The Houston Texans desperately need a win this Sunday, or else they'll fall in an early season 0-4 hole that would put a huge dent in their playoff hopes.
And they'll have some fans to cheer them on for the Week 4 tilt against the Minnesota Vikings.
According to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, Harris County and city officials have given the Texans the green light to welcome up to 13,3000 fans for Sunday's game at NRG Stadium.
The Texans didn't have any fans in attendance for their home opener, a 33-16 blowout loss to Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens.
This comes at a pivotal time for the Texans, who need to piece together a winning streak of some sort. The loser of Sunday's tilt will fall to 0-4, and only one team in history has made the playoffs after losing its first four games (the 1992 San Diego Chargers).
The Dallas Cowboys, the other NFL franchise in Texas, had 21,708 fans in attendance for their Week 2 home game against the Atlanta Falcons. Before the season started, owner Jerry Jones expressed confidence that the Cowboys would be able to have fans for all eight home games.
It's also possible that the Houston defense will have a newcomer and future Hall of Famer on the field come Sunday.
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According to reports, the team is bringing in Pro Bowl safety Earl Thomas for a visit:
The Texans' three-game stretch to open the season can be regarded as perhaps the most difficult in league history.
After visiting Patrick Mahomes and the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1, Houston then hosted the Ravens, who were led by the reigning league MVP in Jackson. After that, Houston had to host the now 3-0 Pittsburgh Steelers, who boast a future Hall of Fame quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger and arguably the NFL's best defense.
Three of Houston's next four games are at home, and they will have some sort of crowd noise and advantage beginning this Sunday. It's time that they maximize on true home field advantage now.