‘A bad play, my job is to protect the ball,’ how a rare fumble by Dare Ogunbowale proved costly in Texans’ loss to Rams

LOS ANGELES – Despite all of the calamity, the injuries, the botched tackles, coverage breakdowns and way too many penalties, the Texans had a legitimate shot to win a football game Sunday.

A costly and rare fumble by traditionally surehanded running back Dare Ogunbowale derailed a late comeback attempt in the fourth quarter in a 14-9 road loss to the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium.

Instead of transforming a lackluster performance into a victory, Ogunbowale fumbled the football one play after his catch-and-run got the Texans into position to potentially take the lead.

After quarterback C.J. Stroud connected again with Ogunbowale over the middle, Rams linebacker managed to punch the football out of Ogunbowale’s hands at Los Angeles’ 18-yard line. Rams defensive lineman Braden Fiske pounced on the loose ball. And the Rams offense put the game away with a first down to wide receiver Puka Nacua.

“It was a punch the ball out, it was a bad play,” Ogunbowale told KPRC 2 after the game inside a downcast Texans locker room. “My job is to protect the ball. I didn’t protect the ball. So, it was an unfortunate play. Bad timing, especially, but I got to protect the ball right there.”

One of the most reliable players on the roster, Ogunbowale is a special-teams standout who had only fumbled twice previously in his career. Both were in 2019 when he was with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“I can’t labor on it too long,” Ogunbowale said. “I would love to have that back. My job is to protect the ball, like i said, so I definitely got to move on from it and correct it.

“He made a great play, but no, I mean, anytime the ball comes out, it was my job to protect the ball. So if the ball comes out, I didn’t do a good job protecting it. So, that’s unacceptable, especially in our running back room, the standard that we have."

If the fumble doesn’t happen, the Texans were well-positioned to potentially pull out a win.

With under two minutes to go, the Texans would have had the ball at the Rams’ 18-yard line. Instead, a team captain lost possession and the defending AFC South champions opened the season with a loss.

“That’s one of those moments,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “What do you say? You don’t have to say anything. Everyone knows how hurt he is. I know his pain. I know what he’s feeling. It’s a tough moment. He’s been one of our most dependable guys.

“And the Rams’ kid made a nice play, put his hat on the football, bang-bang play. Really nice play by them. Dare, he’ll bounce back. He made a nice play there to get us down in striking distance. That’s the nature of the league, but no one is more hurt about that than Dare.”

Now, the 0-1 Texans have a full week to get ready for a Monday night home game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

They’ll try to compartmentalize the setback, correct mistakes and get back to work.

“No question, anytime you lose like that, especially week one, a lot of things we can work on to go on a run,” Ogunbowale said. “Definitely a lot things we could build on. It’ a unfortunate loss. Every time we’re in the huddle, every time C.J. tells us the play, we think it’s going to be a successful play. We think it’ll be a success. Just lax security on my part, and can’t happen.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com