Welcome to Texans Roundup, your weekly look at the numbers, trends and milestones shaping the Houston Texans’ upcoming matchup. From team rankings and player accomplishments to notable streaks and league-wide context, Texans Roundup highlights the stats and storylines to know before kickoff.
Matchup Information
The Houston Texans return home in Week 4 to host the Dallas Cowboys. The two teams have met seven times in the regular season, with Dallas holding a 4-3 advantage in the all-time series. Houston, however, won the most recent meeting, defeating Dallas 34-10 on Nov. 18, 2024.
Through three weeks, the Texans are averaging 326.0 total yards per game, while the Cowboys enter the matchup averaging 330.3. Defensively, Houston ranks 16th in the NFL with 325.3 yards allowed per game, while Dallas ranks 30th at 387.0.
The Inaugural Game
Sunday’s matchup brings together the same two teams that met in the first regular season game in Texans history. On Sept. 8, 2002, Houston defeated Dallas 19-10 on Sunday Night Football in front of 69,604 fans, becoming the first expansion team to win its inaugural game since the Minnesota Vikings in 1961.
Rookie QB David Carr, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft, opened the scoring with a 19-yard touchdown pass to TE Billy Miller just 1:14 into the game. After Dallas tied the score at 10 in the third quarter, Carr connected with WR Corey Bradford for a 65-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter before NT Seth Payne sealed the victory with a safety.
Bradford’s 65-yard score remains the third-longest touchdown in the fourth-quarter or overtime in franchise history.