Lamb’s late touchdown lifts Cowboys over Texans 34–30

CeeDee Lamb caught the pass that Dallas needed last after catching nearly everything Dak Prescott sent his way all afternoon. His 12-yard touchdown with 40 seconds remaining lifted the Cowboys over Houston 34–30 on Sunday, completing a comeback from a 16–6 halftime deficit.

Dallas improved to 2–2 behind Lamb's 17 catches for 189 yards and Javonte Williams' three rushing touchdowns. Prescott completed 32 of 45 passes for 335 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions. Houston fell to 0–4 despite 347 passing yards from C.J. Stroud and two touchdown receptions by Nico Collins.

The finish required Dallas to answer a late Texans touchdown with a 74-yard drive. After an early completion to Lamb lost three yards, the Cowboys faced fourth-and-4 at their own 32. Prescott found Jake Ferguson for seven yards to keep the possession alive. Completions to Lamb and George Pickens then moved Dallas into the red zone, where Prescott hit Lamb for the winner.

Houston had taken a 30–27 lead with 2:23 remaining on Woody Marks' 6-yard touchdown run. The most inventive play on that possession came just before the score: on third-and-14, Stroud completed a short pass to Dalton Schultz, who lateraled to David Montgomery. The combined gain carried Houston to the Dallas 6-yard line.

Williams provided the scoring that made the last drive possible. He rushed for 62 yards on 19 carries, reaching the end zone from eight yards and one yard in the third quarter, then from two yards early in the fourth. That third touchdown gave Dallas its first lead, 27–23, after a 14-play, 81-yard possession that consumed 8:47.

Dallas had spent the first half settling for Brandon Aubrey field goals. Collins, back after missing two games with a hamstring injury, opened with a 45-yard reception and finished Houston's first drive with a 7-yard touchdown catch. Three Ka'imi Fairbairn field goals helped the Texans take their ten-point advantage into halftime.

The teams traded touchdowns after the break. Williams' first score pulled Dallas within three, but a 53-yard kickoff return by Jaylin Noel positioned Houston for Collins' second touchdown, a 22-yard reception. Collins finished with seven catches for 118 yards.

Pickens supplied two major gains without a large reception total. His 53-yard catch helped set up Williams' second touchdown, and his 22-yard reception put Dallas at the Houston 12 on the winning possession. He finished with two catches for 75 yards. Lamb's workload was far heavier: Prescott targeted him 21 times, and the Cowboys kept returning to that connection when they needed to move the chains.

Neither team committed a turnover. The difference came in Dallas' second-half finishing: four touchdown drives after a first half without one, followed by a defensive stop on Houston's last possession. The Cowboys now have a short preparation week before hosting Tampa Bay on Thursday night.