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Texans snap losing streak against Raiders

Nov 5, 2007 - 1:51 AM OAKLAND, California (Ticker) -- The Oakland Raiders proved to be just what the ailing Houston Texans needed.

Ron Dayne rushed for 122 yards and backup quarterback Sage Rosenfels threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Andre Davis in the fourth quarter to lead the Texans to a 24-17 victory over the Raiders on Sunday.

The win snapped Houston's three-game skid, while the Raiders (2-6) dropped their fourth straight contest.

"We needed a win. It's been a rough month," Houston coach Gary Kubiak said. "We played a football team that drastically improved from last year. They've played great, great defense, so we had our work cut out for us from that standpoint."

The Texans (4-5) scored on their first possession, as Ahman Green capped off a 12-play drive with an 8-yard touchdown run.

Dayne made it 14-0 with a 14-yard run in the second quarter, and a 40-yard field goal by Kris Brown sent the Texans into halftime with a 17-0 lead.

Oakland kicker Sebastian Janikowski missed a 64-yard field goal late in the first half. The kick had plenty of distance, but the ball hit the left upright and bounced out.

Janikowski got the Raiders on the board with a 22-yard field goal in the third quarter, and a 1-yard scoring run by Justin Fargas midway through the fourth quarter pulled Oakland within 17-10.

"I am not into moral or personal victories when we don't win," said Fargas, who finished with 104 yards on 23 carries. "It's tough taking a loss. We fought hard but we didn't play sound or clean football. We kind of hurt ourselves today."

Rosenfels, starting in place of the injured Matt Schaub, promptly drove the Texans 80 yards on the ensuing drive, hooking up with Davis to put Houston back up by two touchdowns.

"It was a great team effort," said Rosenfels, who completed 11-of-19 for 181 yards. "Our defense played well and we got some turnovers. We ran the ball well and definitely had a team collective effort, and that's how you win football games."

The Raiders made things interesting late as they converted a 10-yard punt by Houston punter Matt Turk into a 28-yard touchdown pass from Josh McCown to Tim Dwight with under two minutes left.

But the onside kick was recovered by Houston to end Oakland's hopes.

McCown, making his first start in three weeks, completed 13-of-28 for 158 yards and three interceptions.

"We just have to keep working," McCown said. "We're doing everything we can to win ballgames, and that's the thing."