The Texans apparently left their fourth-ranked offense back in Houston when the made the trip north to play the Vikings as the team moved the ball, but struggled to put up points in the first half. Matt Schaub led the team to 152 net yards in the first half and completed 11 of his 16 passing attempts, but had one costly interception as he underthrew an open Vonte Leach near the end zone.
Minnesota’s offense clicked in the first half as they scored 21 points and gained 200 yards, mostly through the air. Gus Frerotte completed 8 of 12 passes for 148 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, including a 55-yard strike to Bernard Berrian. Houston kept running back Adrian Peterson under wraps for the most part, as the dynamic runner gained just 36 yards on 15 attempts, but did score a touchdown.
The Texans found some offense on their opening drive of the second half as they moved the ball 69 yards inside the Vikings 5-yard line, then quarterback Sage Rosenfels, playing for the injured Matt Schuab, hit reserve wide receiver David Anderson on a four-yard touchdown strike to cut the Vikings lead to 21-14. Following a defensive stop, the Texans had an opportunity to tie the game, but Rosenfels threw a bad interception on a third down pass intended for Kevin Walter.
After a stifling defensive showing through much of the second half for the Texans, they finally gave up points as the Vikings took the ball 84 yards on just seven plays for a game-clinching touchdown as Gus Frerotte hit tight end Visanthe Shiancoe on a 25-yard connection to put the Vikings up 28-14.
Houston mounted one last comeback as Rosenfels led the team down the field 67 yards in a little over two minutes as Andre Johnson caught a beautifully thrown 14-yard touchdown pass while being double covered. The ensuing onsides kick failed for Houston and Minnesota stalled on three downs and was forced to kick the ball away where the Texans took over at their 10-yard line with 1:57 to play.
The Texans final drive stalled on four plays, as did their three-game winning streak, as the team falls to 3-5. Sage Rosenfels played fairly well in relief of Matt Schaub, as he completed 21 of 29 passes for 224 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Steve Slaton led the team in rushing with 62 yards on 16 carries, and Owen Daniels caught 11 passes for 133 yards.
The Texans will try to get back on the winning track as they take on the Baltimore Ravens next Sunday in a game that was postponed from week two.
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