Originally slated to be the road team in this matchup, the Cowboys found themselves scheduled to host the Texans instead this Thursday with tropical storm Harvey making it impossible to hold a football game in Houston.
One player who’s not going to play for the Cowboys against Houston is running back Ezekiel Elliott, who’s reported to be sitting out the contest after rushing for 18 yards on six carries in a 24-20 win over the Oakland Raiders last Saturday.
Another one who’ll surely be out this Thursday for the Cowboys is their starting middle linebacker, Anthony Hitchens, who fractured his tibial plateau against the Raiders. He’s been ruled out for eight weeks, which is a big hit for the Cowboys’ defense, though, it was reported that his place will be mostly inherited by Justin Durant. That being said, Durant is not expected to play against Houston. So far this preseason, Dallas is ninth in total defense with 285.5 allowed per contest.
Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush were fantastic in the Oakland game, combining for 228 passing yards with three touchdowns on 23 of 27 passing.
While this is just a preseason game, the Texans might treat this game with a little bit more importance, as they try to win one for those who are affected by the storm back home. In addition, they are looking to bounce back from an embarrassing 13-0 loss at the hands of the New Orleans Saints last Saturday.
Facing the Saints’ defense was among the league’s worst last season, the Texans didn’t have success moving the chains, recording just 246 total yards against New Orleans’ 315. Neither Deshaun Watson nor Tom Savage was able to do enough in that game to get any real advantage in their quarterback competition. Watson passed for 116 yards on 11 of 21 passing with no touchdown and an interception, while Savage went 10 of 16 for 79 yards.
Houston’s backfield barely had anything in its pocket to show, too, as the unit managed just 57 rushing yards on 21 carries. Dallas allows just 79.8 rushing yards per game in the preseason, so Texans are expected to air it out more on offense than challenge the Cowboys’ solid run defense. That being said, the injury to Hitchens could loosen up Dallas’ D against the run.
