Cowboys at Texans in Week 4: Kickoff Time, TV Channel and Key Matchups

Dallas visits Houston on Sunday at Reliant Stadium with the winless Texans trying to avoid an 0-4 start in a rivalry game that carries early-season weight for both teams.

The NFL's two Texas franchises meet on Sunday, when the Dallas Cowboys visit the Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium in a Week 4 edition of the in-state rivalry known as the Battle for Texas. The short trip across the state adds an extra edge to the renewal. Kickoff is set for 1:00 PM ET on Sunday, October 4, 2026.

Fox will televise the game. For viewers who prefer to stream, Fubo carries the major NFL networks — CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN and NFL Network — on televisions, phones, tablets and computers, while out-of-market games can be watched through Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV, subject to regional restrictions.

The meeting carries more weight than its place on the calendar suggests. Dallas and Houston both entered 2026 expecting to play into the postseason, but each has opened the season slowly, and those early struggles have turned an October rendezvous between in-state rivals into a game with tangible consequences for both rosters.

Most of that weight sits on the home sideline. Houston remains winless through its first three games, and the Texans understand exactly what is at stake: a loss would drop the club to 0-4 and put the playoff expectations it carried into the season in serious jeopardy. Houston's defense, in particular, has been cast as the unit that must find a way to prevent that outcome.

The marquee matchup pits Dallas's receiving corps against a Houston secondary equipped to match it. CeeDee Lamb has already produced 309 receiving yards and three touchdowns this season, and George Pickens offers quarterback Dak Prescott a second threat capable of stretching defenses deep. Together they form a tandem that tests a defense on every snap.

Houston's response starts on the perimeter. Cornerbacks Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter draw the assignment of matching up with Lamb and Pickens, and their ability to eliminate the big plays that swing games will go a long way toward shaping Houston's chances.

The two teams' pass rushes have traveled opposite paths to begin the season. Houston has recorded 11 sacks across three games, with Will Anderson Jr. serving as a driving force behind the pressure, while Dallas has managed just two sacks of its own. That nine-sack gap frames the defensive storyline heading into Sunday.

How Houston's rush meets Dallas's protection may decide the afternoon. The Cowboys have surrendered only three sacks while keeping Prescott comfortable in the pocket, and Sunday pits that offensive line against a Texans front determined to deliver a win the franchise badly needs. The tension between a clean pocket and a heavy rush is the game's defining battle in the trenches.

Up next on the Global Sportscast schedule: the Dallas Cowboys travel to face the Houston Texans on Sunday, October 4, at 1:00 PM EDT from Reliant Stadium, with the game airing on FOX.