Toronto Star
· collected 2026-10-04 · by Kristie Rieken The Associated Press
In a dramatic game on Sunday, CeeDee Lamb's touchdown reception with 40 seconds left lifted the Dallas Cowboys to a 34-30 victory over the winless Houston Texans. Javonte Williams scored three second-half touchdowns for the Cowboys, while Dak Prescott threw for 335 yards and had a key fourth-down conversion late in the game. The Texans' C.J. Stroud passed for 347 yards but was unable to secure the win despite strong efforts from Nico Collins, who had seven receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-04,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In Week 4 of the NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys played against the Houston Texans, both struggling teams eager to secure their first win. The game, held in Houston, ended with the Cowboys emerging victorious 34-30. CeeDee Lamb had a standout performance for Dallas, recording a career-high 17 catches for 189 yards and scoring the winning touchdown with just 40 seconds left. Despite Javonte Williams running for three touchdowns and Dak Prescott throwing for 335 yards, it was Lamb’s clutch reception that sealed the win. The Texans, led by quarterback C.J. Stroud who passed for 347 yards, remained winless at 0-4. Houston's defense faltered again in the closing moments, mirroring their struggles from the previous week when they lost despite taking a late lead.
Written for “Cowboys vs Texans Matchup” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.
HOUSTON (AP) — CeeDee Lamb had a career-high 17 catches for 189 yards and his 12-yard TD reception with 40 seconds left lifted the Dallas Cowboys to a 34-30 win over Houston on Sunday to keep the Texans winless.
asserted
reception → have → Texans
Javonte Williams ran for a career-high three touchdowns — all in the second half — to help the Cowboys to the victory.
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Williams → run → victory
Dallas (2-2) trailed by 4 after a 6-yard touchdown run by Woody Marks with about 2 1/2 minutes to play.
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Dallas → trail → minutes
The Texans were facing third-and-14 when a hook-and-ladder play with a 2-yard catch by Dalton Schultz and a 19-yard run by David Montgomery set up that score.
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play → face → score
Dak Prescott then orchestrated an 11-play, 74-yard drive that included a fourth down conversion and capped it with the throw to Lamb to give the Cowboys the victory.
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that → orchestrate → victory
The Texans (0-4) had a last chance after that, but C.J. Stroud’s desperation pass fell incomplete.
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pass → have → that
Prescott threw for 335 yards and Stroud had 347 yards passing.
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Stroud → throw → yards
Nico Collins had seven receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns in his return after missing two games with a hamstring injury.
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Collins → have → injury
But his big day wasn’t enough to get the Texans in the win column.
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day → get → column
The Cowboys took their first lead on the third score by Williams, a 2-yard run that made it 27-23 with about 11 minutes to go.
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it → take → minutes
Dallas cut the lead to 16-13 on an 8-yard run by Williams on the opening drive of the third quarter.
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Dallas → cut → quarter
A 30-yard reception by Lamb set up the score.
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reception → set → score
The Texans had great field position on their next drive thanks to a 53-yard kickoff return by Jaylin Noel.
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Texans → have → Noel
The second score by Collins made it 23-13 with about 11 minutes left in the third.
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minutes → make → third
George Pickens grabbed a 53-yard reception over Kamari Lassiter to get the Cowboys to the 11-yard line after that.
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Pickens → grab → that
Lassiter was flagged for pass interference on Pickers on third down to give Dallas a first down at the 1.
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Lassiter → flag → 1
Jadeveon Clowney stuffed Williams for a loss of 3 on first down and the Cowboys couldn’t move the ball after that to bring up fourth down.
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Cowboys → stuff → down
Dallas went for it and a holding penalty by Lassiter gave the Cowboys another first down at the 1.
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penalty → go → 1
Williams plunged in for the touchdown on the next play to cut the lead to 23-20 with seven minutes left in the third.
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minutes → plunge → third
Collins had a 45-yard catch-and-run on Houston’s first play and made it 7-0 when he capped the drive with a 7-yard TD reception.
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he → have → reception
Houston led by 4 when Will Anderson blocked Brandon Aubrey’s 62-yard field-goal attempt about 4 1/2 minutes before halftime.
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Anderson → lead → halftime
Kaʻimi Fairbairn’s 39-yard field goal on Houston’s next drive extended the lead to 13-6.
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goal → extend → 13
Aubrey’s 65-yard attempt with about 30 seconds left in the second quarter sailed wide left.
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attempt → leave → quarter
A 54-yard field goal by Fairbairn made it 16-6 at halftime.
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it → make → halftime
Injuries
Houston: CB Jaylin Smith left in the second quarter with a hamstring injury.
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Smith → leave → injury
… DT Jaden Crumedy injured his shoulder in the third quarter.
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Crumedy → injure → quarter
The Texans, who are in their 25th season, had an anniversary celebration at halftime.
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who → have → halftime
Texans greats including Hall of Famer Andre Johnson, Arian Foster, DeAndre Hopkins, Brian Cushing and Billy Miller along with former coach Gary Kubiak were honored in the ceremony.
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greats → include → ceremony
J.J. Watt did not attend but recorded a message that was played on the video boards.
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that → attend → boards
Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. played extensively his debut with the Cowboys after being traded from the Steelers on Wednesday.
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Jr. → play → Wednesday
It was his first action of the season after he was inactive for the first three games while upset about his contract situation and dealing with a back issue.
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he → deal → issue
Texans: Visit Tennessee next Sunday.
___
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Texans → visit → Tennessee
The Aporia
