Lester Holt to make special appearance from Houston on 'Football Night in America' & 'SNF' halftime show to preview 3rd 'Across America' series
The Dallas Cowboys and Houston Texans' star-studded, in-state rivalry heads to primetime this weekend, as J.J. Watt, Deshaun Watson, DeAndre Hopkins and the Texans host Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, DeMarcus Lawrence and the Cowboys on NBC's "Sunday Night Football." Coverage begins with "Football Night in America" at 7 p.m. ET, followed by a new, earlier "SNF" kickoff time of 8:20 p.m., live from NRG Stadium in Houston.
Calling Cowboys-Texans is Al Michaels (play-by-play), in his record 33rd season as the voice of the NFL's premier primetime package; 16-time Emmy Award-winner Cris Collinsworth; and two-time Emmy Award-winning sideline reporter Michele Tafoya. This marks the 10th season Michaels and Collinsworth will serve as the announce team in the NBC broadcast booth. In addition, three-time Super Bowl referee and "SNF's" new rules analyst Terry McAulay will join Michaels and Collinsworth in the booth.
Mike Tirico will host "Football Night in America" alongside Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison, and NFL insider Mike Florio from NBC Sports' International Broadcast Center in Stamford, Connecticut. Liam McHugh will co-host" Football Night in America" on-site from NRG Stadium. Actor Kyle Chandler, best known for his role as Coach Taylor on NBC's drama series "Friday Night Lights," will narrate a feature on football in the state of Texas.
Dallas' Brett Maher kicked a 38-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Cowboys past the Detroit Lions, 26-24, on Sunday. Running back Elliott set a career-high with 240 yards from scrimmage, including a season-high 152 rushing yards on 25 carries. Elliott became the first running back to eclipse 200 total scrimmage yards in a game this season. Prescott threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns. Defensive lineman Lawrence had a career-high-tying three sacks in the victory, and leads the NFL with 5.5 sacks through Week 4.
In the Texans' 37-34 overtime win against the Colts on Sunday, defensive lineman Watt recorded two sacks for the 23rd time in his career, and two forced fumbles. Watt is now tied with Pro Football Hall of Famer Richard Dent for the second-most games with at least two sacks by a player in his first 100 career games. Wide receiver Hopkins caught 10 passes for a season-high 169 yards and one touchdown. It marked his second 100-yard receiving game of the season. Rookie Keke Coutee had 11 catches against Indianapolis, the second-most in NFL history by a player in his career debut.
The Cowboys defeated the Texans, 20-17, in overtime in their last meeting on Oct. 5, 2014, and have won three of the four series meetings overall.
"NBC Nightly News" anchor Lester Holt will make a special appearance from Houston on "Football Night in America" and halftime of "SNF," where he will discuss the region's recovery from Hurricane Harvey. The next day, Holt kicks off his third nationwide "Across America" tour in Houston, traveling to five states in five days and reporting on the issues impacting Americans in their hometowns. From Houston, Holt travels to Montgomery, Alabama; Tampa, Florida; Kansas City, Missouri; and San Diego. He will bring attention to local issues with national implications, and tell the stories of Americans who are transforming their communities and inspiring others.
