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See The Division Winning TD
CINCINNATI (AP) Eighty yards to cover, little more than 2 minutes left, no timeouts to help. Rookie quarterback T.J. Yates faced his biggest challenge as he lined up for the snap.With savvy and a scramble, he pulled it off.
Yates led the biggest drive in Texans history on Sunday, one that put them in the end zone and the playoffs. He threw a 6-yard touchdown pass with 2 seconds left for a 20-19 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals that sent the expansion team into the playoffs for the first time.
"It's pretty crazy," Yates said. "A lot of people in this organization have waited a long time for this. This is a special day for this team and this organization."
In the span of a few wild minutes, everything broke their way.
With their seventh straight win, the Texans (10-3) moved to the threshold of the playoffs. They hugged on the field then headed to the locker room, where they huddled around a television set and watched the final minutes of Tennessee's game play out.
They needed a Titans loss to clinch the AFC South.
When time ran out on the Titans, preserving New Orleans' 22-17 victory, the Texans screamed, hugged, and donned black championship caps and white T-shirts. Injured receiver Andre Johnson, who didn't play because of a strained hamstring, got a game ball for his part in turning the team into a winner.
"Words really can't describe it," Johnson said. "It's something I've been waiting for for a long time."
