Houston Texans punter and place holder Cameron Johnston (11) reacts after Houston Texans place kicker Matt Ammendola (16) missed a 57-yard field goal against the Jacksonville Jaguars late in the fourth quarter at NRG Stadium. Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Texans lose on heartbreaking missed field goal

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Darryn Albert | Last updated 11/26/23

The Houston Texans lost by a matter of mere centimeters on Sunday.

Houston’s Week 12 divisional matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars ended in heartbreaking fashion on the Texans’ final drive. Rookie sensation C.J. Stroud, who threw for two touchdowns and rushed for a third, drove the team into field-goal range with just over 30 seconds left in the game and the Jaguars clinging to a 24-21 lead.

Texans kicker Matt Ammendola lined up for a 58-yard field goal that would have tied the game at 24 all. Ammendola’s kick had the accuracy and looked to be heading towards the middle of the uprights with room to spare. But it unfortunately ran out of steam at the last moment and clanked off the crossbar before landing several yards short.

AMMENDOLA OFF THE CROSSBAR AND NO GOOD pic.twitter.com/uRrODFrWbu

— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthew_CFB) November 26, 2023

Check out a closer angle of the doink.

Matt Amendola tries to tie it for Texans on 58 yarder … pic.twitter.com/FZO0bxJjfl

— Armando Salguero (@ArmandoSalguero) November 26, 2023

Brutal. That one looked good almost the entire way, and even Houston’s special-teamers were raising their arms in celebration anticipating that the kick was about to make it through. But the football gods instead laughed in the Texans’ faces and sent them home with a 24-21 loss to fall to 6-5 overall.

In fairness, Ammendola just took over a couple of weeks ago for the injured Ka’imi Fairbairn, and he even kicked a game-winning field goal against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 10. But his first attempt of 50-plus yards this season fell ever so short, and now Ammendola becomes the latest NFL kicker to lose a game off the dreaded doink.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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