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          NFL Nation

          Brock Osweiler shows improvement, but Texans still have work to do

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          Riddick not ready to give up on Osweiler (1:24)

          Louis Riddick breaks down what worked for the Raiders against the Texans on Monday Night Football. (1:24)

          • Sarah Barshop, ESPN Staff WriterNov 22, 2016, 04:52 AM
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              Sarah Barshop covers the Los Angeles Rams for ESPN. She joined ESPN in 2016 to cover the Green Bay Packers for ESPN Milwaukee. She then moved to Houston to cover the Texans. She came to ESPN after working as a writer and editor for Sports Illustrated. You can follow her on Twitter @sarahbarshop.
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          MEXICO CITY -- In the Houston Texans' 27-20 loss to the Oakland Raiders on Monday night in Mexico City, they showed why they do not belong among the elite teams in the NFL.

          The Texans hung in with the 8-2 Raiders for three quarters, but came undone in the fourth quarter.

          One play after taking a 20-13 lead over the Raiders with less than 11 minutes to go in the game, the Texans gave up a 75-yard touchdown pass to fullback Jamize Olawale that tied the score.

          Then, after failing to pick up more than a yard on third down and any on fourth down with 6:15 left in the game, the Texans turned the ball over on downs. Five plays later, the Raiders scored the go-ahead touchdown and final score of the night.

          Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler showed improvement in the loss, but it wasn't enough to lead the Texans' to their third-straight win. After throwing for just 99 yards last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars, he spread the ball around, finishing 26-of-39 for 246 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. The Texans struggled in the red zone, finishing 2-for-5, twice settling for field goals.

          "I think we played good football, offensively," Osweiler said. "There was certainly a couple of mistakes, my turnover late in the second quarter. That's something I can't do. ... We certainly need to capitalize on touchdowns when we get in the red area. But I think overall, we played a much better offensive game this week, and I think we improved."

          The ground game started slowly against the Raiders' run defense -- one of the worst in the league entering the game -- but running back Lamar Miller eventually got going, running for 104 yards on 24 carries and a touchdown. He had been limited the past three games with a shoulder injury, but showed he was closer to full strength on Monday night.

          "It was a physical game," Miller said. "The offensive line did a great job of getting movement. I was just trying to be decisive and get north and south and try to make a play."

          A win over Oakland would have made a statement, with the team at 7-3 and playoff head-to-head tiebreakers over the Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs. Instead, the Texans sit at 6-4, leading the mediocre AFC South by one game, yet to prove that they are a legitimate playoff threat.

          "It's just too bad we couldn't pull it out," head coach Bill O'Brien said. "I think our players really played hard, and I'm just really proud of our players. [But] there's a lot of season left."