HOUSTON (AP) - Kansas City was rolling, the crowd was in a frenzy, and the Houston Texans were about to punt.
Just when it looked as if the Chiefs were going to take control, Texans coach Dom Capers came up with a doozy from his playbook of tricks.
Jason Simmons plowed through the line for a first down on a fake punt, and David Carr followed shortly thereafter with the tying touchdown pass Sunday to set up Houston's first victory of the season, 24-21.
"The way the game was going, we had to go for bigger plays," Capers said Monday. "We're always going to take our shots."
Carr, receiver Andre Johnson and kicker Kris Brown did the rest, making all the big plays down the stretch to help the Texans end a franchise record six-game losing streak and keep the Chiefs winless after three weeks.
Never to be confused for a gambler, Capers was clearly more aggressive with his game plan than he'd been the previous two games. The Texans went downfield to Johnson more, regularly blitzed on defense and took a couple of chances - running a sweep to plodding Jonathan Wells on a two-point conversion in the third quarter and the fake punt.
Capers had little choice against the desperate Chiefs.
"We needed the momentum," he said. "We like to challenge people sometimes."
Early in the fourth quarter, Trent Green threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Jason Dunn to give Kansas City a 21-14 lead.
The Chiefs went 54 yards in eight plays on that punishing drive, even forcing three Texans - linebacker Charlie Anderson and defensive ends Robaire Smith and Gary Walker - from the game with injuries.
So when Houston faced fourth-and-1 from the Kansas City 41 on the ensuing possession, Capers knew he couldn't afford to give the ball back.
He and special teams coordinator Joe Marciano agreed on a play dubbed "Rugby," which would give Simmons, a reserve cornerback, the choice to call for a punt or take the snap and run up the middle.
The Chiefs prepared for a punt, giving the Texans the look they needed: Simmons burrowed through a small hole for the pivotal first down.
"Those things, in terms of the momentum of the game, are the difference between staying on the field and giving them the football back," Capers said. "We played the percentages on that one, and the percentages looked good."
The game turned on that play.
Houston converted a third-and-17 when Carr hit Derick Armstrong for a 20-yard gain to the Kansas City 45. On the next play, Johnson made a leaping, juggling 37-yard catch over cornerback Eric Warfield to set up the tying score.
The Chiefs punted on the next series, and Houston drove to the Kansas City 31 to set up the winning field goal. Brown booted the 49-yarder through, silencing the crowd and sending the Chiefs to their first 0-3 start in 24 years.
"Our guys didn't panic," Capers said. "They hung in there. We were very resilient."
