The Dallas Cowboys’ disappointing 2024 NFL season continued its downward spiral on Monday night against the Houston Texans. The 34-10 result marked the team’s fifth-straight loss, and they remain winless at AT&T Stadium, dropping to 0-5 this year.
While the loss of quarterback Dak Prescott and numerous other injuries contributed to the team's current 3-7 record, the issues go much deeper than that. Many of the glaring areas of concern were displayed in the Week 11 loss, and there's no quick fix to help Dallas salvage the current season.
The Texans moved to 7-4 and sit atop the AFC South. Behind a three-touchdown performance from running back Joe Mixon, Houston rolled past its in-state rival and earned the trash talk they tossed the Cowboys way following the game.
The Texans' social media account on X used a video posted before the game showing a piece of metal falling from the top of AT&T Stadium as inspiration to troll the Cowboys. As seen below, they added two pieces of metal shaped like an 'L' onto a photo to mimic what happened pregame.
The Texans trolling Jerry Jones and his billion-dollar stadium, along with the Cowboys for the loss, is a strong double punch to the gut of the reeling franchise.
For added context, here's the clip posted by ESPN, which states that the metal fell in Jerry's World around 4:30 PM CST, roughly two and a half hours before kickoff.
The Cowboys were outplayed from the start on Monday. They even allowed a 77-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the game, which was called back for an ineligible player downfield. But just six plays later, Mixon opened the scoring with a 45-yard touchdown run that set the tone for the game.
Mixon finished the night with 109 rushing yards on 20 carries to go with the three scores, while quarterback C.J. Stroud threw for 257 yards. The Texans boasted a well-balanced passing attack with Nico Collins back from injury. Collins and Tank Dell led the way, totaling four catches for 54 yards each, and Mixon tacked on 44 receiving yards.
The Cowboys run game was nonexistent in the loss, as Rico Dowdle had just 28 yards on 10 carries. Backup quarterback Cooper Rush threw for 354 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while CeeDee Lamb (eight catches, 93 yards) and KaVontae Turpin (three catches, 86 yards, one touchdown) led all pass-catchers.
