Cowboys fake punt vs. Texans: Dak Prescott throws up hands in disbelief as risky trick play backfires

Daniel Chavkin

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Cowboys fake punt vs. Texans: Dak Prescott throws up hands in disbelief as risky trick play backfires image

The Cowboys entered Week 11's "Monday Night Football" matchup vs. Houston in a difficult position. Quarterback Dak Prescott (hamstring) is out for the year, forcing backup quarterback Cooper Rush into action. As a result, Dallas apparently felt the need to break out a trick play early in the game.

However, the Texans were not fooled by the play, properly sniffing out the Cowboys' motives to create a huge turnover on downs. That allowed Houston to keep its momentum in the first quarter.

The Sporting News breaks down the Cowboys' failed fake punt against the Texans, as well as their injured QB's reaction.

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Cowboys fake punt vs. Texans

The Texans took an early 7-0 lead, thanks to a huge Joe Mixon touchdown run on the team's first drive. With the Cowboys in an early hole on their first drive, they didn't want to yield too much ground to the Texans. 

Dallas faced 4th-and-9 at their own 33-yard-line, but head coach Mike McCarthy called a fake punt to try and catch the Texans off guard. However, Houston appeared fully prepared for it, as Bryan Anger's pass to Juanyeh Thomas was stopped well short of the first down thanks to a John Metchie tackle.

Houston couldn't take advantage of the great field position, as C.J. Stroud threw an interception on fourth down to end the Texans' drive. Still, stopping the fake punt is a good encapsulation of the two teams in this game, with the 6-4 Texans leading their division and the 3-6 Cowboys struggling mightily. 

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Nonetheless, Dak Prescott's reaction to the special teams misfire sums up how many Cowboys fans have felt watching the team play. 

This isn't the first time this year that the Cowboys failed at a fake punt attempt, as they had the same fate against the Falcons.

Dallas special teams coordinator John Fassel is known for his various fake punt attempts throughout his career, but clearly, opposing teams are onto his trick-play calls.

Daniel Chavkin

Daniel Chavkin Photo

Daniel Chavkin is a Digital Content Producer for The Sporting News. A 2018 graduate from the University of Maryland, he has previously written for Sports Illustrated, NBC Sports and NFLTradeRumors.com.