Stroud runs for a TD, throws for another as Houston beats Titans for 1st win of season

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — C.J. Stroud threw for 261 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score and the Houston Texans snapped their winless start to the season by routing the Tennessee Titans 26-3 Sunday.

This is the second straight season Houston (1-4) ended an opening winless skid by beating Tennessee. This time, the Texans forced two turnovers and Will Anderson Jr. had three of Houston's four sacks. Ka'imi Fairbairn kicked four field goals with the Texans taking a 12-3 halftime lead.

Houston played keep-away over the second and third quarters outgaining the Titans 225-49 and outscoring them 16-0. The Texans held Tennessee to a season-low 187 total yards.

The Titans (0-5) now have lost 11 straight in the AFC South and six straight going back to the end of last season.

Tennessee led only after opening with a drive for a 30-yard field goal by Joey Slye. Cam Ward finished throwing for 170 yards.

Then the Texans forced the Titans three-and-out, safety Jalen Pitre recovered a fumble by Tyjae Spears on the next Tennessee drive. Jake Hansen picked off Ward's pass up the middle on the ensuing drive. Houston then forced another three-and-out by the Titans.

Tennessee managed only one sack as Stroud scrambled safely to the sideline. The Titans' secondary didn't have safety Amani Hooker still in the concussion protocol, and the injuries grew quickly after kickoff. Safety Kevin Winston Jr. hurt a quadriceps muscle early, cornerback Cor'Dale Flott hurt his chest and Tony Adams returned after clearing a concussion evaluation.

Stroud picked apart the Titans, and only the Texans' inability to convert twice inside the Tennessee 20 in the first half kept the final score from being worse. Houston also had to settle for field goals of 35 and 26 yards from Fairbairn after the turnovers.

Houston put the game away in the third quarter with a 17-play drive using up 8 minutes, 23 seconds. Stroud kept the drive alive on third-and-11 escaping All-Pro tackle Jeffery Simmons to find Kayshon Boutte for a tiptoe-catch on the sideline for 23 yards. Stroud finished the drive with a 2-yard keeper for 19-3 lead.

Stroud added a 9-yard TD pass to Jaylin Noel to start the fourth quarter.

Houston hurt itself repeatedly, piling up 11 penalties for 95 yards. The Titans didn't pick up a penalty until 2:49 left in the third quarter and finished with seven for 83 yards.

Texans running back David Montgomery hurt a groin muscle in the second quarter and didn't return. He had just five carries for 11 yards. Pitre hurt a shoulder late.

Flott didn't return after hurting his chest. The injury happened when teammate Isaiah Oliver, promoted from the practice squad, hit both Flott and Texans tight end Dalton Schultz on an overthrown pass in the end zone.

The Texans play the Jaguars in London on Sunday.

The Titans visit Indianapolis on Sunday.

See AP’s full NFL coverage here

Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh, right, calls for a time out as field judge Sean Petty (28) responds during the first half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Houston Texans place kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn (15) watches after kicking a field goal during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans, right, talks with offensive tackle Trent Brown (77) on the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/John Amis)

Houston Texans wide receiver Kayshon Boutte (14) catches a pass along the sideline as Tennessee Titans' Marcus Harris, left, defends during the second half of an NFL football game in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) dives into the end zone for a touchdown after running the ball past Tennessee Titans safety Tony Adams (29) and Anthony Hill Jr. (53) during the second half of an NFL football game in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico (AP) — Hurricane Simon pounded Mexico’s Pacific coast as a Category 4 storm on Sunday, its eye remaining just offshore as its most powerful winds and rain slammed people living between the Sierra Madre and the ocean.

The hurricane's center swirled parallel to the coast, closing in on the Puerto Vallarta area, where its most damaging winds and rain were expected to hit around midnight and continue through Monday morning. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said it’s not clear if it will make landfall, which could enable it to maintain its dangerous strength, sustaining winds of 140 mph (220 kph).

That’s not good news for people in and around Puerto Vallarta, a popular tourist destination in the state of Jalisco. Just inland and uphill from the resort areas, many Mexicans live in communities where housing might not stand up to the storm.

By midday Sunday, Simon's eye was moving within about 65 miles (100 kilometers) of Cabo Corrientes at about 7 mph (11 kph). A senior hurricane center specialist, Phillipe Pappin, said this westernmost tip of mainland Mexico is the area most likely to get a direct hit from the system. Cabo Corrientes is at the southern tip of Bahia de Banderas, the wide bay where Puerto Vallarta looks out to the Pacific.

Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 25 miles (35 kilometers), and tropical-storm-force winds reach up to 80 miles (130 kilometers) from Simon’s center, meaning the entire area between Mexico's western coast and the Sierra Madre mountains could be affected.

“We’re expecting catastrophic wind and life-threatening storm surge impacts along that west-central coast of Mexico where the hurricane warning is currently in effect,” Pappin said. “They’re also getting very heavy rainfall associated with the storm that’s likely going to produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides in areas of higher terrain along the Mexican coastline, and there will be significant swells.”

Meanwhile, the hurricane dumped rain over parts of southwestern Mexico. It could bring 10 to 20 inches (25 to 50 centimeters) of rain in many places, with some areas in the states of Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco receiving up to 30 inches (76 centimeters).

As the storm approached Puerto Vallarta, National Guard vehicles patrolled the streets while police used a megaphone to call out the few people who were jogging, walking their dogs or biking by the waterfront. Officers reminded people that the area was closed and urged them to take shelter. Not everyone followed the orders.

Jalisco state suspended classes on Friday and Monday in 22 coastal municipalities and began evacuating people from at-risk areas while asking the tourism sector to make sure workers and visitors are fully accommodated in shelters or safe zones.

Hotel worker Víctor Martínez went shopping for nonperishable food Sunday afternoon. He said he could not go to work because public transportation service was suspended and most of the hotel had been evacuated.

Martínez found people’s concerns about the hurricane comforting.

“It happened to us before. It hit us years ago,” Martínez said, referring to a Category 5 hurricane that hit the area in 2002. “People didn’t expect it. We were very skeptical that it would ever hit us. Now, though, we’re different. Precautions are being taken. It happened to us once, and we won’t let it happen again.”

Despite the risks posed by Simon, tourists were still arriving in Puerto Vallarta.

Visitors Ricardo Ramírez and Brenda Villarreal, who have never lived through a hurricane, went looking for food by the city’s boardwalk and came across police urging people to take shelter. Ramírez said they were completely unprepared for the situation.

“The boardwalk is closed. Be responsible. Understand!” police told passersby using a megaphone.

Ramírez said he and Villarreal had planned their four-day vacation since last year and traveled from Guadalajara, Jalisco’s capital.

“We don’t know the extent of the danger yet,” Villarreal said. “We’re just starting to see what’s going on.”

A National Guard on patrol faces the spray at the seawall as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

A National Guard stands in the spray as a wave hits the seawall brought by the approaching Hurricane Simon in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

A National Guard patrols along the seawall as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Tourists walk along the coast as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Tourists take photos of a water splashing against the wall as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Workers place sandbags outside a restaurant as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

This satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA shows Hurricane Simon in the Pacific on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration via AP)

A man boards up a shop as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

The Flying Men of Papantla perform the "Danza de los Voladores" on the beach as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

A man places a window covering on his boat as Hurricane Simon approaches Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)