Houston
Texans

If Johnson clears waivers, as expected, the Texans will consider signing him.

"We're going to do our homework on him just like we did our homework on Edgerrin James last week," coach Gary Kubiak said. "Obviously, I think when a name like that (Johnson) comes on the free agent market like today, we'll take a look at him just like any other player.

"He's been a good player in this league, and I'm sure he'll get a lot of interest from a lot of people."

Johnson, who turns 30 next week, was released by the Chiefs on the day he returned from a two-week suspension for conduct detrimental to the team.

Johnson, who was dogged by off-the-field issues at Kansas City, was suspended for making anti-gay remarks on his Twitter account and for repeating them to reporters who cover the Chiefs. He also was critical of first-year coach Todd Haley on his Twitter account.

The Texans are 5-4. After the bye week, they host Tennessee and Indianapolis. They believe to be a playoff contender they have to run the ball more effectively and to protect it better.

In Sunday's 20-17 loss to the Colts, Moats and Slaton combined for 22 carries and 45 yards and six catches and 27 yards. Moats caught a 1-yard touchdown pass. Slaton scored on a 1-yard run.

"We didn't run the ball real well when you look at the numbers," Kubiak said about said about rushing for 81 yards on 26 carries. "We did try to stay committed to it.

"We missed a couple of big protections in the game, which hurt us very badly, especially there at the end of the game. Both of them need to play better for us to be successful."

The Texans showed a picture Monday that showed Bethea was out of bounds with Moats on top of him and the ball coming out. If Bethea was out of bounds, everything that happened afterward shouldn't have been considered.

Even though the officials blew their whistles to indicate that the play was over, Triplette said that Powers had picked up the ball on the goal line, but because he had been out of bounds and had one foot out of bounds when he picked up the ball, it was ruled a fumble out of the end zone and a touchback for the Colts.

When the officials blew their whistles, the play should have been dead, and Powers picking up the ball would have been a moot point.

"They're saying the ball was not touched by anybody who was out of bounds," coach Gary Kubiak said. "We thought that 41 (Bethea) is touching the ball, and he's out of bounds. I'll let you know when I hear back (from the league)."

--After Moats was ruled down at the Colts' 1-yard line, the Texans lined up to run the next play, but Kubiak told QB Matt Schaub to let the clock run out until the two-minute warning. Kubiak expected to score, and he didn't want quarterback Peyton Manning to get the ball back with enough time to score before the first half ended.

None of his coaches in the booth told Kubiak to run a play before the Colts could challenge the controversial fumble. During the two-minute break, the Colts watched replays, and coach Jim Caldwell challenged that it was a fumble, and the play was overturned.

"You've got six guys in the booth," Kubiak said. "Headset-wise, you're hooked into just certain people, but I want them all to look. I want to hear everybody's opinion -- the guys on the field, the guys in the booth. But ultimately it's my decision, so I've got to listen and go from there.

"That was strictly me. The topic (possible fumble) never came up that there was a problem over there, so I was strictly trying to control the game from the standpoint of hoping not to put our defense back on the field and give Peyton the ball with too much time."

--Only two times in his four seasons had the Texans been called for at least 10 penalties. They were averaging five going into the Colts game, and they were whistled for 13 for 103 yards.

"We had penalties in all phases, so I can't pin them on one phase," coach Gary Kubiak said. "Trying to overcome that many penalties and still beat this (Colts) team makes it very difficult. Obviously, we had too many. It was our worst day."

--The Texans are 0-8 at Indianapolis and 1-15 against the Colts.

--OLB Brian Cushing continues to be a tackling machine. He had 12 tackles against the Colts, including 10 unassisted. Cushing needs the bye week to rest a sore foot that's had him limited in practice but playing every play the defense is on the field.

--DE Antonio Smith was signed as a free agent because he was good against the run and good enough as a pass rusher but nothing special. He started slow in both areas, but he's made significant improvement. His run defense has been terrific over the last six games. He's had two sacks in the last two games.

--WR Andre Johnson had 10 catches for 103 yards against the Colts, giving him 54 for 800 for the season. Johnson has been stuck on four touchdown receptions. With TE Owen Daniels on injured reserve, Johnson should have chances to catch more passes over the last seven games.

--QB Matt Schaub threw for 315 yards against Indianapolis. He also threw his 17th touchdown pass. That's a team record. It breaks the record he shared with David Carr (2004).

--LT Duane Brown was beaten for 1.5 sacks by DE Dwight Freeney. Brown said he wasn't happy with the way he played and promoted to play better when the Colts come to Reliant Stadium in three weeks.

REPORT CARD VS. COLTS

PASSING OFFENSE: B-minus -- After another slow start, QB Matt Schaub threw for 315 yards and his 17th touchdown, setting a team record for a season. He threw two interceptions, one that was his fault. He was sacked twice, including one that was his fault for holding the ball too long. Andre Johnson had 10 catches for 103 yards.

RUSHING OFFENSE: D -- Ryan Moats replaced the fumble-prone Steve Slaton and carried 16 times for 38 yards. He scored on a 1-yard catch. Slaton had six carries for 17 yards and scored on a 1-yard run. Rushing for 81 yards as a team and an average of 3.1 per carry isn't going to beat the Colts.

PASS DEFENSE: B-minus -- Peyton Manning threw for 318 yards, but he had only one touchdown pass. He was intercepted twice by SS Bernard Pollard and sacked two times by Mario Williams and Antonio Smith. The Texans played about as well as they could play against the Colts.

RUSH DEFENSE: A-minus -- They allowed the Colts 72 yards, but they ran only 18 times. They averaged 4 yards a carry. It's as if the Colts abandoned the run because the Texans had been so good at stopping it over the previous five games.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C -- K Kris Brown missed a 42-yard field goal as time expired that would have sent the game into overtime. With no time left in the first half, he connected from 56 yards to give them a 13-3 deficit and provide some much-needed momentum.

COACHING: C -- The Texans lost by three at Indy, where they are 0-8. That's the closest they've come. But the offense got off to a terrible start. The defense kept them in the game. Coach Gary Kubiak and his staff made adjustments that helped the offense. They also didn't panic when the Colts were dominating the first quarter.