Texans rout Titans to remain unbeaten

Houston, TX - Behind a stifling defense, a potent running attack and a crisp passing game, the Houston Texans are 4-0 for the first time in franchise history.

Danieal Manning and Kareem Jackson returned interceptions for touchdowns, Matt Schaub threw for 202 yards and two scores and Arian Foster ran for 86 yards and a touchdown in the Texans' 38-14 rout of the Tennessee Titans.

Schaub completed 20-of-28 passes, Owen Daniels caught six balls for 72 yards and a score, and James Casey had five receptions for 36 yards and a touchdown for Houston (4-0), which has outscored its opponents 128-56 this season.

"It feels good," Houston coach Gary Kubiak said of his club's 4-0 start. "It's been a good September for our football team. We played pretty solid football."

Defensive end J.J. Watt tallied two of the Texans' four sacks in the triumph. He has recorded 1 1/2-plus sacks in every game this season and has 7 1/2 on the year.

Titans starting quarterback Jake Locker left the game in the first quarter with a left shoulder injury. On 3rd-and-7 midway through the frame, Glover Quin came untouched on a safety blitz and sacked Locker for an 8-yard loss. While Locker was going down, Watt hit him with the crown of his helmet directly on the shoulder.

"It's sore," Titans coach Mike Munchak said of Locker's shoulder. "We'll know more tomorrow. Shoulder, obviously, on the play and MRI when we get back and see exactly where he is at."

Matt Hasselbeck came on and threw for 193 yards on 17-of-25 efficiency with a pair of scores and interceptions for Tennessee (1-3), which was coming off a 44-41 overtime win over the Detroit Lions last Sunday.

"It's frustrating because I feel like we're not that far away, but we didn't play great," Hasselbeck admitted. "We had turnovers and I was a part of three of them."

Chris Johnson, who came into the contest with just 45 yards rushing this season, gained 141 yards on the ground on 25 carries in the setback.

Houston scored touchdowns on two of its first three possessions and jumped out to a 14-0 lead.

Andre Johnson hauled in receptions of 33 and 20 yards before Casey capped the opening 7-play, 77-yard drive with an 11-yard score over the middle.

Foster, who carried the ball six times for 23 yards on Houston's third trek, concluded the 10-play, 47-yard march with a 4-yard TD run up the middle.

The Titans made it a one-score game midway through the second. Following Chris Johnson's season-long run of 19 yards, Craig Stevens caught a pass over the middle and powered past safeties Manning and Quin for a 19-yard score, which made it 14-7.

Houston registered the first 24 points of the second half to seize control of the game.

On the first play of Tennessee's second drive of the half, Hasselbeck threw behind his intended receiver Taylor Thompson, who tipped the ball up in the air. The ball landed into the hands of Manning and he scampered 55 yards the other way for the score.

After a Titans punt on their next possession, Schaub found Daniels along the left sideline for a 28-yard touchdown, which capped a 7-play, 75-yard march and gave the Texans a 28-7 advantage.

Shayne Graham added a 33-yard field goal midway through the fourth and Kareem Jackson intercepted Hasselbeck on Tennessee's next touch and returned it 63 yards for a touchdown and a 38-7 Texans cushion.

Kendall Wright caught an 11-yard touchdown with 57 seconds left to conclude the scoring.

Game Notes

The Seattle Seahawks are the only NFL franchise to never start a season 4-0 ... Johnson had three receptions for 56 yards ... The Texans finished 6- for-14 on third down ... Schaub improved to 6-0 with seven touchdowns against Tennessee.

(Sports Network)