2024 Week 11: Texans 34, Cowboys 10
I wanted to get to this game quickly because I knew it would be terrible, and it was still fresh in my mind from last night. What was shocking was how poorly the Texans played. Everyone is going to be making fun of the Cowboys for losing by 24 but this game was close for the majority of it, Dallas just shot themselves in the foot too many times to count. As I’ve been saying for two months, this Houston team is not as good as you think.
Houston (7-4) has an easy run to the AFC South title since every other team has collapsed.
The Cowboys (3-7) season has been done for a long time now, and they might win one more game, probably against NYG because Dallas always seems to beat them, with DeVito who knows anymore.
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QB Report:
- If you told me before the game that Cooper Rush (32/55 for 354 yards; 1 TD/1 INT) would throw for 350 yards I’d have called you crazy and compared you to that guy that’s always hanging out by the liquor store. Rush being able to keep this game so close is just one of many signs that there’s something wrong in Houston.
- Unfortunately, this game will delay Trey Lance by another week. Maybe he’ll get the start against NYG on Thanksgiving… it’ll spark some interest in the game and Rush will likely be 0-3 as a starter by then. It’s tough to move on from a QB after they throw for 350 yards, no matter how ugly it looked.
- CJ Stroud (23/34 for 257 yards, 1 INT; 3 rushes for 26 yards) still looks like his normal self, it’s just not working. His stat lines have been crazy the last few weeks.
RB Report:
- Part of Stroud’s problem is Joe Mixon (20-109-3; 2 catches for 44 yards) has been playing like a maniac this season. Former DCs like Demeco Ryans love to run the ball, and it’s been working, so they’re going to ride that sucker until it doesn’t work anymore, then they’ll beat it into the ground. The Texans OC also started his coaching career on the defensive side of the ball.
- Rico Dowdle (10-28-0; 2 catches for 6 yards) isn’t that great of a running back, but the Cowboys keep pushing him to be their lead. All of the RBs in Dallas are questionable so they should do a committee. Deuce Vaughn (4-13-0; 1 catch for 4 yards) played 16 snaps in this game with 5 touches, mostly due to the air-raid offense they were going with. I don’t think there’s any revolution going on with that, just rotating him in. As the season continues to fall apart it may be something to keep an eye on. Dallas's running backs had an impressive 3.2 ypc.
WR/TE Report:
- It’s tough to gauge either of these passing offenses, Dallas threw the ball 55 times against a stacked-box most of the time, which helps the numbers. On the other hand, the Texans passing game is just weird, I don’t know how else to describe it.
- The tight ends for Dallas had a great day, and it was mostly through the backups because Jake Ferguson (1-11-0/1) left early with a concussion. Luke Schoonmaker (6-56-0/10) filled in great and has whenever he gets the opportunity. Brevyn Spann-Ford (4-42-0/5), a player I never think about looks good as well. What’s tough to gauge from this scenario is… were they good because Houston allowed Rush to throw all over them because he’s not a threat, is Jake Ferguson only good because of his situation rather than talent, or, does Dallas have a knack for getting good tight ends.
- Houston’s John Metchie (3-33-0/3) followed up his nice game (visually) with another nice game (visually). He’s going to pull some targets away from Tank Dell (4-54-0/7) for the rest of the season. I don’t want anything to do with the Houston pass game unless it’s Nico Collins, there’s just simply not enough volume to keep everyone alive for FF.
- Nico Collins (4-54-0/7) broke a screen for a 77-yard touchdown on the first play of the game but was called back by a penalty. After that Collins didn’t have an amazing game, it was ‘not bad’, but he also didn’t play much at all, less than 50% of the snaps. I don’t believe Collins was targeted at all with Trevon Diggs (6 tackles, 1 PD) on him, for some reason. It’s not like Diggs is some lockdown corner.
D/ST Report:
- Brandon Aubrey (1/2 FG, 1/1 XP) slipped on a kick and missed the first home field goal attempt of his career, but he still managed to hit the upright so even when he misses he’s accurate. I still maintain that Aubrey is the best kicker in the NFL, he drilled a 64-yarder that the Cowboys accepted an automatic first down just to turn the ball over on downs shortly thereafter. Once we get word on Austin Seibert’s health I’ll likely be moving some of my chips away from Aubrey and over to Seibert.
image source: (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)