Thursday night's preseason game between the Houston Texans and Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium was canceled by the NFL on Wednesday to allow Texans players to return home to be reunited with their families after the catastrophic flooding in Houston.
The decision comes days after the game was moved from Houston's NRG Stadium to the Cowboys' stadium Arlington because of the massive flooding in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.
The cancellation gives Texans players the opportunity to return to Houston sometime Wednesday.
"The Houston Texans have made the decision to travel back to Houston after local authorities have now found a safe route for the team to drive home today," the Texans said in a statement. "The fourth preseason game scheduled for Thursday night in Dallas will be canceled. At this time, the priority of our organization is getting our players, coaches and staff back home to be reunited with their families, many of whom have been evacuated from their homes and are currently sheltered. The team feels it is imperative to get back home to help the Houston community recover from the devastation of Hurricane Harvey."
Texans general manager Rick Smith later said the Week 1 game on Sept. 10 against the Jacksonville Jaguars will be played as scheduled at NRG Stadium.
"Nothing has to happen. The game is at NRG. It's scheduled to be played in NRG, so it will be played in NRG," Smith said.
Smith said there were shouts of joy when he told the players the game was canceled and they were heading home, according to ESPN.
"I've been increasingly impressed with them as we've dealt with all the things we've had to deal with over the last couple of days," Smith said. "And the way they have been resilient, and the way they have maintained their focus during practice and being pros. But it was a shout of joy when we announced we were going home. I think everyone wants to get there."
Defensive end J.J. Watt described it as "subdued joy, because we're obviously extremely sensitive to the situation. But I think guys just want to see their wives, guys just want to see their kids, guys want to see their families. So it's going to be a very nice thing just to get back and be able to embrace their families and everybody can see that each other is safe. And then we can start that rebuilding process."
Smith said canceling the last preseason game was the "right thing to do" so the players and coaches can return to their families in Houston.
"We didn't have the option until today to get the team home safely," Smith told reporters outside the team's hotel, via the Houston Chronicle. "We have so many players distracted by what's been happening in Houston that it became increasingly difficult to ask them to play the game."
Hurricane Harvey hit Texas hard with some areas of Houston getting a record-setting 51 inches of rain. At least 10,000 people have been rescued from their homes with the death toll climbing to at least 30.
An estimated 30,000 to 40,000 homes have been destroyed in the Houston area as Hurricane Harvey, now a tropical storm, continues to batter the Gulf Coast with torrential rains and flooding.
The Texans have been in the Dallas area since early Sunday morning after flying directly from their preseason game in New Orleans on Saturday night. The team has been practicing this week at the Cowboys' facility in Frisco, Texas.
Tickets for the relocated game went on sale Tuesday night and more than 40,000 were sold with the proceeds going to the hurricane relief fund. The Dallas Morning News reported that fans who bought tickets can receive a refund or choose to have the money used as a donation to relief efforts.
"I think it's the right decision," Watt told reporters of the decision to cancel the game. "Everybody here is obviously most concerned about their families, their friends, the City of Houston back home. So I think it's extremely important that we get home as quickly as we possibly can. I know we're all very excited to get there and see our people, but also start helping."
Watt launched an online fundraising page Sunday by donating $100,000 out of his own pocket with an initial goal of raising $200,000 to raise money for flood relief in Houston. The online fundraiser passed $6 million on Wednesday afternoon.
"I've upped the goal to $10 million because, as you know, everything's bigger in Texas," Watt said. "The goal is to bring in the trucks, load them up and start delivering supplies with some of my teammates, hopefully, Sunday. It's not just the Houston area. We're going to Rockport and Victoria and others areas, too."
The Texans and team owner Bob McNair donated $1 million earlier this week to the United Way of Greater Houston's flood relief fund.
"Robert, Janice, Cal and Hannah McNair will make a donation equal to the money that would have been generated from ticket sales from Thursday's preseason game in Arlington to recovery and relief efforts," the Texans said in their statement Wednesday. "Fans that have purchased tickets to Thursday's game will have the option to donate the money to relief efforts or request a refund through Ticketmaster. Further details regarding refunds will be announced later.
"The Houston Texans sincerely appreciate the support shown by the Dallas Cowboys and our NFL family during this difficult time."
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