Fairbairn's last-second 49-yard FG gives Texans 34-31 win over Jaguars at Wembley Stadium

LONDON (AP) — Trying to seal a desperately needed win, Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud threw an interception in the end zone and gave the Jacksonville Jaguars another chance on Sunday.

Jacksonville tied the game at 31-31, but Stroud didn't stress about it.

“His mindset was 'Hey, I got you Coach, don’t worry about it,” Houston coach DeMeco Ryans said.

With just under two minutes left, Stroud led a drive to set up Ka’imi Fairbairn's 49-yard field goal as time expired and the Texans won 34-31 on the slick grass of Wembley Stadium.

“When a player tells me that, that just gives me the confidence that I need,” Ryans said. “He responded in an outstanding way.”

Stroud threw three touchdown passes and Marvin Harrison Jr. made his debut for the Texans (2-4) as Houston earned back-to-back wins to gain ground on the AFC South-leading Jaguars (4-2).

Cam Little’s 60-yard field goal had tied the game — a week after his 57-yarder won it for Jacksonville against the Eagles at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium — after Travis Hunter intercepted Stroud’s pass in the end zone.

Hunter also hauled in a 7-yard touchdown pass at the other end — becoming just the fifth player in the Super Bowl era, including the playoffs, to both score a touchdown and intercept a pass in the same game.

“Just made a mistake,” Stroud said of Hunter's pick. “I've learned in my life I've got to flush my failures and flush my successes and just move on. Our defense did a great job holding them to three points, and then gave me the ball back, and went down and had a game-winning drive.”

Stroud said he appreciated hearing words of support from Ryans and his teammates.

“What they did for me in that moment really meant a lot,” he said.

Tight end Foster Moreau caught two touchdown passes from Stroud, who also connected with Jaylin Noel for a 13-yard score in the third quarter for a 24-14 lead.

Moreau scored on a 6-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter and a 1-yarder just before the end of the half.

Penalties dogged the Jaguars for a third straight week. They were flagged for too many men on the field on a Houston punt — extending a Texans drive that ended with Noel’s touchdown.

Trevor Lawrence threw four touchdown passes, including a pair to Bhayshul Tuten. His 1-yard pass to rookie tight end Nate Boerkircher cut Houston’s lead to 24-21.

Houston responded with Jawhar Jordan’s 25-yard touchdown run to restore a 10-point lead, 31-21, late in the third quarter.

Two-way star Hunter, who scored his first NFL touchdown at Wembley a year ago, snagged his second when he hauled in a pass over the middle to reduce Houston’s lead to 31-28 in the fourth quarter.

Hunter's interception led to Jacksonville's drive and Little’s game-tying field goal.

“We didn’t get the result we wanted,” Jags coach Liam Coen said. “(But) I’m extremely proud of this team in the way they kept fighting today, going down 10 points ... kept fighting.”

Stroud completed 24 of 34 passes for 312 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. The interception was his first of the season.

Harrison, who joined the Texans this week in a trade with Arizona, made three catches for 34 yards. Woody Marks had 15 carries for 56 yards, the first running back to break 40 yards in a game this season against Jacksonville.

Lawrence finished 24 of 41 for 306 yards, four TDs and an interception.

The Texans were at 2-4 at this point last season and finished 12-5 to earn a wild-card playoff spot.

Early rain made the Wembley grass slippery — and not just for players. Umpire Larry Smith slipped and hurt his knee in the first quarter. He left on a cart.

Houston receiver Nico Collins changed cleats for longer spikes in first half. Tight end Dalton Schultz made a third down catch in the red zone but slipped just before the first down marker. The Texans opted for Fairbairn’s 25-yard field for a 10-7 lead.

Texans: LB Azeez Al-Shaair was evaluated for a concussion in the second quarter, headed to the locker room afterward, and returned in the third quarter ... S Reed Blankenship also left in the first half.

Jaguars: RB Ameer Abdullah was helped off after a kickoff return. He later came back into the game.... All-Pro long snapper Ross Matiscik (shoulder) had been ruled out Friday, replaced by newly signed Jacob Bobenmoyer.

Texans: Host the New York Giants next Sunday before a bye in Week 8.

Jaguars: Bye.

See AP’s full NFL coverage here

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) makes a pass during an NFL football game against Jacksonville Jaguars in London, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

Umpire Larry Smith is assisted from the field after getting injured during an NFL football game between Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars in London, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

Houston Texans tight end Foster Moreau (87), second right, celebrates after scoring his side's second touchdown during an NFL football game against Jacksonville Jaguars in London, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington (11) makes a catch as Houston Texans cornerback Kamari Lassiter (3) closes in during an NFL football game in London, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Bhayshul Tuten (33) celebrates after scoring his side's second touchdown during an NFL football game against Houston Texans in London, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

Houston Texans wide receiver Jaylin Noel (13) is challenged by Jacksonville Jaguars safety Antonio Johnson (6) during an NFL football game in London, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump on Sunday announced plans to close a historic public golf course in the nation's capital for 15 months and redevelop it despite an ongoing court challenge to his long-sought renovation.

Trump posted on social media about his intent to shutter the East Potomac Golf Course, not far from the White House, starting Nov. 15 to make it “one of the Best and Most Spectacular Golf Courses anywhere in the World.”

A judge last week, however, ordered a halt to his redevelopment plans until at least Oct. 26 after scolding the government for starting a large-scale tree removal at the course over a holiday weekend while providing little notice to the court or the plaintiffs trying to stop the makeover.

Trump did not acknowledge the legal fight in his post, which included an artist's rendering for the course redesign.

“When completed, it will be open to the Public while, at the same time, designed to the Highest Level of Golf and able to hold World Class Tournaments such as the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship, the Ryder Cup, and the Presidents Cup,” Trump wrote.

Democracy Forward, which is representing the plaintiffs challenging his renovation plans, responded by saying that the course is part of a national park and recreation facility that is meant for everyone to enjoy.

“Our litigation is intended to protect this community jewel for the people and communities it serves and we will continue to work with our plaintiffs to defend it from unlawful and harmful intrusion,” Skye Perryman, the president and CEO of the group, said in a statement.

The judge in the case took notice of Trump's online message and ordered the government to notify her by 8 p.m. EDT Sunday whether its position had changed from a court filing Friday that said “at most” Trump has given “preliminary thought” to the rebuilding plan and “there is no final agency action.”

Trump, a golf aficionado who plays often, had already announced plans to makeover the links as part of his broader push to renovate and refurbish places around Washington, including the White House and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Many of his projects, including plans for a huge ballroom at the White House, the installation of his own name on the Kennedy Center and construction of a massive arch, have been challenged in courts.

The 106-year-old park and course has been the subject of many emergency hearings as the president has sought to renovate it. While it has been open to Washingtonians of all income levels, opponents of Trump's plans to turn it into a high-end course have argued it will alter the character of the space and make it less affordable to people.

Trump in his post echoed arguments he has made to justify his plans to remake the Kennedy Center, arguing it is in such dangerous condition that it needs to close.

“The current Course is old, broken, dilapidated, and of no further use or effect. It is in very poor condition, with falling, dangerous, and disease infested trees and, importantly, a collapsing and hazardous seawall,” Trump wrote.

Debris from the demolition of the White House East Wing to make way for his ballroom project has also been dumped on the grounds. The National Park Service has said the debris tested positive for lead, chromium and other toxic metals.

Trump also sought to justify the National Park Service's removal of hundreds of trees that the judge paused, writing in his announcement that when the gold course was originally built, “it was famous for no trees, with views of Washington, D.C., for all to see, but now, it is completely overgrown, dysfunctional, and unsafe.”

Trump’s post outlining a clear plan for construction complicates a federal court hearing scheduled for Monday in a lawsuit filed by the DC Preservation League and two golfers opposing the construction.

U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes has ordered key members of the Republican administration to testify on the recent tree-cutting and whether those actions are tied to the president’s plans for the historical public links.

The administration on Friday asked for Reyes to be replaced on the case, questioning her impartiality and citing what it called “egregious” behavior from the bench in response to an emergency hearing Oct. 12. Her frustration boiled over in a three-hour hearing when she lambasted the government’s attorney for the lack of notification she and the plaintiffs received before the trees were chopped down.

At the upcoming hearing, the judge is expected to address the request that she step aside. Meanwhile, over the weekend the plaintiffs asked that she grant them a more long-standing preliminary injunction in the case and/or a stay.

Associated Press writer Gary Fields in Washington contributed to this report.

Golfers tee off near log sections cut from trees at the East Potomac Golf Links, Monday, Oct. 12, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Golfers walk near log sections cut from trees at the East Potomac Golf Links, in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

A golfer walks past cut down trees and piles of wood chips at the East Potomac Golf Links, Monday, Oct. 12, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Golfers tee off near log sections cut and tree stumps at the East Potomac Golf Links, Monday, Oct. 12, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

A golfer walks near log sections cut from trees at the East Potomac Golf Links, in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)