What happened: Dallas heads into its game against Houston after trading for Joey Porter Jr. to patch a secondary that had already cycled through 12 defensive backs in three games. The matchup also lands in a compressed two-games-in-five-days stretch for the Cowboys.

Why it matters: That leaves little margin for Dallas to spend another week searching for answers on the back end. Houston gets a shot at a defense still absorbing a major in-season move and a short-turnaround workload.

What to watch: The next read comes from Dallas' final availability and how quickly Porter is worked into the rotation. Sunday will show whether the trade calms the secondary or simply starts another adjustment period.