Despite a dominant first half and three touchdown drives, Houston’s defense collapsed late as Aidan O’Connell engineered a stunning fourth-quarter comeback to snatch victory for the Raiders.
It was a difficult end to what started as a good night for the Houston Texans. Houston fell to the Las Vegas Raiders 22-20 capping a game in which they for the most part held a lead from wire to wire.
The Texans started the game hot. Houston built an early lead scoring 17 of its 20 points in the first quarter and all of its 20 points in the first half.
The start is good news in that the backups most immediately set to come into a game were the ones that built a 20-3 halftime lead.
The Raiders' game started poorly, especially for No. 1 overall pick and rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza. The signal caller who authored the Indiana Hoosiers' first national title victory in football threw more touchdowns for the Texans than he did for his own team. Mendoza would finish the day 8-for-15 with 86 yards and an interception.
The Vikings got a closer look at former No. 3 receiver Jalen Nailor in a Vikings uniform. Nailer caught one pass for 22 yards before his day was over.
Texans' quarterbacks had an efficient day with all going for an over 60% completion rate. Starting quarterback C.J. Stroud had an uneventful first outing completing four of his six passing attempts.
Davis Mills had a good day in his own right. Mills completed 11 of 15 passes for 93 yards. Brett Rypien went 6-for-10 for 60 passing yards in his own right.
The Texans led 20-3 until late in the third quarter. Then chaos ensued.
A six-play, 39-yard drive with 4:57 left to go in the third quarter cut the Texans lead to 20-10. The Raiders did not stop there.
Aug 20, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Las Vegas Raiders special teams kick returner Roman Hemby (37) returns a kickoff against the Houston Texans in the first half at Reliant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn ImagesLas Vegas scored again with 7:36 left to play as Dare Ogunbowale crossed the plane to cut the lead to 20-16. The Raiders would fail the two-point attempt but come within four points. Then backup Raiders quarterback Aidan O'Connell would engineer another scoring drive.
The Raiders would drive down the field and score with 14 seconds left as Aidan O'Connell punched the football into the endzone from a yard away. O'Connell would finish the day with 15 completions on 24 attempts and 166 passing yards.
There wasn't much offense in the game outside of O'Connell. The Texans defense fared well overall, but more so towards the beginning of the game.
Houston will hope to see more from its depth as they push closer to the regular season opener.
