ kickoff strategy backfired, allowing George Holani to return the ball 29 yards, effectively wiping out the two-minute warning. With only one timeout left, Houston's chances of mounting a comeback were slim.
The game concluded with a controversial call as Tim Settle was flagged for unnecessary roughness on a critical third-and-3 play, granting Seattle a first down that effectively ended the contest. Overall, Seattle's defense was instrumental in limiting Houston's offensive production, which amounted to just 254 total yards on 69 plays, averaging a mere 3.7 yards per play.
Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud finished the game 23-of-49 for 229 yards, contributing one touchdown and one interception. Stroud also led the Texans in rushing with 25 yards on two carries. Dalton Schultz emerged as the leading receiver for the Texans, making nine receptions for 98 yards. Unfortunately, Nico Collins had to exit the game early in the fourth quarter due to a concussion.
On the flip side, Seattle's Sam Darnold completed 17-of-31 passes for 213 yards, including one touchdown and an interception. Jaxon Smith-Njigba had a standout performance with eight catches for 123 yards and a touchdown, marking his third consecutive game with over 100 receiving yards—tying him for the second-most in franchise history.
Following this victory, the Seattle Seahawks improve to 5-2, sharing the top spot in the NFC West with the 49ers and Rams. Seattle will enjoy a bye in Week 8 before facing the Washington Commanders on Sunday Night Football in Week 9. Meanwhile, the Houston Texans drop to 2-4 and will return home to host the 49ers at noon local time on Sunday after a long red-eye flight.
