Dallas
Cowboys
1-2
20
FINAL
21
Houston
Texans
2-1
AI Recap
AI RECAPThe Houston Texans held off the Dallas Cowboys 21-20 on Sunday, surviving a one-point thriller in Week 4 that came down to the final possessions. In a matchup between in-state rivals with early-season positioning on the line, Houston did just enough at home to stay upright. The Cowboys had their chances, but the margin never grew past a single score.
C.J. Stroud was the difference-maker, throwing for 219 yards and a pair of touchdowns to account for every point Houston needed through the air. Dallas countered with CeeDee Lamb, who led all receivers with 92 yards and consistently found space against the Houston secondary. Javonte Williams paced the ground game with 74 rushing yards, giving the Cowboys balance and keeping the chains moving deep into the fourth quarter. In the end, Dallas moved the ball but couldn't convert enough of it into points.
Houston's defense supplied the swing. Kamari Lassiter's interception was the game's pivotal takeaway, snuffing out a Dallas drive at the moment the Cowboys looked ready to seize control. Danielle Hunter lived in the backfield with 1.5 sacks, disrupting the rhythm of the Dallas passing game, while Derek Stingley Jr. led all tacklers with seven stops. That combination of pressure and playmaking on the back end was worth exactly the point Houston won by.
Passing
| Player | Pos | ATT | CMP | YDS | TD | INT | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C.J. Stroud | QB | 32 | 17 | 219 | 2 | 0 | 95.7 |
| Joe Milton | QB | 31 | 18 | 196 | 0 | 1 | 63.3 |
Rushing
| Player | Pos | ATT | YDS | YPC | TD | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Javonte Williams | HB | 18 | 74 | 4.1 | 1 | 21 | 0 |
| David Montgomery | HB | 19 | 66 | 3.5 | 0 | 22 | 0 |
| Jaydon Blue | HB | 13 | 56 | 4.3 | 1 | 11 | 0 |
| Joe Milton | QB | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| C.J. Stroud | QB | 4 | 10 | 2.5 | 0 | 6 | 2 |
| Jaylin Noel | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tank Dell | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| George Pickens | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Woody Marks | HB | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Malik Davis | HB | 1 | -3 | -3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Receiving
| Player | Pos | REC | YDS | YPR | TD | LNG | DROP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CeeDee Lamb | WR | 7 | 92 | 13.1 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| Tank Dell | WR | 5 | 61 | 12.2 | 1 | 18 | 0 |
| Dalton Schultz | TE | 4 | 60 | 15.0 | 0 | 24 | 0 |
| Nico Collins | WR | 4 | 58 | 14.5 | 0 | 21 | 0 |
| George Pickens | WR | 5 | 50 | 10.0 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| Jake Ferguson | TE | 3 | 42 | 14.0 | 0 | 27 | 0 |
| Jayden Higgins | WR | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| Jaylin Noel | WR | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 1 | 15 | 0 |
| Ryan Flournoy | WR | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Jaydon Blue | HB | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Javonte Williams | HB | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| British Brooks | FB | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Foster Moreau | TE | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Defense
| Player | Pos | TKL | SACK | INT | FF | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Danielle Hunter | REDG | 6 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kamari Lassiter | CB | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Derek Stingley Jr | CB | 7 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Will Anderson Jr | LEDG | 6 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Okereke | MIKE | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reed Blankenship | SS | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Henry To'oTo'o | WILL | 5 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dee Winters | WILL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Calen Bullock | FS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Azeez Al-Shaair | MIKE | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Malik Hooker | FS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DaRon Bland | CB | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kayden McDonald | DT | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jalen Pitre | CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Malachi Lawrence | LEDG | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| LT Overton | DT | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kenny Clark | DT | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cobie Durant | CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Caleb Downs | SS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Sheldon Rankins | DT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| E.J. Speed | SAM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tommy Togiai | DT | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jadeveon Clowney | LEDG | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shemar James | MIKE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shavon Revel Jr | CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rashan Gary | LEDG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jalen Thompson | FS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Markquese Bell | SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
| Player | Pos | FGM | FGA | XPM | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ka'imi Fairbairn | K | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Brandon Aubrey | K | 2 | 2 | 2 | 50 |

