Joe Mixon scored three touchdowns, rushing for 109 yards, while Derek Barnett scored on a fumble return as the Houston Texans ended their two-game losing streak with a 34-10 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night in Arlington, Texas.
With the victory, the Texans improve to 7-4 on the season, remaining in first place in the AFC South, and bounce back after losing to the Detroit Lions in a game where they squandered a 16-point second-half lead, and intercepted quarterback Jared Goff five times.
“We just played four quarters, we didn’t really change nothing, didn’t change our philosophy,” Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud said on if the team changed anything coming into tonight’s game.
“We looked back at some other games, if we did that we would’ve came up on top. Now we got to learn from those things, that’s a good lesson to learn being where we’re at. Our future is in front of us, and we want to put ourselves in the right position, playing good ball in December going to January and into the playoffs.”
Following a two-touchdown opening quarter, Houston’s offense stalled out, until Mixon ran for his third of the night in the fourth.
However, the Texans’ defense, led by Jalen Pitre, who finished with a team-leading nine tackles, and Derek Stingley Jr., who had an interception and dropped a couple more, gave the Cowboys issues all game.
Trailing 20-10 in the third quarter, Dallas appeared to cut the deficit to seven points, after kicker Brandon Aubrey nailed a 64-yard field goal. But the Texans’ Barnett was called for a 15-yard head slap penalty, giving the Cowboys a fresh set of downs.
Houston has had issues with penalties all season, the Barnett penalty was the eighth of the night for the Texans, and the 80th accepted on the season for the Texans - the third most in the league.
Dallas though didn’t take advantage of the Texans’ miscue, as a pass by quarterback Cooper Rush was nearly intercepted by Calen Bullock, then the backup signal caller fumbled a bobbled snap a couple plays later, and the Cowboys eventually turned the ball over on downs to spoil the 13-play drive.
Playing for injured starter Dak Prescott, who is out for the season with a hamstring injury, Rush finished with 354 passing yards, a touchdown pass and an interception in the loss.
After forcing the Texans to punt on their next possession early in the fourth quarter, Dallas again was poised to cut the deficit but the Texans defense again came up clutch.
It was the turning point in the game, as Barnett made up for his previous penalty, hitting Rush’s arm as he attempted a pass causing him to fumble. Cowboys’ Tyler Guyton initially recovered the ball but then fumbled it after a hit by Pitre.
Barnett recovered the loose ball and ran it in for the Texans first defensive touchdown of the season to go ahead 27-10 with 12:31 left in the fourth quarter.
“Derek Barnett, the play he made, really changed the game for us,” Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said after the game. “It flipped the momentum. It got everybody juiced up on the sideline, It was just a huge play.”
Houston’s defensive unit finished with five sacks while holding the Cowboys scoreless in the second half.
The Cowboys, who lost All-Pro right guard Zack Martin and left guard Tyler Smith to ankle injuries in the game, drop their fifth straight for their longest skid since 2015. Dallas also lost tight end Jake Ferguson due to a concussion, and safety Markquese Bell to a shoulder injury.
“It’s very frustrating. It’s frustrating for everybody, frustrating for players, frustrating for coaches. I know it’s disappointing for the fans,” Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said of the team’s five-game losing streak.
“We’re not playing well enough, executing well enough, coaching well enough to overcome some of the mistakes we’re making at the critical times of the game.”
Dallas has trailed by at least 20 points in six straight home games, dating back to last year’s playoffs, extending their NFL record.
Sitting at 3-7 on the season following the loss, the Cowboys are in third place in the NFC East, and fall further out of the playoff picture.
“We just aren’t playing very well,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said after the game. “We just aren’t playing well and it’s several things through all the games. It’s not really the amount of the score at home, it’s just the way we’re playing.”
Dallas will next play against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, November 24, while the Texans play against the Tennessee Titans.
Metal sheet falls from ceiling at AT&T Stadium
A piece of sheet metal fell from the ceiling of AT&T Stadium ahead of the Cowboys’ game against Texans, a Cowboys’ spokesperson told CNN.
“We can confirm a piece of metal came loose and fell to the field (with some additional small debris) while the roof was in the process of opening,” said Cowboys director of football communications Scott Agunek. “There were no injuries. It is being reviewed further, and a decision regarding the ability to re-open the roof safely will be made when possible.”
Purported video and photos of the fallen piece of metal appeared to show a section of sheet metal roughly 10 feet long by two feet wide being removed from the field.
NFL officials ordered that another piece of loose metal in the rafters be secured before the game could be played safely, and the decision was also made to keep the roof closed for the game itself.
