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DJ Bien-Aime, ESPN
HOUSTON — The Houston Texans clinched the AFC South title for a second consecutive season.
The Texans (9-5) defeated the Miami Dolphins 20-12 on Sunday — led by their defense forcing Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa into four turnovers, capped by cornerback Derek Stingley Jr.’s game-sealing interception. That victory, along with the Denver Broncos‘ win over the Indianapolis Colts also Sunday, clinched the division for Houston.
The Texans swept the season series against the Colts (6-8), so they had the head-to-head tiebreaker. This is the first time the Texans clinched the division in back-to-back seasons since 2018-2019, and it’s Houston’s eighth title in franchise history.
Quarterback C.J. Stroud went 18-of-26 for 131 yards and threw two touchdowns to wideout Nico Collins. Stroud didn’t know if the Texans had clinched yet after the game but viewed the fact that they could clinch the division in mid-December as a positive.
“I feel like today we took another step,” Stroud said. “To play for the division this early in December is kind of cool, and not have to wait until the very back end.”
Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans and Stroud led a division-winning team in their rookie and sophomore seasons together — a first in NFL history, according to ESPN research.