The Washington Redskins got their first win of 2006 behind the emergence of offensive playmakers and enough defense to keep the Houston Texans at bay.
The game at first appeared to continue the disturbing trends of the first two games. Washington was penalized on the opening kickoff, went three-and-out, setting Houston up at their own 34. After giving up a first down on two Ron Dayne runs, the Redskins secondary was again burned deep, this time by Houston's Andre Johnson who split the middle of Washington's zone for a 53 yard gain. Carr passed to his tight end in the back of the end-zone on the next play, giving Houston a 7-0 lead.
The Redskins were again penalized on Houston's kickoff, pinning them at their own nine. On 3rd-and-six, Brunell pitched a quick shovel pass to Portis, who broke out of the pack for a 73 yard gain. Ladell Betts finished the drive with two red zone runs for 13 yards and a tying touchdown.
Washington's defense held Houston to a three-and-out, and when the Skins got the ball again they showcased a dizzying array of short passes, moving the ball 74 yards in almost six minutes, and scoring on a 12 yrd catch-and-run by Randle-El. The Texans and Redskins traded punts for most of the second quarter, and Washington got the ball for the last drive of the half with under 5 minutes left. The offense managed to dink-and-dunk their way down to the Houston 30, and appeared to be setting up for a field goal try at 2nd and 6 with 9 seconds left. Hoping to gain a few more yards before a FG try, Brunell handed a draw off to Portis, who darted through the clustered Houston defenders and raced to the end zone. Washington went into halftime holding a 21-7 lead and dominant stats in most categories.
Houston got the ball first in the second half, and was held to a three-and-out drive. The Skins got the ball at their own 30, and again exectued a perfect ball-control drive, mixing effective runs with short, safe passes. By the end of the drive, Brunell was nearing an NFL record for consecutive completions. A penalty negated what appeared to be his first incompletion, and a replay review reversed an on-field call of a fumble out of bounds by Portis. On 3rd-and-goal, Portis plunged in for a 1 yd TD, his second of the game.
Backup defensive tackle Golston recoved a David Carr fumble on the next series. Brunell tacked on his 22nd completion on the first play after the turnover, giving him the NFL record. Betts rumbled for a 16 yard gain to the Houston 30, but the offense stalled there, and Washington tacked on a John Hall FG to begin the fourth quarter and pad the lead to 31-7.
Houston's offense came to life on the next drive, and helped by a Kenny Wright interference call, they drove to a quick TD and two-pt-conversion, making the score 31-15. The Skins appeared to mount an answering drive to put the game away, eating up seven minutes leading up to a third-and-two at the Texans' 18. A fumble by Cartwright on the play almost let Houston back in the game, as Houston's Orr picked up the ball and ran 77 yards for what appeared to be a TD. But a Houston player was called for unnecessary roughness just after the fumble and the ball went back into Texans' territory. Carr pushed the ball downfield, but a deep pass attempt was picked off Kenny Wright in the end zone, ending Houston's threat. The Skins ran out the clock with a couple of first downs, and Washington got its first win of 2006 behind satisfying performances on both sides of the ball.
