But the Texans couldn't do much on the ensuing drive, which included two sacks, and had to punt it away. The Panthers took a 3-0 lead on a 48-yard field goal with about 2 1/2 minutes left in the.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Deshaun Watson reminded everyone why Panthers coach Ron Rivera -- and many others -- felt he should have won the Heisman Trophy last season.
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Watson shined in his NFL preseason debut, completing 15 of 25 passes for 179 yards and running for a score in the Houston Texans' 27-17 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Wednesday night.
Watson, who led Clemson to the ACC championship on this field last December en route to winning the national championship, received a rousing ovation from Tigers fans dressed in orange when he entered the game in the second quarter.
The cheers grew louder when Watson outran two defenders for a 15-yard touchdown -- although Panthers fans tried to cover the celebration with boos.
'It was good just to get my feet wet,' said Watson, who was pleased with his overall effort.
Houston's first-round draft pick looked comfortable in the pocket, stepping up to avoid pressure and getting rid of the football in a timely manner. He didn't let penalties on his team affect him and didn't turn the ball over in nearly three quarters of play.
'He's a smart player, an instinctive player,' Texans coach Bill O'Brien said.
'For the first game out there I thought he did some good things. That's a big jump from college to the NFL and I thought he handled it pretty well.'
Tom Savage went three-and-out on his first two possessions against Carolina's first-team defense. Savage had better luck with Carolina's starters out of the game, completing 8 of 8 passes for 67 yards on his final drive capped by a 16-yard TD run by Alfred Blue.
But it was a strong showing for Carolina's defensive starters.
'We put ourselves in good third down situations and we were able to execute and get off the field,' Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis said. 'Overall, the first half, the ones definitely had a good showing.'
Panthers veteran backup Derek Anderson looked sharp starting in place of Cam Newton, who's still resting a sore right shoulder.
Anderson completed 4 of 5 passes for 76 yards, including a 23-yard touchdown pass to Kelvin Benjamin to finish with a perfect 158.3 QB rating.
The 6-foot-5 Benjamin, who reported to training camp in good shape after being overweight in the spring, made a leaping grab in the corner of the end zone to give Carolina the early 7-0 lead.
'I am feeling good again,' Benjamin said. 'I am ready to get Cam (Newton) back out there so we can rebuild that chemistry.'
WATT, KUECHLY RETURN: Two former NFL Defensive Players of the Year returned to action after missing significant time last season with injuries.
J.J. Watt played one series for the Texans in his return from back surgery. Kuechly played six plays after returning from his second career concussion. Neither registered a tackle.
SITTING OUT: Along with Newton, veteran defensive ends Julius Peppers and Charles Johnson, center Ryan Kalil and rookie wide receiver Curtis Samuel did not suit up for Carolina.
ROOKIE WATCH
Texans: Rookie linebacker Dylan Cole appeared to return a fumble for a touchdown to tie the game in the fourth quarter, but the play was overturned.
Panthers: Christian McCaffrey had 33 yards on seven carries in his rookie debut and showed impressive quickness and the ability to make defenders miss.
POSITION BATTLES
Texans: RB Alfred Blue outperformed projected starter Lamar Miller. Blue ran for 33 yards on seven carries including a 16-yard touchdown, while Miller carried two times for no yards.
Panthers: Wide receiver Damiere Byrd, considered a fringe roster player, did nothing to hurt his chances by hauling touchdown passes of 50 and 8 yards from Joe Webb.
WHAT BROWN DOES FOR YOU: The Texans clearly missed left tackle Duane Brown, whose contract situation remains unresolved. Savage was under heavy pressure on the first two series. Chris Clark started at left tackle.
INJURY UPDATE:
Texans: Reported no injuries.
Panthers: Vernon Butler, last year's first-round draft pick, left the game with a left knee injury and did not return.
QUOTABLE:
Texans: 'I'm so happy to be back with my guys,' Watt said of his return. 'It's so much fun in my D-line room and being back out there with my teammates. That's where I belong.'
Panthers: 'It means a lot,' Byrd said after the first of his two TD catches. 'It's a dream of everybody's to be able to play for an organization as great as this in the NFL.'
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HOUSTON -- Kyle Allen's mistakes could have doomed the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
Instead the rest of the team stepped up to make up for those miscues and help the Panthers to a 16-10 win over the Houston Texans.
Allen threw for 232 yards and the team overcame his three fumbles with help from a big defensive play late to get the victory.
'I thought the guys were very resilient,' coach Ron Rivera said. 'One thing we talked about was having each other's backs because there's been times we didn't do the things we needed to (on defense) and the offense stepped up.'
The Panthers (2-2) took a 13-10 lead with a 55-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter. The Texans (2-2) were driving with about four minutes left when Deshaun Watson was sacked by Vernon Butler, who caused a fumble that was recovered by Eric Reid at the Houston 33.
Carolina pushed the lead to 16-10 when Joey Slye added a 26-yard field goal with 28 seconds left. Houston had a chance for the win, but Deshaun Watson's desperation throw as time expired was knocked down in the end zone by Reid.
Allen was making his third career start and second this season in place of Cam Newton, who is out with a foot injury. Allen lost the ball three times on sacks, but the Texans were only able to get points out of the last one to allow the Panthers to keep it close until their defense came through with the big play late.
'You saw a lot of ups and downs and sloppy play, especially by me,' Allen said. 'Ball security obviously was unacceptable today by me. I put our team in some bad positions, but I think you saw us fight and respond on the defensive side.'
Texans Vs Panthers 2017 Roster
Allen had four touchdown passes last week to help the Panthers to their first win against Arizona. On Sunday, he didn't have a touchdown and relied heavily on running back Christian McCaffrey, who had 93 yards rushing and a touchdown and led the team with 86 yards receiving.
McCaffrey was impressed with how Allen responded after his struggles on Sunday.
'Even when bad things happen, the thing I love about Kyle is he's very poised and under control,' McCaffrey said. 'We have to limit some of those, but ... that gives us a lot of confidence when your quarterback ... is able to continue to move the ball down the field even when bad things happen.'
Watson threw for 160 yards on a day the Texans had trouble sustaining drives even when given a short field after turnovers.
Coach Bill O'Brien was blunt when asked about his team's offensive performance.
'It was terrible,' he said. 'We've got to do better ... I don't really have any answers. I've got to go back and watch the film. I have to start like right now.'
After failing to get any points out of the first two fumbles by Allen, the Texans got to him again early in the third quarter. Houston trailed 10-3 when J.J. Watt swatted the ball out of Allen's hand and pounced on it to give the Texans the ball on the 18-yard line. They tied it when Watson dashed into the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown with about 8 1/2 minutes left in quarter.
Brennan Scarlett had a strip sack of Allen on Carolina's first possession and it was recovered by Bernardrick McKinney. But the Texans couldn't do much on the ensuing drive, which included two sacks, and had to punt it away.
The Panthers took a 3-0 lead on a 48-yard field goal with about 2 1/2 minutes left in the first quarter.
Houston got its running game going on the next drive with a 25-yard run by Carlos Hyde followed by a 40-yard gain by Duke Johnson on the next play. The drive stalled after that and the Texans settled for a 37-yard field goal to tie it with about eight minutes left in the second quarter.
The Texans forced another fumble by Allen later in the second quarter on a sack by Whitney Mercilus which was recovered by Carlos Watkins. Houston was unable to capitalize on that mistake when DeAndre Hopkins threw an interception on a trick play.
The Panthers took advantage of that mistake five plays later when McCaffrey ran 3 yards for a touchdown to make it 10-3 with about a minute left in the first half.
INJURIES
Houston WR Kenny Stills injured his hamstring on the last play of the first quarter and didn't return. ... Carolina TE Chris Manhertz sustained a concussion early in the second half.
THEY SAID IT
Houston Texans 2017 Record
Watson on Houston's inability to take advantage of the turnovers: 'It's very frustrating. Any loss is frustrating but especially when we had the opportunities. The defense created turnovers and we didn't capitalize on most of them.'
RUGGED REID
Reid injured his left ankle in the second quarter but returned to make two big plays in the second half. He was wearing a walking boot after the game and said he twisted his ankle.
Texans Vs Panthers 2017 Football Roster
'Eric Reid is a tremendous young man who plays tough and plays for his team,' Rivera said. 'It could have been easy not to come back. I know he's going to be really sore the next couple days.'
UP NEXT
2017 Houston Texans
Panthers: Host Jaguars next Sunday.
Texans: Host Falcons next Sunday.
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Carolina Panthers Vs Houston Texans
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