Texans grab early lead, coast to win over Cardinals

C.J. Stroud passed for 260 yards and three touchdowns, two to Nico Collins, and the host Houston Texans beat the Arizona Cardinals 40-20 on Sunday for their sixth straight victory.

Stroud completed 22 of 29 passes and hit Dalton Schultz with another score, while Jawhar Jordan rushed for 101 yards in his NFL debut after being elevated from the practice squad.

Woody Marks scored a first-quarter touchdown before leaving with an ankle injury and Ka'imi Fairbairn made four field goals for the Texans (9-5), who remained one game behind Jacksonville in the AFC South.

Trey McBride of the Cardinals (3-11) had 12 receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns. He became the first tight end in NFL history with consecutive 100-catch seasons.

Jacoby Brissett completed 27 of 40 passes for 249 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.

Schultz had eight receptions for 76 yards, and his touchdown catch made it 30-7 with 4:35 remaining in the third quarter. Brissett threw touchdown passes to McBride and Michael Wilson to close to 33-20 with 11 minutes left.

The Texans led 17-0 before the Cardinals had a first down.

Stroud and Collins hooked up on a 57-yard touchdown pass on the second play from scrimmage, and the Cardinals fumbled the ensuing kickoff, setting up Fairbairn's 30-yard field goal.

After the Cardinals went three-and-out, Marks scored on a 7-yard run on a broken play to cap an eight-play drive. The snap went through Stroud's legs but straight to Marks, who scooped it up and scored on what was ruled a fumble recovery for a 17-point lead less than nine minutes into the game.

Cardinals halfback Bam Knight was carted off the field with a left ankle injury in the first quarter, and kick returner Andre Baccellia was carted off in the second quarter with a neck injury and taken to a local hospital.

--Field Level Media