ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Derek Barnett forced the first fumble and returned the second for a touchdown on the definitive defensive play of the game for the Houston Texans.
Joe Mixon did his thing, and C.J. Stroud didn’t have to do much to extend the misery of the Dallas Cowboys.
Mixon ran for three touchdowns to extend his TD streak to six games since coming back from an ankle injury, Barnett returned a fumble 28 yards for a score, and the Texans beat the Cowboys 34-10 on Monday night.
The Texans (7-4) stopped just the second two-game losing streak in Stroud’s two seasons while maintaining a two-game lead in the AFC South.
Houston pulled away in the second half a week after a 26-23 last-play loss to Detroit at home when the Texans let a 23-7 halftime lead get away and lost despite intercepting Jared Goff five times.
“It’s not as bad as it ever seems, and it’s never as good as it ever seems,” Stroud said. “Those type of games, you have to come out with a win, especially going up like that the half. But what are we going to do about it?”
In a season filled with things gone wrong for the Cowboys (3-7), debris fell from their stadium’s retractable roof as it was opening a few hours before the game.
There was no delay and no injuries were reported, just another mishap to foreshadow a fifth consecutive defeat for a team that lost five games total in each of the past three playoff seasons.
Cooper Rush threw a 64-yard touchdown pass to KaVontae Turpin but lost his second start since Dak Prescott’s season-ending hamstring injury.
The Dallas losing streak is its longest since a seven-game skid in 2015, and the Cowboys dropped to 0-5 at home. Dallas is the first team in NFL history to trail by at least 20 points in six consecutive home games, including last season’s wild-card playoff loss to Green Bay, according to Sportradar.
“Well, they better be frustrated,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “I mean, we’re all frustrated. I think there’d be something wrong if they weren’t frustrated. So just very honest with everything and stay in tune with what’s right in front of us. And that’s the only way I’ve ever done it.”
The Cowboys were down 10 early in the fourth quarter when Barnett knocked the ball out of Rush’s hand as he was throwing. Dallas rookie left tackle Tyler Guyton caught it and was trying to run when Jalen Pitre knocked the ball loose again.
Barnett scooped it and scored, although he almost stepped out of bounds running free toward a pylon.
“The play he made really changed for game for us,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “It flipped the momentum. It got everybody juiced up on the sideline. It was just a huge play.”
Earlier, the Cowboys appeared to have pulled within a touchdown on a 64-yard field goal from Brandon Aubrey, but Barnett was penalized for slapping Terence Steele on the rush.
