In his 132nd NFL game spanning 11 seasons, Houston Texans safety Jimmie Ward did something he hadn’t accomplished in the previous 131 – and it wasn’t score a touchdown.

The former Davidson High School standout picked off Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis and returned it 65 yards for a touchdown to give the Texans a one-point lead with four seconds left in the third quarter on Sunday.

Houston didn’t hold its advantage in the final period, though, and lost to the Titans 32-27.

Ward now has returned three of his 10 career interceptions for touchdowns, but entering Sunday’s game, he had a total of 66 interception-return yards.

What happened for the first time for Ward on Sunday came in his tackle stats. Among his six tackles were three tackles for loss, the most he’d ever made in a game. Entering Sunday’s contest, Ward had two games with two tackles for the loss, with the most recent on Jan. 3, 2016, two weeks after his first two-TFL game.

Ward was among the 27 players from Alabama high schools and colleges (excluding Alabama and Auburn) who got on the field on the 12th Sunday of the NFL’s 105th season.

Five other former state players were involved in the Tennessee-Houston game:

• Titans offensive tackle Chandler Brewer (Florence) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Nico Collins (Clay-Chalkville) started at wide receiver for the Texans. Collins had five receptions for 92 yards and one touchdown. Collins caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from quarterback C.J. Stroud as Houston cut Tennessee’s lead to 17-14 with 6:17 left in the first half. Later in the second quarter, Collins had a 56-yard reception to the Titans 9-yard line to set up a field goal for a 17-17 tie.

• Tank Dell (Alabama A&M) started at wide receiver for the Texans. Dell had three receptions for 72 yards.
• Tytus Howard (Monroe County, Alabama State) started at right offensive tackle for the Texans.
• Kamari Lassiter (American Christian) started at cornerback for the Texans. Lassiter made four tackles.

In the other Sunday games:

Kansas City Chiefs 30, Carolina Panthers 27

• Michael Jackson (Spain Park) started at cornerback for the Panthers. Jackson made four tackles and broke up one pass.
• Panthers tight end Jordan Matthews is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Chiefs quarterback Chris Oladokun (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Chiefs wide receiver Justyn Ross (Central-Phenix City) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Chiefs wide receiver Montrell Washington (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

Minnesota Vikings 30, Chicago Bears 27 (OT)

• Vikings defensive tackle Travis Bell (Jeff Davis) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Bears tight end Gerald Everett (UAB/South Alabama) did not record any stats.
• Vikings defensive back Bobby McCain (Oxford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Vikings quarterback Nick Mullens (Spain Park) completed his only pass for a 14-yard gain. With starter Sam Darnold briefly out of the game after being shaken up, Mullens took a third-and-13 snap with 6:32 to play and had a completion to running back Aaron Jones for a first down.
• Bears cornerback Reddy Steward (Austin, Troy) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

Detroit Lions 24, Indianapolis Colts 6

• Lions defensive tackle Brodric Martin (Northridge, North Alabama) was designated as a game-day inactive. Martin was activated from injured reserve last week.
• Za’Darius Smith (Greenville) started at defensive end for the Lions. Smith made one tackle and registered two quarterback hits.

Miami Dolphins 34, New England Patriots 15

• Patriots center Jake Andrews (Stanhope Elmore, Troy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
• Dolphins defensive tackle Shakel Brown (Troy) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Dolphins wide receiver Grant DuBose (Park Crossing, Miles) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
• Patriots defensive tackle Neil Farrell Jr. (Murphy) did not record any stats. 
• Tyreek Hill (West Alabama) started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Hill had five receptions for 48 yards.
• Marcus Jones (Enterprise, Troy) started at cornerback for the Patriots. Jones made eight tackles, broke up three passes for the first time in his career and returned three punts for 38 yards.
• Patriots cornerback Siran Neal (Eufaula, Jacksonville State) did not record any stats.
• Patriots safety Dell Pettus (Sparkman, Troy) made two tackles on defense and one on special teams.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30, New York Giants 7

• Cor’Dale Flott (Saraland) started at cornerback for the Giants. Flott made three tackles.
• Giants offensive tackle Chris Hubbard (UAB) did not record any stats. 
• Rakeem Nunez-Roches (Central-Phenix City) started at defensive tackle for the Giants. Nunez-Roches made four tackles.

Dallas Cowboys 34, Washington Commanders 26

• Commanders safety Jeremy Reaves (South Alabama) made one tackle on special teams.
• Commanders offensive tackle Trent Scott (Lee-Huntsville) did not record any stats.
• Jalen Tolbert (McGill-Toolen, South Alabama) started at wide receiver for the Cowboys. Tolbert had two receptions for 22 yards and one touchdown. Tolbert caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Cooper Rush as Dallas took a 10-9 lead with 4:40 left in the third quarter.

• Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (Lee-Montgomery) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

Denver Broncos 29, Las Vegas Raiders 19

• Ameer Abdullah (Homewood) started at running back for the Raiders. In his first start since Nov. 21, 2021, Abdullah ran for 28 yards on five carries and caught five passes for 37 yards and one touchdown. Abdullah scored on a 6-yard pass from quarterback Gardner Minshew as Las Vegas took a 7-3 lead with 13:36 left in the first half.

• Broncos cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine (Spanish Fort) was designated as a game-day inactive.
• Broncos linebacker Kwon Alexander (Oxford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Jakorian Bennett (McGill-Toolen) was designated as a game-day inactive. A shoulder injury kept Bennett out of the lineup.
• Raiders quarterback Carter Bradley (South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Broncos linebacker Zach Cunningham (Pinson Valley) did not record any stats. Denver elevated Cunningham from its practice squad to make him eligible to play.
• Raiders cornerback Keenan Isaac (Midfield, Alabama State) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Broncos cornerback Tremon Smith (Saks) made one tackle on special teams.

Green Bay Packers 38, San Francisco 49ers 10

• Forty-Niners cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. (South Alabama) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
• Packers offensive tackle Kadeem Telfort (UAB) did not record any stats.

Seattle Seahawks 16, Arizona Cardinals 6

• Cardinals wide receiver Tejhaun Palmer (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Seahawks outside linebacker Jamie Sheriff (South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
• Starling Thomas V (Ramsay, UAB) started at cornerback for the Cardinals. Thomas made three tackles.

Philadelphia Eagles 37, Los Angeles Rams 20

• Reed Blankenship (West Limestone) started at safety for the Eagles. Blankenship made three tackles.
• Eagles defensive back James Bradberry (Pleasant Grove, Samford) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
• Eagles defensive end Bryce Huff (St. Paul’s Episcopal) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
• Darious Williams (UAB) started at cornerback for the Rams. Williams made two tackles and broke up one pass.

Week 12 started on Thursday night, when the Cleveland Browns defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 24-19 in a snowstorm.

Week 12 concludes on Monday, when the Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Chargers square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.