The Jacksonville Jaguars had plenty of reasons to feel confident heading into their Week 6 matchup against the Houston Texans at Wembley. They were coming off a narrow 19–17 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, while Houston had managed just one win in its first five games. With Trevor Lawrence at quarterback and Bhayshul Tuten in the backfield, Jacksonville could build on that momentum.

As Lawrence directed the play to the right, tight end Brenton Strange moved into a blocking role, tasked with helping Tuten find a way through the Texans’ defense. The play seemed to have gone exactly as Jacksonville would have wanted, but a flag from the officiating crew turned the moment contentious.

“RB Bhayshul Tuten just lost a TD because the refs called Brenton Strange for holding on a play he didn’t hold. 🤦‍♂️,” NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported on X alongside a video of the play.

The play took place early in the second quarter of the Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Houston Texans Week 6 game on Sunday, October 18, 2026.

With 13:18 left, the Jaguars were driving deep into Houston territory, trailing 7-0 after a 6-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud to Foster Moreau. QB Trevor Lawrence pitched the ball out to RB Bhayshul Tuten on a designed sweep to the right side, and Tuten had a walk-in, three-yard score.

Strange lined up out of position as a lead-blocking fullback and ran out to the right to seal the edge. He made hard, clean initial contact with a charging Texans defender. Then he lost his footing and slipped toward the Wembley turf. As he fell, his arm extended toward the defender, whether to keep his leverage or break the fall. Referee Shawn Hochuli’s crew threw a flag for offensive holding as Tuten reached the end zone.

Broadcast replays showed no clear indication of an actual hold, as Strange barely appeared to grasp the defender while falling. Black & Teal’s Carlos Sanchez said Strange “barely put a finger on the other player’s jersey.” Heavy’s reading was more cautious: Strange appeared to stick an arm toward the defender and may have grazed him as he went down, but that was hard to confirm on replay.

Some fans also questioned why the flag came from a deeper official while the line judge appeared to let the play continue. Even some reports covering the winning side wrote that replays showed the call appeared to be incorrect.

The rulebook explains why a slip and an outstretched arm can still draw a flag. Rule 12, Section 1, Article 3 defines offensive holding by what a blocker’s hands or arms do to the defender. Materially restricting him or altering his path or angle of pursuit is a foul, whether the hands are inside or outside the defender’s frame. The penalty is 10 yards, and because the foul came before the score, the touchdown came off the board. The standard is about the effect of the contact rather than a visible grab, which is why the call was debatable.

Jacksonville also had no recourse. Holding is a judgment call that falls outside the plays replay can review, so Liam Coen had nothing to challenge.

The crew was also working a man short. Umpire Larry Smith, in his second NFL season after officiating college football and the USFL, slipped on the wet grass in the first quarter while trying to retrieve the ball. He briefly got up, went down again when he tried to walk, and was carted off after trainers from both teams reached him. He tipped his cap to the Wembley crowd on the way out.

The game continued with six officials instead of seven, and the rest of the crew absorbed his responsibilities. The Chronicle noted that only seven penalties were called in the first half and that two of them, Strange’s among them, changed the game in Houston’s favor.

“May be one of the worst calls I’ve ever seen. Cost them 6,” a fan commented under Schultz’s X post.

“Genuinely think this is the worst the officials have been in my entire life. They’ve been awful all year,” another user bashed all the NFL referees.

“This isn’t just blowing a call… there was literally no shot he could have held anyone. This is a made up call to take points off the board,” a fan wrote.

The frustration extended beyond that one flag. Jarrian Jones was penalized for holding and Travis Hunter for pass interference, and Sanchez said both players barely made contact as well.

Jacksonville kept the ball after the penalty, but the drive ended when Lawrence’s red-zone pass for Jakobi Meyers was intercepted by Texans safety Calen Bullock. A possession that could have tied the game at 7–7 produced no points at all. Tuten did get his tying score later in the half, a 27-yard catch-and-run.

It was also not the first Tuten touchdown to disappear this way. Schultz wrote that Tuten has had at least three scores taken away by penalty this season. Two rushing touchdowns were called back for holding in Week 4, though RotoWire argued those calls were warranted, which leaves Strange’s flag as the one drawing the loudest criticism.

Tuten still had a productive afternoon. He managed just 39 yards on 12 carries but caught four passes for 48 yards and two touchdowns, so the negated rushing score would have been his third trip to the end zone.

Houston won 34–31 on a 49-yard field goal as time expired, and the Jaguars did not escape blame themselves. They finished with six penalties for 66 yards, including a 12-men-on-the-field flag early in the third quarter after Hunter couldn’t leave the field in time on a punt. That gave Houston a fresh set of downs, and the Texans eventually scored. Brian Thomas Jr. had two drops, and Parker Washington, Strange and Jakobi Meyers each had some too. The pass rush never got a sack, and Stroud went 24-of-34 for 312 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.

The result keeps Houston in the thick of the AFC South race.