MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — After just two snaps, the Houston Texans had a good indication of how Sunday's game against the Vikings was going to play out.
On the first play from scrimmage, Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud connected with wide receiver Nico Collins on a 17-yard pass, giving the Texans the ball near midfield. But tight end Cade Stover was flagged for holding, negating the big gain.
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Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud talks with a coach on the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jonathan Greenard (58) celebrates after sacking Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) is sacked by Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jonathan Greenard (58) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) walks off the field after an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. The Vikings won 34-7. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) talks with Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) after an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. The Vikings won 34-7. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud speaks during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. The Vikings won 34-7. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
On the next snap, Stroud was looking for wideout Tank Dell on a crossing pattern. But his pass was tipped by defensive tackle Harrison Phillips, and linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill picked it off, giving the Vikings the ball at the Houston 21-yard line.
Six plays later, the Vikings had a 7-0 lead and were on their way to a 34-7 blowout of the Texans.
The holding call on Stover was one of 11 penalties against the Texans on Sunday, a week after they committed 12 penalties in a victory over the Bears.
“You can’t win that way, when you have something positive going, and you negate it by the penalty. That just saps the energy out of everyone,” Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said. “And turning the ball over — a lot of miscues today. You can’t do that and expect to win in this league.”
Quarterbacks turning the ball over isn't necessarily a rare thing — unless you're Stroud. He'd thrown 266 passes without an interception, a streak that went back to Nov. 19, 2023, and covered a span of nine starts, including two playoff games.
His next streak lasted just 26 throws, as Vikings safety Camryn Bynum logged a fourth-quarter interception that the Vikings promptly turned into their final touchdown.
Stroud finished 20 for 31 for 215 yards and one touchdown along with the two interceptions. He also was sacked four times. After the game, Stroud gave credit to the Vikings, even while admitting that many of the Texans' mistakes were self-inflicted.
“I was making the right reads all day,” Stroud said. “I felt like I played well other than the turnovers, especially the one at the end. I was seeing it well. I tried to stay in the pocket and deliver it as best I could, but they had some coverages and some pressures that they did at a very, very high level, so kudos to those guys.”
The Texans outgained the Vikings 296 to 274 yards, but with running back Joe Mixon out, they could not establish a running game. That put more pressure on Stroud and the passing game.
“I’ve dealt with games like this before, where it’s like, ‘Man, we look terrible!’ But that’s not the truth,” Stroud said. "They kicked our butts today. They are a great team and they’ll continue to do great things, but we know what we are and that’s not what we put on the field today.
“Once we fix the negatives, we’re going to be rolling. I’m excited because the only way we can go now is up,” he added “It’s something to learn from. I’m glad it happened early. Now it’s time to go to work.”
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Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud talks with a coach on the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jonathan Greenard (58) celebrates after sacking Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) is sacked by Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jonathan Greenard (58) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) walks off the field after an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. The Vikings won 34-7. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) talks with Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) after an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. The Vikings won 34-7. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud speaks during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. The Vikings won 34-7. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal agents carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota's Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman rammed the door of one home Sunday and pushed their way inside, part of what the Department of Homeland Security has called its largest enforcement operation ever.
In a dramatic scene similar to those playing out across Minneapolis, agents captured a man in the home just minutes after pepper spraying protesters outside who had confronted the heavily-armed federal agents. Along the residential street, protesters honked car horns, banged on drums and blew whistles in attempts to disrupt the operation.
Video of the clash showed some agents pushing back protesters while a distraught woman later emerged from the house with a document that federal agents presented to arrest the man. Signed by an immigration officer, the document — unlike a warrant signed by a judge — does not authorize forced entry into a private residence. A warrant signed by an immigration officer only authorizes arrest in a public area.
Immigrant advocacy groups have done extensive “know-your-rights” campaigns urging people not to open their doors unless agents have a court order signed by a judge.
But within minutes of ramming the door in a neighborhood filled with single-family homes, the handcuffed man was led away and soon gone.
More than 2,000 immigration arrests have been made in Minnesota since the enforcement operation began at the beginning of December, said Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.
The Twin Cities — the latest target in President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign — is bracing for what is next after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an immigration officer Wednesday.
“We’re seeing a lot of immigration enforcement across Minneapolis and across the state, federal agents just swarming around our neighborhoods,” said Jason Chavez, a Minneapolis city councilmember. “They’ve definitely been out here.”
Chavez, the son of Mexican immigrants who represents an area with a growing immigrant population, said he is closely monitoring information from chat groups about where residents are seeing agents operating.
People holding whistles positioned themselves in freezing temperatures on street corners Sunday in the neighborhood where Good was killed, watching for any signs of federal agents.
More than 20,000 people have taken part in a variety of trainings to become “observers” of enforcement activities in Minnesota since the 2024 election, said Luis Argueta, a spokesperson for Unidos MN, a local human rights organization .
“It’s a role that people choose to take on voluntarily, because they choose to look out for their neighbors,” Argueta said.
The protests have been largely peaceful, but residents remained anxious. On Monday, Minneapolis public schools will start offering remote learning for the next month in response to concerns that children might feel unsafe venturing out while tensions remain high.
Many schools closed last week after Good’s shooting and the upheaval that followed.
While the enforcement activity continues, two of the state’s leading Democrats said that the investigation into Good's shooting death should not be overseen solely by the federal government.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and U.S. Sen. Tina Smith said in separate interviews Sunday that state authorities should be included in the investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.
“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiased investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw — what they think happened," Smith said on ABC’s "This Week."
The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot Good in her car, saying he was protecting himself and fellow agents and that Good had “weaponized” her vehicle.
Todd Lyons, acting director of ICE, defended the officer on Fox News Channel’s “The Sunday Briefing.”
"That law enforcement officer had milliseconds, if not short time to make a decision to save his life and his other fellow agents,” he said.
Lyons also said the administration’s enforcement operations in Minnesota wouldn't be needed “if local jurisdictions worked with us to turn over these criminally illegal aliens once they are already considered a public safety threat by the locals.”
The killing of Good by an ICE officer and the shooting of two people by federal agents in Portland, Oregon, led to dozens of protests across the country over the weekend.
Thousands of people marched Saturday in Minneapolis, where Homeland Security called its deployment of immigration officers in the Twin Cities its biggest ever immigration enforcement operation.
Associated Press journalists Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis, Thomas Strong in Washington, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, contributed.
A woman gets into an altercation with a federal immigration officer as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A federal immigration officer deploys pepper spray as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A family member, center, reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Bystanders are treated after being pepper sprayed as federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A family member reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Federal agents look on after detaining a person during a patrol in Minneapolis, Minn., Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
Bystanders react after a man was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
People stand near a memorial at the site where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)
A man looks out of a car window after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Border Patrol agents detain a man, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
People shout toward Border Patrol agents making an arrest, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)
Protesters react as they visit a makeshift memorial during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
