After the Houston Texans extended their franchise record with a ninth

straight win on Sunday David Njoku Jersey , J.J. Watt was asked to reflect on how far the team has come in the past year.“I was on the couch a year ago so this is a lot better,” said Watt, who missed the last 11 games of Houston’s 4-12 2017 season with a broken leg. “I was in a lot of pain. So it’s good for us to be winning … this is what it’s supposed to feel like. Honestly this is how you dream it up.”Deshaun Watson threw a touchdown pass and the Texans intercepted rookie Baker Mayfield three times, returning one for a score, to get the 29-13 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday that extended the streak.The Texans (9-3), who opened the season 0-3, haven’t lost since Sept. 23 to take a commanding lead atop the AFC South. While they appreciate what they’ve done to turn things around, they’re quick to note that they still have plenty of work left to do.“It means a lot especially from where we came from 0-3 … but it’s not the Super Bowl so we’re still fighting,” receiver DeAndre Hopkins said.Houston raced out to a 23-0 halftime lead and added two second-half field goals by Ka’imi Fairbairn to give him five on Sunday.Mayfield, the top overall pick in this year’s draft, had his worst game of the season, throwing three interceptions for the first time since he was a freshman at Texas Tech in 2013. He entered the game having thrown nine touchdown passes with just one interception in the past three games as the Browns (4-7-1) won consecutive games for the first time since 2014.Mayfield lamented the mistakes he made in this one.“(If) I would’ve taken care of the ball, this game would’ve been very close,” he said.He finished with 397 yards passing and had a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter after throwing a career-best four in a win over the Bengals last week. Houston’s fearsome pass rush, led by Watt and Jadeveon Clowney didn’t sack Mayfield, but they hurried and harassed him for much of the day.His interceptions all came before halftime to help the Texans build the big early lead.“He probably wasn’t feeling too dangerous in the first half, but he was feeling a little more dangerous in the second half,” Watt said.Houston was up 3-0 after an early field goal when Watson, who finished with 224 yards, connected with rookie Jordan Thomas on an 11-yard touchdown pass. Hopkins set up that score when he made a 24-yard reception after T.J. Carrie grabbed his dreadlocks in an attempt to slow him down two plays earlier.Zach Cunningham made it 17-0 when he grabbed his first career interception and ran 38 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter. Officials first ruled him down at the 1 Larry Ogunjobi Color Rush Jersey , but the play was reviewed and changed to a touchdown.Kareem Jackson was called for a 47-yard pass interference penalty on Cleveland’s next drive to put the Browns at their 20. But Mayfield threw another interception two plays later and it was returned 18 yards by Johnathan Joseph.Houston added another field goal to make it 20-0 with about three minutes left in the second quarter.Mayfield’s third interception came late in the second quarter when Andre Hal grabbed the ball in the end zone.Lamar Miller had 103 yards rushing for his second straight 100-yard game and fourth of the season and Hopkins had seven receptions for 91 yards.Cleveland continued to struggle in late-season games, and the Browns fell to 9-39 in December and January games since 2008.Nick Chubb got the Browns on the board in the third quarter when his 2-yard TD run cut the lead to 23-7 with about 9½ minutes left. Rashard Higgins had a 17-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, but the 2-point conversion failed to leave the Browns down 29-13.Houston added another field goal after that before a mistake-filled possession by the Browns. First Mayfield threw what looked to be a 76-yard touchdown pass to rookie Antonio Callaway, but it was brought back because of a holding penalty by left tackle Greg Robinson.Two plays later, Mayfield connected with Callaway again and he gained 71 yards before rookie Justin Reid chased him down from behind and knocked the ball out of his hands just before he would have scored. It bounced into the end zone where it was recovered by the Texans.“It was just trying to make something happen,” Reid said. “I didn’t want him to score so just make a play on the ball and see if it would come out. Good thing for us it did.”INJURIESCleveland cornerback Denzel Ward left in the first half with a concussion. … Browns defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi injured his biceps in the second quarter and didn’t return. … Joseph didn’t return after injuring his neck in the second quarter. … LB Brennan Scarlett injured his leg and didn’t return. … Houston offensive tackle Kendall Lamm left in the second half with a concussion.REMEMBERING PRESIDENT BUSHThe Texans observed a moment of silence before the game for former President George H.W. Bush, who died on Friday night in Houston at 94. Bush was a frequent visitor to Houston’s games and had participated in the coin toss at several contests. During the moment of silence pictures of Bush at various games were shown on the video screens flanked by huge 41’s made out of a collage of pictures as a further tribute to the nation’s 41st president.UP NEXTBrowns: Host the Panthers next Sunday.Texans: Host the Colts next Sunday. CLEVELAND (AP) — The Browns escaped a preseason quarterback swap.Tyrod Taylor isn’t expected to miss any time — and is still in line to start the Sept. 9 season opener against Pittsburgh — after dislocating his left pinky and bruising his hand in Thursday’s 5-0 win over Philadelphia.Taylor’s injury initially appeared serious after he awkwardly landed on his non-throwing hand and wrist while bracing his fall after firing an incomplete pass on fourth-and-goal. He immediately grabbed his hand and ran to the sideline before being taken to the locker room for treatment and evaluation. He returned and played in three more series.“Tyrod had a dislocated pinky but obviously they were able to get that back in place real quickly,” coach Hue Jackson said on a conference call Friday. “It takes 15 seconds to do that. He has a bruised hand. He’s sore. But he’s going to be fine.”Taylor’s hand was wrapped as he made an appearance at a men’s apparel store Friday night. He was relieved the injury wasn’t serious, and said he’s dealing with soreness but plans to practice Saturday.“Everything came back negative, which is a good sign and we were able to put the finger back in place,” he said. “It’s my left hand, at the end of the day. So deal with it. It’ll be sore for a couple of days, but it’s nothing that’s going to stop me.”Taylor said the doctor had some trouble putting his finger back into place.“I tried to be tough about it,” he said. “I tried not to look at it. I saw that it did dislocate, but I tried to look away and let him do his thing. They’re professionals. They know what they’re doing when it comes to that stuff. It didn’t pop back as quickly as I wanted it to.”Jackson also said he doesn’t expect rookie starting cornerback Denzel Ward to miss “much time, if any” because of back spasms. Ward, the No. 4 overall pick, got twisted while tackling Eagles tight end Zach Ertz.Jackson said he hasn’t decided if the first-team offense will play in next week’s exhibition finale at Detroit. Jackson wants his starters to get as much time together as possible and is still considering playing them against the Lions.The 29-year-old Taylor is in his first season with the Browns, who acquired him from Buffalo in a trade in March to stabilize a problematic position. Taylor will start until top overall pick Baker Mayfield is ready, and the Browns will gladly put that off until next season.Taylor has been a model mentor to Mayfield so far http://www.brownsfanshop.com/Sione-Takitaki-Jersey , and the eight-year veteran has impressed everyone with his work ethic and attitude.The Browns seemed caught off guard that Taylor, who stayed in the locker room for the second half on Thursday, left FirstEnergy Stadium before speaking with reporters.Taylor did post a thank you to Cleveland fans for their prayers on Twitter and said he was “doing well.”Jackson said there was relief that Taylor wasn’t more seriously hurt.“Well, I definitely got the final thought that he was going to be fine when we decided to put him back in,” Jackson said. “Obviously, when (head trainer) Joe Sheehan came back, he said ‘Everything is fine. There are no issues. He can go back in.’ Obviously, the player was very excited to go back in the game. Again, I felt he needed to, because our offensive football team at that time needed to play together.“They needed his leadership. He needed to be out there playing with them. I think it is important for them to develop that chemistry, so I felt comfortable that when we put him back out there, things were OK. Obviously, when he was not there and he was inside before he came back, all kinds of thoughts go through your head. But I feel good about where he is and what he will be able to do in the future.”NOTES: WR Josh Gordon will participate in walk-throughs over the weekend and it’s possible he’ll practice. The former Pro Bowl receiver has only been allowed to attend meetings, work on the side with trainers and watch since returning from a self-imposed absence in training camp. Gordon, who was on the sideline Thursday night, has played in only 10 games over the past four seasons because of suspensions from drug violations. … Rookie Genard Avery (hip) will be sidelined “some time” but has not been ruled out of the opener. Avery had a strip-sack on the Eagles’ Nick Foles. … Starting S Damarious Randall sat out against the Eagles after a knee locked up during warmups. Jackson said he was held out as a precaution.