THE TEXANS

·         Failed to score first for the sixth time this season. Houston fell to 4-2 when allowing its opponents to score first thus far this season.

·         Trailed after one quarter for the fourth time this season and trailed at halftime and after three quarters for the third time this season. Houston fell to 2-2, 1-2 and 1-2 in each instance, respectively.

·         Lost the time of possession battle for the second time this season, holding the ball for 29:11. It was the first time this season that Houston’s time of possession was less than 30:00, since the only other instance in which the Texans lost time of possession was an overtime game at Detroit in Week 12 (11/22).

·         Finished with an even turnover margin for the second time this season. Houston gave the ball away once and had one takeaway in the game. The Texans fell to 1-1 in such instances.

FB JAMES CASEY

·         Caught a 30-yard pass in the third quarter, matching his long for the season. He also had a 30-yard catch in Week 5 at the New York Jets (10/8), also on Monday Night Football.

TE OWEN DANIELS

·         Extended his streak of consecutive games with a reception to 80 with a 13-yard catch in the first quarter. The catch was also the 350th of his career.

RB JUSTIN FORSETT

·         Caught his 100th career pass on a 14-yard screen pass in the first quarter. Forsett entered the game with 99 career receptions in five seasons.

RB ARIAN FOSTER

·         Scored his 14th rushing touchdown of the season on a 1-yard scoring run in the third quarter, passing RB Domanick Williams’ total of 13 rushing touchdowns in 2004 for the second-most in team history. Foster holds the franchise single-season record with 16 rushing touchdowns in 2010.

·         Caught his longest pass of the season when he took a screen pass 23 yards in the second quarter. Foster’s previous long was an 18-yard catch in Week 2 at Jacksonville (9/16).

·         Established a season high with 39 receiving yards in the game, bettering his previous high of 37 yards from Week 2 at Jacksonville (9/16).

WR LESTAR JEAN

·         Caught his second pass of the game, a gain of 7 yards in the second quarter. It marked Jean’s first career game with multiple receptions.

WR ANDRE JOHNSON

·         Surpassed 1,200 receiving yards in a season for the fourth time in his career, topping the milestone on his seventh catch, a gain of 5 yards in the third quarter. Johnson entered the game with 1,114 yards on the year.

·         Passed Gary Clark (10,856) for 29th on the NFL’s all-time receiving yardage list. Johnson now has 10,865 career receiving yards.

·         Extended his franchise-record streak of consecutive games with a reception to 95 with an 8-yard catch in the first quarter.

P DONNIE JONES

·         Punted seven times with five traveling at least 50 yards, including punts of 59, 57 and 56 yards, giving him at least one punt of 55 yards or longer in 11 of Houston’s 13 games this season.

FS SHILOH KEO

·         Registered his first career interception when he picked off a deflected pass from Patriots QB Ryan Mallett in the fourth quarter.

OLB WHITNEY MERCILUS

·         Sacked New England QB Tom Brady for a 7-yard loss in the third quarter. The sack gave him 6.0 on the season, tying the franchise rookie sack record set by OLB Brooks Reed in 2011.

NT EARL MITCHELL

·         Forced a fumble in the first quarter. It was his first career forced fumble.

WR DEVIER POSEY

·         Recorded his first career catch when he hauled in a 19-yard pass from QB T.J. Yates in the fourth quarter.

CB STANFORD ROUTT

·         Made his debut as a Texan, seeing action on special teams and as a reserve on defense.

QB MATT SCHAUB

·         Surpassed 20,000 career passing yards as a member of the Houston Texans. He entered the game with 19,965 yards as a Texan and topped the milestone on a 13-yard completion to TE Owen Daniels, his fourth pass attempt of the game.

DE J.J. WATT

·         Forced a fumble in the fourth quarter. It was his second forced fumble of the season and the second of his career.

QB T.J. YATES

·         Scored his first career rushing touchdown on a quarterback keeper from 1 yard away in the fourth quarter.

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES

·         Inactive players for the Texans were CB Alan Ball, G Antoine Caldwell TE Garrett Graham, NT Terrell McClain, RT Derek Newton, OLB Brooks Reed and G Cody White.

·         Captains for the Texans were ILB Tim Dobbins, WR Andre Johnson, FS Shiloh Keo, C Chris Myers, QB Matt Schaub, DE Antonio Smith and DE J.J. Watt. Schaub, Johnson, Smith and Watt went to midfield for the pregame coin toss. ILB Brian Cushing, who is on the reserved/injured list, joined his fellow captains at midfield.

·         The Patriots won the toss and deferred their option until the second half. Houston received the opening kickoff.

THE LOSS

·         Ended Houston’s five-game winning streak and dropped the Texans to 5-1 on the season.

·         Dropped the Texans’ record against Green Bay to 1-2 all-time.

·         Dropped the Texans’ record in prime time to 4-9 overall, 3-6 under Head Coach Gary Kubiak and 1-1 this season.

THE TEXANS OFFENSE

·         Made a field goal for the 16th consecutive game, setting a franchise record. Houston previously had field goals in 15 consecutive games from 11/1/10 – 10/9/11.

·         Won the time of possession battle for the sixth time this season.

·         Trailed after the first quarter, at halftime and after three quarters for the first time this season in each instance.

THE TEXANS DEFENSE

·         Blocked a punt for the first time since 1/1/06 at San Francisco and scored a touchdown on the play. The touchdown was the first off of a blocked punt since 12/22/02 at Washington.

·         Allowed their opponent to score on its opening drive for the first time this season when Green Bay scored on a 41-yard touchdown pass.

OLB BRYAN BRAMAN

·         Blocked a punt in the fourth quarter. It was the first punt block in his career and the first since 1/1/06 when Ramon Walker blocked a punt at San Francisco. It was the fifth blocked punt in Texans history.

FB JAMES CASEY

·         Caught two passes for 27 yards, raising his season reception total to 18 and matching his total from last season.

TE OWEN DANIELS

·         Surpassed 4,000 career receiving yards on a 27-yard catch in the third quarter, his third of the game. He entered the game needing 40 yards to reach the milestone.

·         Extended his streak of consecutive games with a reception to 74 with a 4-yard catch in the first quarter.

RB ARIAN FOSTER

·         Scored his 40th career touchdown when he reached the end zone from a yard out in the second quarter. Foster has scored 35 career rushing touchdowns and has five receiving scores.

·         Extended his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown to a franchise-record eight games when he scored from a yard out early in the second quarter. RB Domanick Williams previously held the mark with touchdowns in seven straight games from 11/21/04 – 1/2/05.

·         Scored his second touchdown of the game, a 1-yard run in the third quarter. It was his second multi-touchdown game of the season and his first since the season opener vs. Miami (9/9).

TE GARRETT GRAHAM

·         Caught a career-high three passes for 25yards, topping his previous high of two receptions set in Week 3 at Denver (9/23).

K SHAYNE GRAHAM

·         Made the 10th field goal of his career of 50 yards or longer, and his first as a Texan, when he connected from 51 yards in the second quarter. It was Graham’s first field goal of 50+ yards since 2009.

WR ANDRE JOHNSON

·         Surpassed 10,000 career receiving yards on his seventh catch of the game, a gain of 15 yards. Johnson entered the game with 9,939 career yards. Johnson became the sixth-fastest player to reach the 10,000-yard mark, doing so in his 128th game, and the 38th player in NFL history to top the milestone.

·         Surpassed 10,000 career yards from scrimmage with his first catch of the game, a 12-yard gain. He entered the game with 9,993 career scrimmage yards (9,939 receiving, 54 rushing).

·         Extended his franchise-record streak of consecutive games with a reception to 88 with a 12-yard catch in the first quarter.

·         Played in his 128th career game, tying K Kris Brown (2002-09) for the most games played as a Houston Texan.

WR KESHAWN MARTIN

·         Made his debut as a returner and returned three kickoffs for 65 yards (21.7 average) and one punt for 19 yards.

·         Established a new season high for receiving yards with 24 on two catches, both of which came in the third quarter.

WR DeVIER POSEY

·         Recovered a blocked punt in the end zone for a touchdown. It was his first career touchdown and was the first touchdown following a blocked punt for the Texans since 12/22/02 when Jimmy McClain blocked a punt at Washington and Kevin Williams recovered it in the end zone.

FS GLOVER QUIN

·         Tied a season-high with eight tackles, seven of which were solo stops. He also led the team with two passes defensed.

QB MATT SCHAUB

·         Saw his streak of nine consecutive wins come to an end with the loss. Schaub’s last loss as the starting quarterback came on 10/16/11 at Baltimore.

·         Finished the night with a season-low passer rating of 56.6, completing 20-of-33 passes for 232 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions.

WR KEVIN WALTER

·         Caught his 300th pass as a Texan when he hauled in a 12-yard throw in the third quarter. Walter entered the game with 298 receptions with the team.

DE J.J. WATT

·         Extended his streak of consecutive games with a sack to six, matching the longest streak in team history. Mario Williams had sacks in six straight games from 11/18/07 – 12/23/07.

·         Registered his fourth multiple-sack game of the season, with 2.0 sacks for 10 yards in losses. Watt now has 9.5 sacks on the season to lead the NFL.

QB T.J. YATES

·         Made his second appearance of the season and threw his first passes of the year. Yates finished the game 2-of-5 for 23 yards with no touchdowns and 1 interception for a passer rating of 15.0.

MISCELLANEOUS STATS

·         Total paid attendance was 71,702, marking the largest crowd for a Texans regular-season game in team history. The previous mark was 71,585 set last season vs. Pittsburgh (10/2/11).

·         Inactive players for the Texans included G Brandon Brooks, CB Roc Carmichael, SS Quintin Demps, G Andrew Gardner, CB Brandon Harris, ILB Barrett Ruud and G Cody White.

·         Captains for the Texans were ILB Tim Dobbins, WR Andre Johnson, QB Matt Schaub and DE Antonio Smith.

·         The Texans won the toss and elected to receive.

THE TEXANS
·         Limited the Denver offense to 43 yards in the third quarter, 42 of which came on Denver’s last two plays of the period.

TE OWEN DANIELS
·         Caught the 21st touchdown pass of his career and his first of the season when he took a pass from QB Matt Schaub 14 yards for a score in the third quarter.

K SHAYNE GRAHAM
·         Connected on a 41-yard field goal in the third quarter. Graham improved to 5-of-6 on field goal attempts this season.

WR LESTAR JEAN
·         Caught his second pass of the season when he hooked up with QB Matt Schaub for a 46-yard catch and run in the third quarter. Jean had a 9-yard catch in the season opener vs. Miami (9/9).

P DONNIE JONES
·         Surpassed 30,000 career punting yards in the game. He entered the game with 29,896 career punting yards.

QB MATT SCHAUB
·         Tied his career high with his fourth touchdown pass of the game when he hit TE Owen Daniels for a 14-yard score in the third quarter. Schaub has thrown for four touchdowns in two previous games, most recently on 10/18/09 at Cincinnati.

QB T.J. YATES
·         Made his 2012 debut when he came on for QB Matt Schaub for one play in the third quarter.

Texans non-dressers
8 QB Matt Schaub
13 QB T.J. Yates
21 CB Brice McCain
23 RB Arian Foster
24 CB Johnathan Joseph
25 CB Kareem Jackson
29 FS Glover Quin
38 SS Danieal Manning
44 RB Ben Tate
50 OLB Bryan Braman
53 ILB Bradie James
55 C Chris Myers
56 ILB Brian Cushing
58 OLB Brooks Reed
62 G Antoine Caldwell
74 G Wade Smith
75 T Derek Newton
76 T Duane Brown
80 WR Andre Johnson
81 TE Owen Daniels
86 FB James Casey
87 WR Jerrell Jackson
88 TE Garrett Graham
94 DE Antonio Smith
95 NT Shaun Cody
96 DE Tim Jamison
98 OLB Connor Barwin
99 DE J.J. Watt

Texans starting lineup changesrt
Keshawn Martin and Lestar Jean will start at wide receiver. Rashad Butler will start at left tackle. Cody White will start at left guard. Ben Jones will start at center. Brandon Brooks will start at right guard. Andrew Gardner will start at right tackle. Logan Brock will start at tight end. John Beck will start at quarterback. Moran Norris will start at fullback. Justin Forsett will start at running back. Mitch King and Jared Crick will start at defensive end. Hebron Fangupo will start at nose tackle. Whitney Mercilus and D.J. Bryant will start at outside linebacker. Mister Alexander and Tim Dobbins will start at inside linebacker. Alan Ball and Sherrick McManis will start at cornerback. Quintin Demps and Troy Nolan will start at safety.

Vikings non-dressers
7 QB Christian Ponder
12 WR Percy Harvin
20 CB Chris Cook
26 CB Antoine Winfield
28 HB Adrian Peterson
32 HB Toby Gerhart
33 FS Jamarca Sanford
34 S Andrew Sendejo
41 S Mistral Raymond
42 FB Jerome Felton
50 WLB Erin Henderson
52 SLB Chad Greenway
54 MLB Jasper Brinkley
65 C John Sullivan
69 RDE Jared Allen
71  T Phil Loadholt
74 LG Charlie Johnson
75 LT Matt Kalil
81 WR Jerome Simpson
82 TE Kyle Rudolph
89 TE John Carlson
93 UT Kevin Williams
96 LDE Brian Robison
98 NT Letroy Guion

Vikings starting lineup changes:
84 Michael Jenkins at WR for 81 Jerome Simpson
73 DeMarcus Love at LT for 75 Matt Kalil
72 Chris DeGeare at LG for 74 Charlie Johnson
61 Joe Berger at C for 65 John Sullivan
79 Pat Brown at RT for 71 Phil Loadholt
40 Rhett Ellison at TE for 82 Kyle Rudolph
11 Stephen Burton at WR for 12 Percy Harvin
14 Joe Webb at QB for 7 Christian Ponder
44 Ryan D’Imperio at FB for 42 Jerome Felton
38 Lex Hilliard at HB for 32 Toby Gerhart
91 D’Aundre Reed at LDE for 96 Brian Robison
62 Chase Baker at NT for 90 Fred Evans
99 Christian Ballard at UT for 93 Kevin Williams
97 Everson Griffen at RDE for 69 Jared Allen
51 Larry Dean at LB for 52 Chad Greenway
58 Tyrone McKenzie at LB for 54 Jasper Brinkley
55 Marvin Mitchell at LB for 50 Erin Henderson
27 Brandon Burton at CB for 26 Antoine Winfield
25 Chris Carr at CB for 20 Chris Cook
37 Eric Frampton at SS for 41 Mistral Raymond
22 Harrison Smith at FS for 33 Jamarca Sanford

THE WIN…

• Improved Houston’s all-time preseason record to 17-25, 8-13 on the road and 6-5 in preseason openers.

• Improved the Texans’ preseason record against Carolina to 1-0.

• Improved Houston’s record in preseason games against NFC South opponents to 6-9 all-time.

• Improved head coach Gary Kubiak’s career preseason record to 14-11 and 5-2 in preseason openers.

TEAM NOTES

• The Texans outrushed the Panthers, gaining 174 yards on the ground to Carolina’s 61.

• The Texans outgained the Panthers overall, 375 to 137. The Texans defense limited Carolina to 12 first downs.

• The Texans dominated time of possession, holding the ball for 37:41.

• The Texans’ starting defense forced a three-and-out in each of their first two series of the preseason, holding the Panthers offense to one yard of net offense on the two drives.

• The Texans defense recorded two takeaways, an interception and a fumble recovery. The two takeaways along with a fumble and an interception by the offense gave Houston an even turnover margin in the game.

• The Texans defense registered eight total sacks, with six different players accounting for them.

• The Texans’ starting offense drove 65 yards in nine plays for a field goal on its first possession of the preseason, capping the drive with a 20-yard field goal from K Shayne Graham.

• The Texans rushed for 174 yards in the game, marking the fourth time in three years under offensive coordinator Rick Dennison that the Texans have rushed for more than 170 yards in a preseason game.

• The Texans led 10-3 at the end of the first quarter, were tied at halftime, 13-13, and led after three quarters 23-13.

• The Panthers won the toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff.

INDIVIDUAL PLAYER NOTES

• QB John Beck finished the night 4-of-6 for 46 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions, giving him a passer rating of 89.6. Beck engineered the Texans’ first touchdown drive of the night, an 11-play, 61-yard march in the third quarter.

• OLB Bryan Braman sacked Carolina QB Jimmy Clausen for 5-yard loss early in the fourth quarter. It was his first sack in the preseason and the defense’s fifth of the night.

• K Randy Bullock capped the Texans’ scoring with a 52-yard field goal in the fourth quarter following the two-minute warning. Bullock was 2-of-2 on the night with the 52-yarder and a 21-yarder in the second quarter.

• ILB Tim Dobbins sacked Carolina QB Derek Anderson for a 7-yard loss in the second quarter. It was Houston’s third sack of the first half.

• Dobbins teamed with OLB Whitney Mercilus to sack Carolina QB Jimmy Clausen for a 9-yard loss in the third quarter. The sack gave each of them 1.5 for the game.

• K Shayne Graham was perfect on both of his field goal attempts, hitting from 20 yards in the first quarter and from 37 yards in the third quarter.

• RB Jonathan Grimes scored the Texans’ first offensive touchdown of the preseason on a 3-yard run in the third quarter. The score came as the result of an interception and capped an 11-play, 61-yard drive.

• WR Trindon Holliday returned a first-quarter kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown. It was the second kickoff return for a score in team preseason history. WR Reggie Swinton had a 102-yard return for touchdown in 2005 at Dallas (8/27/05). Holliday finished the game with 182 total return yards, including 159 in kickoff returns.

• OLB Whitney Mercilus registered the first sack of his career when he dropped Carolina QB Derek Anderson for a 4-yard loss in the second quarter.

• Mercilus teamed with ILB Tim Dobbins to sack Carolina QB Jimmy Clausen for a 9-yard loss in the third quarter. The sack gave each of them 1.5 for the game.

• OLB Jesse Nading sacked Carolina QB Jimmy Clausen for a 5-yard loss in the fourth quarter. It was the sixth sack of the night for the Texans defense.

• FS Troy Nolan intercepted a pass on Carolina’s opening drive of the third quarter, setting up an eventual touchdown. It was his third career interception in preseason play after he had two picks in the 2011 preseason.

• OLB Brooks Reed registered a sack for a 10-yard loss on Houston’s second defensive series.

• QB Matt Schaub finished the night 3-of-6 for 52 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. He led three drives: a 9-play, 65-yard scoring drive; a 1-play, 11-yard drive that ended with a fumble; and a 2-play, 12-yard drive that ended with an interception. His final passer rating was 40.3.

• QB T.J. Yates led a 16-play, 68-yard drive in his first action of the night. The drive was capped by a 21-yard field goal from K Randy Bullock.

• Yates completed 8-of-12 pass attempts for 89 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions, giving him a passer rating of 88.5.

• Texans scratches included DE Jared Crick, ILB Brian Cushing, LB Keyaron Fox, ILB Omar Gaither, NT Ra’Shon Harris, WR Jerrell Jackson, WR Andre Johnson, WR Bryant Johnson, DE J.J. Watt and ILB Greg Williams.

Also, quarterback T.J. Yates will pop on, and we’ll hear his thoughts on how OTA’s went and what he’s picked up this offseason.

Plus, former Patriots and Browns outside linebacker Willie McGinest, who now works at the NFL Network will join us, and he’ll share his thoughts on Wade Phillips’ 3-4 scheme, where Brian Cushing should play on the field and more.

We’ll also welcome Jets reporter Eric Allen. The Texans play at New York on Monday Night Football in Week 5.

Remember, you can listen here!

I’ll also be in studio with Nick Scurfield, and we’ll hear how Yates’ first OTA’s went, what Quin is doing this offseason to fight illiteracy and a whole lot more.

If you’re out and about, listen to us on SportsRadio 610, or if you’re online, check it out here.

Coach Gary Kubiak reaffirmed as much on Wednesday after being asked how able Schaub might be for camp and the beginning of the season.

“There’s nobody here questioning it, I can tell you that,” Kubiak said. “He’s our quarterback. He’s our leader. He’s played extremely well. He had a very unfortunate situation last year, getting caught in a pile. We know what Matt’s capable of and what he’s done when he’s been on the field for us and we’re expecting big things from him, so there’s no questions being asked here.”

Schaub has been rehabbing on a side field during OTA practices, running and doing quarterback drills as he works his right foot back to full strength.

“He looks good to me,” Kubiak said. “He looks like Matt. He’ll work as hard as anybody, and he’s got a lot of ground to make up while some of these other guys take a little break here in a few weeks. He and Andre (Johnson) are going to have to stay at it.”

With Schaub out, second-year quarterback T.J. Yates has been leading the Texans’ first-team offense throughout OTAs. Kubiak called it an “amazing” opportunity for Yates, who started seven games as a rookie last season and led the Texans to their first-ever playoff victory.

Last offseason, Yates didn’t have the benefit of OTAs as a rookie because of the lockout, and he was third in line for reps in training camp behind Schaub and Matt Leinart.

“T.J.’s really still a young player, and all the reps he’s gotten – he’s our starting quarterback right now out here, and the more reps he gets doing that, the more comfortable he becomes that he can lead a team and do those things,” Kubiak said. “He did it last year, so as hard as it is to have Matt out, it’s been very valuable for T.J.”

Texans coach Gary Kubiak, a noted developer of quarterbacks, wants to refine the former second-round draft pick’s skills.

“John knows what to do,” Kubiak said last week. “I think I can help him with some of the ways he plays the position. I’m trying to get him to make some throws different than maybe he’s made them in the past. I can probably coach him a little different from that standpoint, but John knows what he’s doing. If I get him comfortable with how we want him to do it, I think it’s really going to help him. I think he’s in a good spot.”

Kubiak is extremely demanding and particular with his quarterbacks. Beck says that showed up on tape when he studied film of the Texans in previous seasons, and he embraces the chance to work with Kubiak.

“I’m always trying to get better, and he’s a guy that knows what he’s looking for, knows what he expects, and I want to be coached that way,” Beck said. “I want somebody to help me be the best I can be, so I appreciate that, because I think tough coaching just comes from the coach wanting the players to succeed.”

Since being drafted in the second round out of BYU in 2007, Beck has made seven starts in the NFL. The Texans are his fourth team in six years. He has been cut twice and traded once. Still, it’s hard to find a more positive person walking off the practice field every day at the Methodist Training Center.

“He’s a great young man,” Kubiak said. “I knew that. Anytime you play for how many teams he’s played with, and he’s played with a few, he’s played with a lot of coaches, which tells you he can handle all of that. Maybe we’ll settle him down right here and hopefully he’ll be here for a few years.”

Beck, 30, spent the last two seasons with the Washington Redskins, where he played in essentially the same offense as Houston’s under Mike and Kyle Shanahan.

“I think having some experience in this offense for a few years does help,” he said. “I’m having to adjust to a few things that are tweaked here. The groups that I’m running (in practice) have a lot of the younger players in it, so I can give the guys a few things here or there in this offense. More than anything, that’s what I’m trying to do – trying to use my experience that I do have to help this football team out.”

Kubiak said Beck and undrafted rookie Case Keenum are competing with T.J. Yates for the backup job to Matt Schaub, who is not participating in OTAs because of foot surgery. Beck was genuinely diplomatic when asked about that competition, praising the job Yates did last year and saying it’s not on his mind.

Beck also said he has not had extensive conversations with Kubiak or Texans management about his role.

“I just said what’s up to ‘em the first day I got here, and they said, ‘Welcome to the Texans; put your nose down and work,’” he said. “So that’s really all I’m focused on is just putting my nose down and working.”