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Dak and CeeDee Steal Texas Back as Cowboys Break Houston’s Heart, 34-30

The Dallas Cowboys came from behind in the fourth quarter and stole a 34-30 win over the Houston Texans on October 4, 2026, at Reliant Stadium, with Dak Prescott finding CeeDee Lamb for the go-ahead touchdown in the final minute.

Quarter-by-Quarter

Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DAL 3 3 14 14 34
HOU 10 6 7 7 30

Dallas looked dead at halftime. The Cowboys had just 121 yards, trailed 16-6 and watched C.J. Stroud and Nico Collins repeatedly hit them for big plays. Then Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb took over the Battle of Texas. Javonte Williams scored three second-half rushing touchdowns, George Pickens flipped the field with a 53-yard grab, and Lamb became practically uncoverable. Houston still punched back, using a slick hook-and-lateral sequence before Woody Marks’ 6-yard touchdown gave the Texans a 30-27 lead with 2:23 left. Prescott answered anyway, finding Lamb four times on the final drive before hitting him for the 12-yard winner with 40 seconds remaining. Lamb finished with a career-high 17 catches for 189 yards, while Prescott threw for 335 without a turnover.

Houston didn’t lose because Stroud played poorly. He threw for 347 yards and two touchdowns, while Collins returned with 118 yards and two scores. The Texans lost because they kept giving Dallas extra chances —13 penalties for 90 yards, several coming in spots that extended drives. Ka’imi Fairbairn drilled three field goals, including bombs from 51 and 54, while Will Anderson Jr. pressured Prescott all afternoon and even got a hand on a kick. Dallas countered with Quinnen Williams and Rashan Gary getting to Stroud, plus KaVontae Turpin providing huge second-half returns of 48 and 32 yards. Stroud’s final desperation shot fell incomplete, giving Dallas its first win in Houston since 2010 and pushing its all-time edge in the Governor’s Cup series to 5-3. Houston? Now 0-4 after letting another winnable game slip through its hands.

Postgame Statistical Breakdown

Team Stats

Stat Dallas Cowboys Houston Texans
Final Score 34 30
Total Offensive Yards 399 397
Passing Yards 324 335
Rushing Yards 75 62
Total Plays 73 52
Yards Per Play 5.5 7.6
First Downs 28 16
Third Downs 5-14 3-10
Third-Down % 35.7% 30.0%
Fourth Downs 1-1 0-0
Passing TDs 1 2
Rushing TDs 3 1
Total Offensive TDs 4 3
Turnovers 0 0
Interceptions Thrown 0 0
Fumbles Lost 0 0
Sacks Allowed 3 2
Penalties 6 13
Penalty Yards 47 90
Time of Possession 33:27 26:33

Passing

Dallas Cowboys

  1. Dak Prescott — 32/45, 71.1%, 335 YDS, 1 TD, 0 INT, 7.4 YPA, 3 SACK, 99.8 RTG

Houston Texans

  1. C.J. Stroud — 21/31, 67.7%, 347 YDS, 2 TD, 0 INT, 11.2 YPA, 2 SACK, 126.7 RTG

Rushing

Dallas Cowboys

  1. Javonte Williams — 19 CAR, 62 YDS, 3.3 AVG, 3 TD, LONG 13
  2. Tyler Goodson — 3 CAR, 12 YDS, 4.0 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 10

Houston Texans

  1. David Montgomery — 10 CAR, 24 YDS, 2.4 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 6
  2. Woody Marks — 6 CAR, 22 YDS, 3.7 AVG, 1 TD, LONG 9

Receiving

Dallas Cowboys

  1. CeeDee Lamb — 17 REC, 21 TGT, 189 YDS, 11.1 AVG, 1 TD, LONG 30
  2. George Pickens — 2 REC, 3 TGT, 75 YDS, 37.5 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 53
  3. Ryan Flournoy — 4 REC, 5 TGT, 37 YDS, 9.3 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 19
  4. Javonte Williams — 5 REC, 5 TGT, 21 YDS, 4.2 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 9
  5. Jake Ferguson — 3 REC, 4 TGT, 11 YDS, 3.7 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 7

Houston Texans

  1. Nico Collins — 7 REC, 8 TGT, 118 YDS, 16.9 AVG, 2 TD, LONG 45
  2. Jaylin Noel — 3 REC, 3 TGT, 85 YDS, 28.3 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 52
  3. Xavier Hutchinson — 3 REC, 5 TGT, 46 YDS, 15.3 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 26
  4. Kayshon Boutte — 3 REC, 4 TGT, 36 YDS, 12.0 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 21
  5. Cade Stover — 1 REC, 1 TGT, 20 YDS, 20.0 AVG, 0 TD, LONG 20

Scoring Plays

Qtr Clock Team Play Score
Q1 10:01 Houston Texans Nico Collins 7-yard pass from C.J. Stroud (Ka’imi Fairbairn kick) DAL 0, HOU 7
Q1 5:10 Dallas Cowboys Brandon Aubrey 39-yard field goal DAL 3, HOU 7
Q1 1:49 Houston Texans Ka’imi Fairbairn 51-yard field goal DAL 3, HOU 10
Q2 12:30 Dallas Cowboys Brandon Aubrey 50-yard field goal DAL 6, HOU 10
Q2 2:05 Houston Texans Ka’imi Fairbairn 39-yard field goal DAL 6, HOU 13
Q2 0:00 Houston Texans Ka’imi Fairbairn 54-yard field goal DAL 6, HOU 16
Q3 12:55 Dallas Cowboys Javonte Williams 8-yard run (Brandon Aubrey kick) DAL 13, HOU 16
Q3 10:50 Houston Texans Nico Collins 22-yard pass from C.J. Stroud (Ka’imi Fairbairn kick) DAL 13, HOU 23
Q3 6:49 Dallas Cowboys Javonte Williams 1-yard run (Brandon Aubrey kick) DAL 20, HOU 23
Q4 11:17 Dallas Cowboys Javonte Williams 2-yard run (Brandon Aubrey kick) DAL 27, HOU 23
Q4 2:23 Houston Texans Woody Marks 6-yard run (Ka’imi Fairbairn kick) DAL 27, HOU 30
Q4 0:40 Dallas Cowboys CeeDee Lamb 12-yard pass from Dak Prescott (Brandon Aubrey kick) DAL 34, HOU 30

Defense

Dallas Cowboys

  1. Quinnen Williams — 4 TOT, 2 SOLO, 2 TFL, 1 SACK, 1 QBH
  2. Rashan Gary — 2 TOT, 2 SOLO, 1 TFL, 1 SACK, 2 QBH
  3. Malik Hooker — 7 TOT, 5 SOLO, 1 PD
  4. Caleb Downs — 7 TOT, 5 SOLO
  5. Dee Winters — 5 TOT, 2 SOLO, 1 QBH
  6. Kenny Clark — 4 TOT, 1 SOLO, 1 QBH
  7. Reddy Steward — 4 TOT, 4 SOLO
  8. DaRon Bland — 3 TOT, 3 SOLO
  9. Ameer Speed — 3 TOT, 2 SOLO
  10. Donovan Ezeiruaku — 3 TOT, 1 SOLO

Houston Texans

  1. Jake Hansen — 12 TOT, 7 SOLO, 2 TFL, 1 SACK, 1 QBH
  2. Will Anderson Jr. — 5 TOT, 3 SOLO, 1 TFL, 0.5 SACK, 5 QBH
  3. Jalen Pitre — 9 TOT, 7 SOLO, 1 TFL, 1 PD
  4. Kamari Lassiter — 8 TOT, 7 SOLO, 2 PD
  5. Jadeveon Clowney — 4 TOT, 2 SOLO, 1 TFL, 0.5 SACK, 2 QBH
  6. Reed Blankenship — 11 TOT, 5 SOLO
  7. Calen Bullock — 8 TOT, 4 SOLO
  8. Tommy Togiai — 5 TOT, 1 SOLO, 1 PD
  9. Danielle Hunter — 2 TOT, 0.5 SACK, 1 QBH
  10. Jaden Crumedy — 1 TOT, 0.5 SACK, 1 QBH

Kick Returns

Dallas Cowboys

  1. KaVontae Turpin — 5 KR, 147 YDS, 29.4 AVG, LONG 48, 0 TD

Houston Texans

  1. Jaylin Noel — 4 KR, 106 YDS, 26.5 AVG, LONG 53, 0 TD

Punt Returns

Dallas Cowboys

  1. KaVontae Turpin — 4 PR, 47 YDS, 11.8 AVG, LONG 16, 0 TD

Houston Texans

  1. Jaylin Noel — 2 PR, 8 YDS, 4.0 AVG, LONG 8, 0 TD
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