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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, December 13, 2009

NFL: Texans break out with 34-7 win over Seattle


By KRISTIE RIEKEN
AP Sports Writer

HOUSTON — Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson put together their best game of the season to help the Houston Texans out of a slump and keep their dwindling playoff hopes alive.

Johnson had a season-high 193 yards receiving and two touchdowns to lead the Texans (6-7) to a 34-7 win over the Seattle Seahawks (5-8) on Sunday to break a four-game losing streak.
Schaub had 336 yards passing before halftime and finished with 365 yards and two touchdowns. His first-half yardage was the second-most in a first half this season in the NFL.
The defense did its job too, returning an interception for a touchdown and hurrying and harassing Matt Hasselbeck into a sub-par performance. The quarterback had three fumbles, was sacked three times and take down numerous other times and finished with 247 yards.
Hasselbeck injured his right shoulder on a hard hit by DeMeco Ryans on Seattle’s first series of the second half. He returned on the next series and finished the game.
Schaub cooled off in the second half and Houston’s offense didn’t score another touchdown, but Hasselbeck and the Seahawks couldn’t get anything going and the Texans maintained their comfortable lead.
Schaub’s only big mistake came in the third quarter when he was intercepted by Marcus Trufant. It didn’t hurt the Texans though as Bernard Pollard picked off Hasselbeck two plays later and returned it 70 yards for a touchdown to stretch the lead to 34-7.
Ryan Moats fumbled on Houston’s next possession and David Hawthorne recovered it for Seattle. The Seahawks came away empty again when Hasselbeck threw an incomplete pass on fourth down.
Johnson got things going for Houston, grabbing a 64-yard touchdown reception on the game’s first play. It was the first time Houston had scored on the opening play of the game.
His second score came on a 17-yard reception in the second quarter that pushed the lead to 24-0.
Moats added a touchdown on a 4-yard run in the first quarter in Houston’s first game since Steve Slaton was put on injured reserve.
Houston’s only problems in the first half came in the kicking game where Kris Brown had a short field goal blocked and missed from 48 yards just before halftime.
Brown made one from 29 yards in the first quarter and one from 31 in the third.
The Seahawks were horrible for most of the first half and the Texans had outgained them 311-25 until their last drive before halftime. Hasselbeck fumbled three times in that span, but Seattle recovered all of them.
They didn’t get a first down until an unnecessary roughness penalty on Ryans with about 11 minutes left in the second quarter.
The Seahawks finally found their offense just before halftime when John Carlson caught a 4-yard pass from Hasselbeck to make it 24-7.
Seahawks first-round pick Aaron Curry left the game on a cart late in the fourth quarter with what appeared to be an arm injury. He was the fourth overall pick this year.