10-0 Texans Lead Away

The Texans have waited more than six seasons to play on Monday Night Football and they lead the Jacksonville Jaguars 10-0 at halftime at Reliant Stadium.

On the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Sage Rosenfels passed to wide receiver Andre Johnson for a 12-yard gain to the Houston 43. Two rushes by Steve Slaton for 22 yards, along with his four-yard catch, gave the Texans a first down at the Jaguars' 31-yard line. On the next play, Johnson finished the six-play drive by muscling his way past cornerback Rashean Mathis for a 31-yard touchdown catch.

With 9:56 left in the first quarter, the Texans' offense started its second series from their 46-yard line after Jacksonville was flagged twice for false start penalties on their opening possession. After an incomplete pass on first down, Rosenfels took a quick drop with an empty backfield and was intercepted by Mathis, who returned the pick four yards to the Houston 44.

Houston struck back on the Jaguars' first play when cornerback Jacques Reeves intercepted quarterback David Garrard's pass intended for wide receiver Jerry Porter. After a 13-yard return, the Texans' offense took over from the Jacksonville 48. After tight end Owen Daniels' 14 -yard reception, Kris Brown extended the lead to 10-0 with a 38-yard field goal.

Houston collected its second takeaway on the ensuing series after defensive tackle DelJuan Robinson popped the ball loose when tackling running back Maurice Jones-Drew in the backfield. Safety Nick Ferguson recovered the fumble at the Jaguars' 28-yard line.

After an incompletion on first down, wide receiver Jacoby Jones took a direct snap and faked a handoff before being stopped in the backfield. An offensive pass interference penalty on wide receiver David Anderson on the following snap led to the first punt of the game, which André Davis downed at the one-yard line. Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio challenged the ruling, but officials upheld the spot of the ball.

The Jaguars dug themselves out of the hole thanks to a 10-yard run by running back Fred Taylor and a 24-yard catch by wide receiver Matt Jones to near midfield. Jones-Drew's 14-yard rush gave Jacksonville a first down at the Houston 32. A third down pass attempt glanced off Porter's fingertips to set up Josh Scobee's 43-yard field goal attempt, which missed wide right with 9:56 remaining in the first half.

Two catches by Johnson for 17 yards moved the Texans to the 50-yard line, where Slaton picked up seven yards and a first down. On third-and-15 from the 48-yard line, Rosenfels overthrew Davis, leading to Matt Turk's second punt.

Following defensive end Mario Williams' sack on Garrard for an eight-yard loss on third down, the Jaguars punted 37 yards to the Houston 24 with 3:02 left before halftime.

Wide receiver Kevin Walter pulled in a pass from Rosenfels and then shook off a defender for a 30-yard gain on the second play of the series. Rosenfels then scrambled for three yards before cornerback Brian Williams hit him out of bounds, which resulted in a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty to the Jacksonville 25.

After the two-minute warning, tight end Joel Dreessen made a 10-yard catch to the 10-yard line. On third-and-goal from the nine-yard line, Johnson caught a six-yard pass to the three-yard line, setting up Brown's 21-yard field goal attempt. After a low snap, Turk rolled to his right and lobbed a pass into the end zone that was tipped out of bounds