A Beast-ley of a play helps Cowboys get their first win of the season

HOUSTON, TX - Some moments can turn a season around in the blink of an eye. For the Dallas Cowboys, that moment may have come on the road in Houston, where Cole Beasley's miracle catch helped set up Brett Maher's game-winning field goal in a dramatic 12-10 victory over the Texans.

The Cowboys entered the game still searching for their first win of the season, and for much of the night, they looked like a team determined to change the direction of their year. Dallas controlled the ball, moved the chains, leaned on Ezekiel Elliott, and built an early lead behind three Maher field goals. But after missed chances to finish drives and a late surge from Deshaun Watson and the Texans, the Cowboys needed one final improbable play to avoid falling to 0-5.

Cowboys Start Strong But Settle For Field Goals

The matchup marked the first meeting between Dallas and Houston since their Week 16 matchup in Season 11. The Cowboys opened the game with one of their cleaner offensive drives of the season, as Dak Prescott completed four of his first five passes for 41 yards while Elliott added 21 yards on his first four carries.

That balance helped Dallas move into scoring range late in the first quarter, where rookie kicker Brett Maher connected on a field goal to give the Cowboys a 3-0 lead.

Houston tried to answer through the air on its next possession. Watson looked sharp early, completing four of his first five passes and moving the Texans to the Dallas 32-yard line. But on his sixth attempt of the game, Watson misread the coverage and was intercepted by Cowboys middle linebacker Jaylon Smith, ending Houston's first real scoring chance.

Dallas responded with another strong drive. Facing third-and-14 from the Houston 44-yard line, Prescott stood tall in the shotgun and delivered a deep throw up the right side to Terrance Williams. Williams, who had struggled with drops this season, came down with a huge catch to move the Cowboys inside the 15-yard line.

Prescott was completing 80 percent of his passes at that point, a promising sign for a Dallas offense that had given fans little to celebrate in recent weeks. Houston's defense, however, stiffened in the red zone and forced the Cowboys to settle for another Maher field goal, extending the lead to 6-0.

Dallas Controls The Clock As Houston Misses A Chance

The Texans had a chance to cut into the deficit before halftime. With eight seconds left and the ball at the Dallas 12-yard line, Houston faced third-and-10 with no timeouts remaining. Rather than taking the field goal, the Texans elected to chase a touchdown.

Watson dropped back and looked for an open receiver, but the Cowboys defense kept everything covered. Just as importantly, Dallas avoided giving Watson an easy way to stop the clock, forcing the play to continue until time expired in the first half.

The Cowboys opened the second half the same way they started the game, moving the ball through the air and on the ground while draining valuable time off the clock. Once again, though, Dallas could not finish the drive in the end zone and had to settle for another field goal.

By the time Houston touched the ball for the first time in the third quarter, only 4:22 remained. The Cowboys had dominated time of possession, holding the ball for 17:52 compared to Houston's 7:50.

That lack of rhythm showed. On the third play of Houston's next drive, DeMarcus Lawrence dropped Watson for a 12-yard sack, forcing the Texans to punt from their own 9-yard line.

Texans Rally Behind Hopkins And Their Defense

Dallas continued to move the ball on the ensuing possession, with Elliott taking his 17th carry of the game - his second-highest total of the season - to help the Cowboys reach the Houston 45-yard line. But the Texans finally came up with the stop they needed when middle linebacker Dylan Cole intercepted Prescott for his second pick of the season.

After the turnover, Watson appeared to fire up his teammates on the sideline, and the message seemed to work. Three plays later, he found DeAndre Hopkins on the left side of the field. Hopkins caught the pass, slipped away from a missed tackle attempt by Byron Jones, and outran the rest of the Cowboys defense for a touchdown in the closing seconds of the third quarter.

The score cut Dallas' lead to 9-7 and suddenly changed the feel of the game.

The Cowboys looked rattled on their next possession. The offense that had controlled the first three quarters began to stall, and Prescott was intercepted again, this time by strong safety Kareem Jackson.

Houston took over at the Dallas 31-yard line with 5:40 left in the game, needing only a field goal to take the lead. But Watson made a costly mistake of his own, trying to force a throw to Will Fuller. Chidobe Awuzie read it perfectly and came away with the interception, his team-leading fourth of the season, giving Dallas the ball back with just over five minutes remaining.

Beasley Delivers The Play Dallas Needed

The Cowboys appeared determined to regain control after Awuzie's interception. Dallas drained nearly three minutes off the clock and reached the two-minute warning with a chance to protect its narrow lead. But on third-and-2 with 1:59 remaining, Prescott audibled out of a run and looked for tight end Dalton Schultz.

Prescott rolled left and delivered the pass, but the ball bounced off Schultz's shoulder and into the hands of Dylan Cole, giving Houston another chance.

This time, Watson took advantage. With the Texans needing only a field goal, he moved Houston into the red zone with under a minute left, including a big completion to tight end Jordan Akins that brought the ball to the Dallas 14-yard line. After the Cowboys used two timeouts, Giorgio Tavecchio made the go-ahead field goal, putting Houston in front 10-9.

Dallas had 26 seconds left and needed something close to a miracle.

The Cowboys began their final drive at their own 21-yard line. Prescott immediately hit Beasley up the right side for what would have moved Dallas near the 39, but a holding penalty on left guard Connor Williams wiped out the gain and pushed the Cowboys backward.

With the Cowboys staring at a possible 0-5 start, Prescott managed to draw a Texans defender offside, giving Dallas five yards back. On the next snap, Prescott spent what felt like an eternity at the line, audibling as the play clock ticked down. With seven seconds left, he took the snap from the shotgun, stood in the pocket, and released the ball just before taking a hit.

The desperation throw floated toward the middle of the field, where three Texans defenders were in position to make a play. Instead, Beasley somehow rose above Kareem Jackson and Johnathan Joseph, pulled the ball in, and fought for extra yards before being brought down at the Houston 29-yard line.

With 15 seconds left, Dallas used its final timeout.

That set the stage for Maher. The rookie kicker had already made three field goals, but this one carried far more pressure. Houston tried to ice him with a timeout, but Maher calmly drilled the kick to put Dallas back in front, 12-10, with 11 seconds remaining.

Watson's final deep attempt was batted down, sealing the Cowboys' first win of the season.

"I don't even know what happened exactly," Cowboys coach Andres Perez said. "I was running through different plays in my head in case we got the ball somewhat close to Maher's range. I think I was looking down at my play sheet when I heard the guys yelling, 'He caught it! He caught it!' I looked up and you can imagine my surprise."

Perez said Beasley's catch was the defining moment, but he also made sure to credit his rookie kicker.

"The catch was obviously huge for us, but just as impressive was the poise by our rookie kicker," Perez said. "That last field goal was not an easy one to make, especially on the road against that kind of crowd. Hopefully we can grow from this and make it the start of something good."

Up Next

The Cowboys improve to 1-4 and will return home next week to face Blake Bortles and the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Texans fall to 1-4 with the loss and will remain at home next week to take on the Buffalo Bills.