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Houston • Andre Johnson hugged his coach at the end of Houston's first playoff victory — a moment a decade in the making.
"This is something not just for me, but for the whole organization," the Texans star receiver said. "It's a very special feeling. That's probably the most I've smiled in a long time."
As well he should.
Johnson, the face of this 10-year old franchise, scored on a 40-yard pass that powered the Texans to a 31-10 victory over the bungling Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday in an AFC wild-card game.
Johnson had plenty of help, too, from rookies J.J. Watt and T.J. Yates to running back Arian Foster's two touchdowns and 153 yards.
Watt came through with a leaping interception return for a touchdown late in the first half, Yates threw a pinpoint pass to Johnson in the third quarter, and Foster followed with his second touchdown — a 42-yard run in the fourth quarter — to finish off the Bengals (9-8).
Houston will play at Baltimore (12-4) next Sunday, a rematch of a regular-season game won by the Ravens.
"I'm just very proud of all the guys, and the job they did," Texans coach Gary Kubiak said. "Hopefully, there are some more to come."
The Bengals were in the playoffs for the third time in seven seasons, but haven't advanced since beating the Houston Oilers following the 1990 season. They were done in this time by mistakes and a lack of pass protection.
Watt returned the first of rookie Andy Dalton's three interceptions 29 yards for a score that broke a 10-10 tie with 52 seconds left in the half.
Dalton was 24-for-42 for 257 yards, while Yates was 11-for-20 for 159 yards in the first playoff game in the Super Bowl era matching two rookie quarterbacks. Foster scored on an 8-yard run in the first quarter.
The Texans' second-ranked defense had its best performance in several weeks, sacking Dalton four times. Houston also forced four turnovers.
"We got back to our type of football," Kubiak said, "and that was the key."
Houston used six draft picks on defensive players. The Texans took Watt with the 11th overall pick, a cornerstone for the reconstruction of the defense. He started all 16 games and led the team with 13 tackles for loss. But he had never picked off a pass.
Watt saw this one coming, measuring his jump when Dalton dropped back and snatching the ball with both hands. He sprinted to the end zone as the capacity crowd erupted, and he raised both hands after reaching the end zone.
Dalton rolled his eyes and shook his head as he walked to the Cincinnati bench and watched the replay on the giant scoreboard. It was just his second interception in his last seven games. "We feel like we have a bright future," he said. "It's still unfortunate that it ended this way." —
Highlights
R Texans running back Arian Foster rushes for 153 yards and two touchdowns, including a game-clinching 42-yard score in the fourth quarter.
• Houston rookie quarterback T.J. Yates goes 11-for-20 passing for 159 yards and a touchdown.