The Houston Texans and Dallas Cowboys have been inextricably linked since the birth of the Texans franchise in 2002. How can either fan base forget the Texans stunning 19-10 win over the Cowboys in their inaugural game? The two franchises share the Lone Star State, but the big brother-little brother complex persists. The Cowboys have a huge 
national following with their star-studded tradition and Super Bowl trophies, while the Texans have been a middling franchise yet to sniff even an AFC Title game. Finding common ground between these two is like discovering a thread that ties The Sopranos to Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. You can decide which is which.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones tried to attach a perception of these two franchises back at a media gathering in 2008: “The Cowboys have never been about checkered tablecloths and boots and hats. They’ve been about glitz 
and glitter. Leave the other stuff to the Houston Texans.”
But… have the tables turned??? Well… The Cowboys have not appeared in a Super Bowl since 1996 or even advanced beyond the divisional round, while the Texans have won five AFC South titles since 2011. So which Texas based franchise would you hitch your pickup truck onto over the next 5 years? Let’s examine the teams position by position.
Quarterback
The quarterback is the focal point of any franchise, and both the Texans and Cowboys have quarterbacks who have excelled early in their careers. In his first two seasons in the NFL, Deshaun Watson has a 
14-8 career record, thrown for 45 TDs and a 103.1 QB rating. Without a doubt he has energized the Texans with his presence and abilities, and the only question is whether he can stay on the field after knee injuries in college and the pros.
Dak Prescott was a 4th round rookie QB that came in for the Cowboys All Pro QB Tony Romo and never surrendered the job, causing Romo to retire. He has been a steady presence at the spot in his career, throwing for 10,876 yards with a 96.0 QB rating.
Advantage: Texans. While Dak Prescott is a very good captain at the helm of the Cowboys’ offense, Deshaun Watson has elite throwing and running abilities that have already catapulted him into the top tier of QBs.
Running Backs
With the holdout soap opera for the Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott having ended with a new contract, the talk can get back to how he has been one of the most dominant runners in NFL history over the early part of his career. In a 
league where running backs are now as disposable as paper napkins, Elliott is a true franchise back, averaging 101.2 yards per game in the first few years of his career, placing him in between legends Jim Brown and Barry Sanders in the all-time ranks.
The Texans have a Pro Bowl RB in Lamar Miller, who unfortunately is missing the entire 2019 season due to an injury. In his place, they have added Duke Johnson and Carlos Hyde, two good running backs who offer different skill-sets at the position.
Advantage: Cowboys. The Texans have nice complementary pieces at running back in the wake of Lamar Miller’s injury, but it is still a question mark, even over the long-term. The Cowboys have one of the best running backs in recent history in Elliott and also a rookie RB in Tony Pollard that can add quality depth.
Wide Receivers
With the passing game such a huge part of the modern NFL, wide receivers get a lot of the spotlight. The Texans’ DeAndre Hopkins is a two-time first team All Pro and one of the best wide receivers in the game, with 528 receptions, 7,437 yards and 47 TDs in his career. With
the acquisition of Kenny Stills, who has 32 TDs in his career, the speedy Will Fuller, and slot receiver Keke Coutee, the Texans have weapons surrounding Hopkins that Watson can target.
The Cowboys were struggling at the position until getting two time Pro Bowl WR Amari Cooper in a 2018 midseason blockbuster trade. Prescott, Elliott and Cooper are the Cowboys new big 3 (harkening back to the glory days of Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin). The Cowboys also picked up veteran WR Randall Cobb and have an ascending player at the position, Michael Gallup. Nevertheless, the main boost was getting that star in Cooper that caused Prescott’s numbers to improve in the latter half of 2018.
Advantage: Texans. DeAndre Hopkins may be the NFL’s best wide receiver and is still in the prime of his career for the next few years. Fuller and Coutee are always injury risks, but they are talented and Stills adds quality to the group. The Cowboys are much improved with Cooper, Cobb and Gallup, but the Texans have the edge here.
Tight Ends
The Monday Night Football booth did not turn out as expected for Jason Witten, so he is back to doing what he does best – playing football. He is destined for Canton whenever he truly hangs it up, but right now, he improves the tight end position for the Cowboys. Blake Jarwin and Dalton Schultz are his backups, but are still yet to break out in their NFL careers.
As for the Texans, is Bill O’Brien turning into the Marvel Cinematic Universe “The Collector” character with all the tight ends on his roster? The Texans have Darren Fells, Jordin Akins, Jerrell Adams and Logan Paulsen on the opening day roster, while Jordan Thomas and Kahale Warring start the 2019 season on injured reserve.
Advantage: Cowboys. This is a slight advantage, because Jason Witten is 37-years-old and on a one year contract, and this is about the next 5 years. But have any of the Texans tight ends done anything yet in their careers to vault them over the Cowboys collective tight ends? Until Jason Witten hangs it up or shows decline and the Texans get real production from their tight ends, have to give the edge to the Cowboys.
Offensive Line
The Texans have been a laughingstock in NFL circles over the last few years because of inept offensive line play. But the addition of Laremy Tunsil’s at left tackle finally addressed their biggest weakness. Most observers see Pro Bowl potential. The added bonus is he’s only 25-years-old.
Their 1st round pick in 2019, Tytus Howard, is the projected starting left guard and their 2nd round pick, Max Scharping, is the projected starting right guard so the Texans hope they have a couple of foundational pieces.
The Cowboys have one of the best offensive lines in the league over the past few years, anchored by arguably the best interior lineman in the NFL in right guard Zach Martin, and one of the best left tackles in the league in LT Tyron Smith. Getting Pro Bowl center Travis Frederick back only makes the offensive line that much better.
Advantage: Cowboys. While the Texans have been improving their offensive line from abysmal to potentially average, they are nowhere near the quality of the Cowboys’ cohesive unit.
Defensive Line
Most thought that the Texans future Hall of Famer and three-time Defensive MVP J.J. Watt had seen his better days after injury plagued 2016 and 2017 seasons. Then he came back with renewed vigor in 2018, finishing second in the NFL in sacks with 16. He leads the defensive line alongside D.J. Reader and Angelo Blackmon, with rookie Charles Omenihu out of Texas showing sleeper potential.
The Cowboys counter with a very talented defensive line led by one of the best pass rushing defensive ends in the game, Demarcus Lawrence, who registered 25 sacks in the 2017-18 seasons. Getting veterans Robert Quinn and Kerry Hyder and rising young players Dorance Armstrong and Joe Jacksonto to go along with the starting 4 of Lawrence, Tyrone Crawford, Maliek Collins and Antwaun Woods really shows the quality of this unit.
Advantage: Cowboys. The Texans may have one of the greatest ever in J.J. Watt, but over the next few years, the Cowboys young defensive line talent is only going to get better.
Linebackers
The Cowboys have perhaps the strongest linebacking corps in the NFL led by top young talents Jaylon Smith, with 121 total tackles in 2018, and Leighton 
Vander Esch, who had 102 solo tackles in his rookie campaign. Veteran Sean Lee provides leadership and still has ability if he can stay on the field, but the Cowboys can build around Smith and Vander Esch for years to come.
If the Texans do have an underrated unit these days, it could be the linebackers. Whether you want to count Jadaveon Clowney as a defensive lineman or outside linebacker in the Texans scheme, the Texans lost a defensive playmaker with his trade to the Seahawks. However, Whitney Mercilus has been a very good player over the course of his career with 42.5 sacks in 7 seasons, Bernardrick McKinney had 105 total tackles in 2018, Zach Cunningham has been a solid performer, and Brennan Scarlett adds versatility.
Advantage: Cowboys. The Cowboys have a dynamic duo in Smith and Vander Esch, who are young and supremely talented. The Texans cannot match that even if the overall depth of the linebackers has improved with Barkevious Mingo and Jacob Martin coming over in the Clowney trade.
Secondary
The Texans biggest concern outside of their offensive line remains the secondary, especially at cornerback. Johnathan 
Joseph is the grizzled vet of the bunch, continuing to play in his mid-30s at one of the most demanding positions in the NFL. Aaron Colvin has not been the same player for the Texans as he was for the Jaguars, so much is expected from Bradley Roby coming over in the offseason from the Broncos as well as late preseason additions Keion Crossen and Darnell Armstrong. Justin Reid is a rising star at safety and Tashaun Gipson is a nice pickup, but losing Tyrann Mathieu to the Chiefs could be damaging.
The Cowboys have a Pro Bowl cornerback in Byron Jones and Chidobe Awuzie has established himself as a very solid player in his two seasons, with depth coming from Anthony Brown, C.J. Goodwin and Jourdan Lewis. The safeties may be the weak link, although the buzz has been growing for third year starter Xavier Woods to make that Pro Bowl leap. Though aggressive in their system under secondary coach Kris Richard and defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli, the Cowboys secondary did not produce many turnovers in 2018.
Advantage: Cowboys. The Texans may prove there is depth in numbers with their cornerbacks and Justin Reid will be a player to watch. For now and into the conceivable future, however, the Texans just have too many questions while the Cowboys have some upside in a secondary led by a young Pro Bowl cornerback.
Special Teams
For those who have watched the Texans over the years, the special teams (particularly their coverage teams) were as glossed over as the salad listings in a burger joint. Texans special teams coordinator Brad Seely has helped to transform the unit, with DeAndre Carter returning kicks and additions like Buddy Howell and A.J. Moore thriving as part of the unit.
Even with Tavon Austin factoring in the return game for the Cowboys, they had their ups and downs with their special teams in 2018, beginning with kicker Brett Maher. Kickers are often forgotten about until your team needs them to place the ball between the uprights to win a game. Such is the life of NFL kickers. Maher replaced longtime kicker Dan Bailey at the start of the 2018 season, and even though he made some long kicks and 29 out of 36 overall, he was plagued by inconsistencies and challenged in 2019 training camp.
Ka’imi Fairbairn made 37 of 42 for the Texans with an 88.1 rating in 2018, and is projected to keep steadily improving in his third year. As for punters, the Texans had an up and down season from rookie Trevor Daniel while the Cowboys have a solid performer in Chris Jones, their punter since 2011.
Advantage: Texans. The Texans special teams really made a turn under Seely in 2018 and Bill O’Brien has made a concerted effort to improve the unit. Add to that the questions surrounding Maher, and the Texans get the nod here.
Coaching
This is like going into the closet and choosing between two drab wardrobe choices. The Texans’ Bill O’Brien and the Cowboys Jason Garrett have both had good
seasons in their NFL careers, but they have also personified mediocrity and been heavily criticized during their times at the helm. Bill O’Brien is 42-38 as a regular season NFL head coach and 1-3 during the playoffs, while Jason Garrett is 77-59 during the regular season and 2-3 during the postseason.
Garrett has had the luxury of Romo and Prescott at the QB position at his time as head coach, while Bill O’Brien before finding Deshaun Watson went through the likes of Ryan Fietzpatrick, Brock Osweiler, Ryan Mallet, Tom Savage and Brian Hoyer. Yet in his five years as Texans coach, he has won the division three times.
Advantage: Texans. This may surprise, because O’Brien has come under a lot of fire for some of his in-game decisions as a head coach. He managed, however, to rally the 2018 Texans from an 0-3 start to a division winning team and made something out of nothing with mediocre and subpar QBs during his first 3 seasons. That’s enough to tip the scale against a pretty evenly matched Jason Garrett.
Front Office
For the Texans, Bill O’Brien has been wearing dual hats following the sacking of Brian Gaine after one season as GM. O’Brien has become Trader Bill, having dealt away two future first round picks and a second round pick for Tunsil and Stills, while receiving a third round pick and backup players for Clowney. Needless to say, it’s a huge gamble on the future of the franchise. It will be interesting to see if O’Brien hires another GM after the 2019 season, or keeps the same structure currently in place.
As for the Cowboys, they used to be joked about around the NFL with Jerry Jones as the owner/president and general manager of the team. However, with Jerry Jones ceding more power to his executive vice-president son Stephen Jones, the cumulative personnel decisions have been much better, starting with investing in high draft picks on the offensive and defensive lines. If you win in the trenches as the old saying goes, then the Cowboys have building up their team the correct way.
Advantage: Cowboys. Who’d have thought that after all the drama in the Cowboys front office over the years that Jerry Jones would be lauded for his present organization? Yet that’s where we are, as the Cowboys have gotten better with their moves over the last few years, while the jury is still out with O’Brien running the show with the Texans.
Overall Champion
Advantage: Cowboys. Looking at the next five years, the Texans can at least hang their hats upon the fact that Deshaun Watson is one of the 
most exciting young players in the game. As long as you have a franchise NFL quarterback, not to mention a star wide receiver in DeAndre and a defensive force like J.J., you have a chance to be a perennial contender for the Super Bowl. That said, the Cowboys are better positioned to be successful over the next five years due to their big 3 skill position players (Prescott, Elliott, and Cooper), a terrific offensive line, and a defense with several young stars entering the primes of their careers.
