“We need to try and keep getting better.” That was the message from Houston Texans coach Bill O’Brien following the team’s 34-17 win over the Tennessee Titans.

“We need to take the mantra that we’re going to improve every day.”

The victory, their eighth straight, set a franchise record on a night where the franchise honoured their late owner and founder, Robert “Bob” McNair.

“The one thing Mr McNair wanted was a winner,” JJ Watt said. “All he wanted was a winner. He wanted to win every week. He wanted a team that could win and bring a championship to this city. So to be able to win eight straight and to be able to win tonight for him was good and we’re going to try to keep doing that for him.”

The win seemed in doubt early on when the Titans raced away to a 10-point lead.

But Houston stayed calm, trusting Deshaun Watson to get them back into the game, which he did by throwing two touchdowns and running in for one himself.

DeAndre Hopkins said after that at no point did the team panic or worry.

“We’ve been down 0-3 as a record, so being down 10-0 on the board is nothing to this team,” he said.

Now 8-3 and with a two-game lead over the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South, the Texans are feeling themselves.

Lemar Miller broke a 97-yard run for touchdown, Demaryius Thomas found the endzone twice to get his career in Houston off the mark and Watson himself rushed for 70 yards, a career best, and tied Matt Schaub’s franchise record by throwing a touchdown pass in his 16th straight game.

With the Cleveland Browns visiting on Sunday, the Texans know making it nine on the bounce will be extremely difficult, but, with O’Brien’s message ringing in their ears, this team will be very hard to stop.